“I had a thousand questions, but all I could muster was, ‘How does this increase my chances?’ She replied, ‘From about 1 in 320 to 1 in 6.’ The wind was knocked out of me.”
‘What if she has it?’ My husband answered swiftly, ‘She’s our girl. She’ll be awesome regardless.’: Mom in ‘awe’ of daughter with Down syndrome
‘I felt nothing. The alarm started sounding and nurses flooded into the room. All I could say was, ‘Does she have it?’: Mom recounts labor experience of daughter with Down syndrome
“And when the nurse said to me, ‘Are you okay? You don’t seem excited.’ I hated her for it. I hated that I hated her for it, but I did. They began inducing me, and the minute they did I started contracting.”
‘My world FROZE. ‘I’ll never get to do the things I want with her.’ Am I even cut out for this?’: New mom births ‘perfect’ baby girl with Down syndrome, ‘She is our angel’
“‘She looks like she has Down syndrome.’ I quickly brushed it off and told him he was overreacting. Then the pediatrician came in.”
‘They die early. They don’t even live long.’ Why couldn’t my peers treat PEOPLE like PEOPLE? I decided to help.’: Woman advocates for those with Down syndrome, ‘I want their voices to be heard’
“‘You have a lot of nerve and patience to spend all your time with them.’ I’m LUCKY to be surrounded by all of this love.”
‘As I laid eyes on her for the first time, they quickly pointed out everything ‘wrong’ with her.’: Mom ‘blindsided’ by daughter’s Down syndrome diagnosis, ‘I’m no longer afraid’
“Her beautiful, almond-shaped eyes, the way her tongue rested gently on her bottom lip, and her tiny pinky with the slightest curve. I was in shock.”
‘She stood at the microphone and whispered, ‘Thanks, Dad.’ I wasn’t the only one crying. SHE was teaching ME.’: Daughter with Down syndrome exceeds expectations, ‘She inspired each of us’
“She pulled her fist back toward her waist whispering, ‘YES, I did it!’”
‘The results came back 90% positive.’ My world crumbled. This wasn’t our plan. This wasn’t how we envisioned our family.’: Mom shares Down syndrome acceptance journey, ‘We’re LUCKY’
“You’ll grieve the life you thought your child would live. You’ll wonder why this happened to you and your family and your baby. You’ll wonder if you did something to deserve this. And all those thoughts are okay. That’s how you get to the other side.”
‘There’s a 92% chance.’ I had NO IDEA if we could handle it. But when we saw his almond-shaped eyes, our hearts were stolen.’: Mom births son with Down syndrome, ‘We are truly blessed’
“I had this perfect idea of what our lives would look like. I’ll never forget that phone call. ‘Your testing came back positive for Down Syndrome.’ I felt scared, but I also felt PEACE.”
‘I was alone in a dark delivery room. My husband called out, ‘Jill?’ His tone told me to brace myself.’: Mom births baby with Down syndrome, ‘She’s absolutely perfect’
“I had every negative thought you can think of. ‘Will she be okay? Will our lives revolve around hospital visits now?’ The little girl I envisioned was fading away.”
‘You’re measuring 17 weeks, not 6.’ I went from having a choice to becoming a mom. I was in a dark place.’: Single mom births baby with Down syndrome, ‘I wouldn’t change a thing’
“My test results came back. I started sobbing hysterically as I called my mom. Not only was I traumatized by the fact I was 4 months pregnant, but I was possibly giving birth to a special needs child.”
