The Special Privilege of Being the Parent of a Child With Down Syndrome

By Eileen Haupt


October is Down Syndrome Awareness Month. It is a time when scores of advocacy organizations and individuals across the country do their utmost to raise awareness about this genetic condition.

I was thinking about Awareness and how unaware I was about Down syndrome prior to the birth of Sadie, my second daughter, almost 15 years ago. It got me thinking, what are some of the things I would like others to be aware of?

In particular, because such a high percentage of babies diagnosed with Down syndrome are aborted—estimates run as high as 90%– I thought I’d use this post to talk to the mothers carrying babies with Down syndrome. There is so much information available now, but unfortunately a lot of it is misinformation.

So, to the mother who has recently been told by her doctor that her unborn baby has Down syndrome, here’s what I would like her to know:

You will love your baby. Really. You have received many subtle and not so subtle negative messages about individuals with this condition. These messages are distorted; they are not the truth. The truth is that you will fall in love with your baby, just as you would any of your children.

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