My Son Has Down Syndrome, How Do I Deal With The News?

It is undoubtedly a difficult time to know that your child has Down Syndrome, in principle it will change your plans and expectations. How to deal with the news? Expressing your feelings and seeking qualified information.

On the website that talks about this topic, they perfectly explain what you should feel: The diagnosis of Down syndrome implies accepting that your child will not be the one you expected and that a part of your dreams and expectations will necessarily have to change.

“Surely you feel a great uncertainty and you face fears that seem unmanageable”, reviews one of the articles on the page. Experts recommend that you express your feelings whatever they are, including anger and rejection.

“It is advisable to give parents a few moments to express their fears, or to ask the questions that are being asked. It is common for an immediate emotional reaction to take place: crying, screaming or expressions of rejection ”, say Down Spain experts.

They also advise that you ask all the questions you have to a professional, who may, based on what is demanded of him, offer more information or invite them to a later visit to answer new questions that may arise in the days after the first News.

Many parents experience deep discomfort and concern about how this will affect their future, and they also want to make sure that their child will be okay, that he will be able to take care of himself.

“When the doctor has satisfied all these requirements, the responsibility for making a decision and its consequences corresponds to the parents, ” say the experts from the Down Spain Foundation.

Experimenting makes a difference

The Down Spain Federation indicates that before undergoing a prenatal test whose purpose is to establish or rule out the diagnosis of Down syndrome, it is convenient to have all the information available.

It is also advisable to have contact with other parents who have lived through this experience, so it would be very positive if they were given the opportunity to visit the association with Down syndrome closest to their home, where they will answer their questions and learn more about the people with Down syndrome.

Many parents find support and guidance in their doctors, their family and friends, and also in associations of people with Down syndrome. Establishing contact with the daily life of these people and listening to their experiences can offer a point of view that helps you in such difficult times.

Most parents who decide to have a child with this syndrome or who find out after the child came into the world, say that their child is the best thing that has happened to them in the world.  They almost always underline their sensitivity, their sweetness, their innocence and how they have taught them to be better people, to see the world from different angles.

We live in a very special time, full of new possibilities, technology, science and everything is in our favor. There are plenty of examples of people with Down who have become financially and emotionally independent.

“People with Down syndrome, if they receive the necessary care and education, from birth and throughout their lives, will be able to develop their capacities to the maximum and occupy an active place in society,” say the notes of Down Spain.

The diagnosis

In the case of prenatal diagnosis, professionals must be able to provide you with all the information you need so that you can decide on the convenience of performing any type of test, assessing the benefits and risks that each one entails.

You, as a mother, must grant permission to undergo such tests, however minimally invasive, only after understanding what kind of information they will provide and what your options will be after knowing the results. The most common and most reliable diagnostic test is amniocentesis.

In its articles, the Spanish Society of Pediatrics, reiterates that before the diagnosis of being a carrier of a fetus with Down syndrome, your doctor must inform you, without biases or pre-established positions, about the existing alternatives, referring, where appropriate, to those who wish to expand your information so you can make a decision.

It is important that you know that a child with Down Syndrome will give you as much or more happiness than any other child and that they will be able to have a practically normal life.