When families learn of their child’s Down syndrome diagnosis for the first time, doctors are often cold and discouraging. Mothers can be pressured to abort and given worst-case scenarios about their child’s future quality of life.
A recent video from Nothing Down, titled “Dear Doctor” brings light to the troubling ways medical professionals handle Down syndrome diagnosis.
One mom remembers her doctor’s reaction:
All she said was, “If you wanted to have an abortion, you could. It’s not legal in New Jersey, but we could offer it to you in another state.”
Another recalls:
It just went from, “You’re having a baby” to “Now, do you wanna still have the baby… or do you wanna discontinue your pregnancy?” And I was like, “I just wanna be a mom.”
Nothing Down is so proud to present our latest documentary short, "Dear Doctor." We often hear of the heartbreaking ways in which many families receive their child's Down syndrome diagnosis. It is our goal to change the narrative and to work with the medical community to ensure that EVERY parent is delivered their child's Down syndrome diagnosis with compassion, up-to-date education, proper resources, and hope. We believe that this film has the strong potential to ignite a much needed change for future parents. We want you to #JoinTheMovement! Please share this video along with your own #DearDoctor moment, sharing with the medical community how your diagnosis was received and offering suggestion on how to make it better. We'd love to hear your #DearDoctor moment, below in the comments as well, along with a picture of your loved one. We will be featuring your stories on our social media pages throughout the month. Thank you to the families involved for sharing your stories with the world. We are so grateful to each and every one of you.#DearDoctor #BeTheChange #JoinTheMovement #NothingDown
Posted by Nothing Down on Wednesday, October 24, 2018
At the Jerome Lejeune Foundation, it hurts us to hear these heartbreaking stories from parents of children with Down syndrome. We want to ensure that when parents receive a diagnosis of Down syndrome for their child, they are supported by compassionate, knowledgeable doctors who can provide them with accurate information, helpful resources, and hope for their child’s future.
