Down Syndrome Awareness: Emberley
Join us in October for Down Syndrome Awareness Month as families from our DSDN Birth support group share,
what they wish others knew about their child with Down syndrome.
My husband and I come from toxic marriages and found friendship, understanding and love with each other. We each have children from those marriages, and at the time we got married, all together we had an 11 year old, 8 year old and a 4 year old.
The five of us all lived together crammed into a 25 foot dilapidated 5th wheel trailer. We were very poor but somehow we always made it work. Sometimes we just barely made it, by the skin of our teeth.
We shared my beat up Toyota Camry that was constantly falling apart. To say it wasn’t the time to be bringing a baby into the world would be an understatement. There was no place to even put a baby!
I remember feeling generally icky and I thought that I had bronchitis, so my husband took me to the doctor. They had me take a pregnancy test as a standard protocol for new patients. I was quite surprised when the doctor came back and told me “Congratulations! You don’t have bronchitis!” My head was spinning as I left the clinic.
What were we going to do? How in the world were we going to make this work!? I felt so stupid. There were times we didn’t even have warm water! My husband and I would live on peanut butter from the jar so that our kids could eat real food. I was devastated and quickly spun into a depression.
I was in an ugly custody battle with my children’s father and could barely keep it together. I just couldn’t wrap my head around bringing a baby into all that. My husband and I are resilient though, and we always made it work no matter what we were faced with. He assured me this would be no different. We needed to stick together, be strong and have faith. Faith can be a hard thing to have in your darkest moments.
The beginning of my pregnancy was rough. I was so sick all the time. I missed the first round of genetic testing and didn’t think much of it. I almost missed the second trimester generic screening but my husband had me go back and do it. I didn’t think it was necessary but he did, so we had it done.
Read more about Emberley’s story tomorrow!
Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will. – Roman 12:2 NIV