Should You Have Your Unborn Baby Tested For Down Syndrome?

Whenever you are expecting a child, it can be a time of high anxiety for both the mother to be and her partner. I can tell you that when my wife was pregnant, I had a number of fears that kept me up late at night. These sleepless nights are not unusual for any expectant parent. However, in most cases these worries eventually end up becoming nothing more than a few nights of lost sleep. Unfortunately, other parents end up having to face these fears head on, as they become a reality.

I don't believe there was ever an expectant parent who did not worry about their child being born with a birth defect or some other complication, such as being born premature. These fears are severely heightened whenever it comes time to test your baby for Down syndrome. If you are expecting your first child you should be prepared for the day that your doctor asks you if you want to test your unborn child for this condition. It is an entirely optional test, however.

My wife and I had to face this decision and it was extremely difficult for both of us. This is not an issue that is black and white, or has a right answer, unfortunately. Since my wife was 33, there was an elevated risk of our baby being born with Down syndrome, but it wasn't something that prevented us from trying to conceive. It is true that as a woman ages, her chances for having a baby with this condition increase, but life itself is a risk and we refused to let this fear stop us from having a baby. Now we were facing our fears again and had to struggle to make a decision on whether to have our baby tested or not.

We debated back and forth about many of the scenarios we would face if we had this testing done, including what we would do if the results came back positive. It was an agonizing discussion and we both worried if the test said our baby had Down syndrome, if an abortion would be an option. But we also struggled with the fact that we had no right to decide this child's fate, despite the fact that he or she had Down syndrome.

In the end we decided not to have the testing done and we had a healthy and happy baby girl that is the joy of my life.

When it does come time for you and your partner to decide whether or not to have this testing done, keep in mind that even if the results are positive, it is not a certainty that your baby will be born with Down syndrome. That of course brings up an entirely new dilemma. I can tell you now that there are no easy answers in this situation, but the best thing you can do is to discuss it thoroughly with your partner and make the decision that you feel is right for the two of you, not the answer you feel pressured to make.

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You can find more of Williams's articles on his favorite blog, http://BabyDollStroller.net. Here you will find his latest article on breastfeeding and pumping that many new mothers may find helpful.

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