A 35-year-old woman has been having a hard time with her whole family because they want her to make a hard choice. In her letter, she told us about her Down syndrome son. The woman told what her 3-year-old son has taught her and the rest of their family that is very important. The mom asked us to share her story because she wanted to send a message to our readers that might be in the same situation.
The woman was the first to notice that Sarah’s son has Down’s syndrome.
Sarah, who is 35 years old, wrote an open letter to our editor about the hard times and good times she has had as a mom to a special child. Sarah told us that from the start she felt like everyone was against her and that she was being forced to make a choice she didn’t want to make. Many people may find her story inspiring.
First, the woman began her letter, “I want to thank you for being such a positive and enlightening place for people who want to be heard without being judged.” I want to tell your page’s followers my story. I hope that many people who are struggling with social opinions and judgments can find hope in it.
Sarah’s story continues when she says, “I LOVE my son, but ever since he was born, I’ve been having a hard time with my whole family because I’m under a lot of stress.” Every day, this is how I feel when I wake up and when I go to sleep. Zach is my three-year-old son. He was born with Down’s syndrome. I’ve been happy for all three years of his life.
The woman said, “Zach is our third and final child. We had no idea he would be born with Down’s syndrome.” It made my husband Paul and me very happy when we learned we were going to have a third child, a boy. No scans or tests showed anything.
I was the one who noticed that Zach had Down’s syndrome, but I feel very bad that I told the doctors about it. I might have been able to enjoy him for a little while longer until other people noticed instead of worrying about how to deal with people giving me bad advice and opinions.
Sarah is a mom to two other kids, and being a mom is hard for her.
Sarah told them that being a mom has never been easy for her. The woman said she has two more daughters. She wrote, “My oldest daughter is nine years old. She was born from my first marriage.” The girl has autism and can’t talk. I’ve been spending a huge amount of time on her rehabilitation, therapy, and developmental programs.
And my husband Paul has always loved and accepted her. He is a big part of raising her, and they have a great relationship. Without a doubt, our middle daughter is a neurotypical child. She’s the heart of our family.
Sarah told him that she was worried about what would happen to her middle child. The person wrote, “I was afraid she would soon feel like she’s being pushed to the side.” I thought that Zach and the oldest girl would keep me so busy that I wouldn’t have much time for the middle child, and I felt bad about this all the time.
My parents made things worse by saying I was barely paying attention to my middle daughter. They saw that whenever she asked me to help her with her homework, read to her, or give her a little extra attention before bed, I had to rush through it because I had two other kids to care for. And this was making me feel sick inside.”
A lot of things were hard for her every day, and her family didn’t do much to help.
Sarah said, “Zach is three years old now, and I can’t picture my life without him.” Every day with him is hard, but I love seeing how far he’s come, even if it’s just a little thing. During that time, my parents and three sisters have never helped me in any way. That being said, they think I really want their advice on how to act.
“My parents weren’t ready for the news that Zach has Down’s syndrome,” the woman wrote. My mom started searching the web for information about what it’s like to be a parent of a child with Down syndrome and the problems they face every day. Mom has never sent me anything that would make me feel better or help me deal with my kids better. Instead, she was always telling me that I had twice as much to do and that I wouldn’t be able to handle all of my kids.
Sarah went on to say, “My sisters talked to me one at a time, and they all pushed me to decide to adopt Zach.” They told him he would be safer in a certain spot where trained staff would take care of him. They wouldn’t stop telling me that I would fail to give him everything he needs and that I would soon have no time for him at all. As the stress and pressure built up, I began to have doubts. But soon after, I realized that everything I was doing was wrong and that I would never betray Zach because I love him and consider him my son.
Sarah said that so far, her son has taught her a lot of important things.
Sarah wrote, “My 3-year-old son Zach has already taught me more than I have learned in the 35 years I have been alive.” The newborn intensive care unit was where he had to stay for a few weeks. There, we met some of the kindest and nicest people who work there. We also met people who would have been much better off not saying what they thought, but we finally learned how to deal with advice we didn’t want to hear.
I had to fight with my family to give Zach a chance. He proved me right and showed people that they should be kind and give things a chance via this fight. For every time I push Zach to do something, he does it and shows everyone what he can do.
“Zach taught us that we should always be happy about the little things in life,” Sarah admitted. Little things can add up to big things. Zach is always so proud of himself when he learns something new. For some, it might not seem like much, but for Zach, it’s a big deal. Because of this, we learned to celebrate his wins and keep pushing him to do better.
“No one is the same,” Sarah wrote. We’re all unique, and we all like and are good at different things. Zach has taught my family, including my parents, how important it is to accept this with everyone. He showed us that disabled people are just like everyone else; they shine when they do what they love and are good at. By being himself, Zach tells us, “Embrace what I’m good at and let me shine.”
Click below to watch more…