Here is a piece I wrote recently explaining why I admire Yvonne Pierre, who started the Down Syndrome website HYHOnline.com
Yvonne Pierre is an inspiration. She is a very strong, black single mother, living locally in the Atlanta area. This is her story.
A mother’s intuition is always right.
Throughout my pregnancy, I felt that there was something special about my baby, but I could not put my finger on it. Shortly after giving birth to Zyon, looking at him for the first time, I thought I noticed something unusual in his appearance, but as the Medical staff said nothing, I assumed it was my imagination. Even when he started to have “digestive problems” and was rushed to the Intensive Care Unit, I suppressed my fears and put my trust in the doctors.
When the doctors told me that my son had a heart condition, and that they believed this could be because he had Downs Syndrome, I could not hold back the tears.
However, almost as soon as I gave in to the tears, I felt angry with myself, and said “What am I crying for? He is here!” – and I haven’t cried since.
The next time I felt angry was when the doctors told me "Don’t get your hopes up.. he probably will not result to anything" and “If you get pregnant again, we can test you in enough time to abort it, if it has Downs”.
Almost immediately, my anger turned to pity for these poor doctors, who had such limiting beliefs about my son’s future, these doctors who had never met my son before, and could not possibly predict what he would do or would not do with his life.
I resolved never to put limitations on either one of my children, and Zyon would be no different. I have faith in the Creator and I believe that He makes no mistakes. So why would I dare believe that He had made one with my son? No matter what the ability or disability, we all serve a divine purpose.
Now, two years on, Zyon is walking, communicating, and he loves to dance and sing. He is very observant and picks up on things quickly, and he is such a loving, happy child.
My experience taught me something very important. There is not enough positive awareness of the children and adults with Down syndrome. Parents are often worried and depressed because they believe what the doctors say about their children – some of them even abort their babies because of this misconception.
From my anger at this misconception, there came the birth of "Have Ya Heard? The Ability of Downs".. The site www.hyhonline.com (HYH Online) was designed to promote positive awareness, provide information on Down syndrome, resources, reviews and many more things to come.
HYH Online will give hope to new and existing parents that feel as though there is no hope. What a parent believes will have a huge impact on their child’s outcome, as it does with any child. My goal is to help others to find that hope and to let them know that blessings always come in disguise.
For more information visit us at HYH Online (website listed above) or send us an email to admin@hyhonline.com.
