Last week she had her IPS testing (outlined here) done, and we were talking about it. When I was offered it, I refused, and actually switched doctors because the one I was seeing was very adamant that he could not give me proper care without having it done.
My sister said if the tests came back with a 1 in 1 chance her baby would have Downs Syndrome, or any other genetic disorder, she would abort, claiming it would change her life too much (can you tell she's a first time parent?). I didn't want to be faced with that decision. I'm not judging her, or anyone, it is their choice... I just felt for me, being in one of the low-risk groups (young, healthy, no history of such in my family) and knowing that my life would change drastically after delivery anyways, opted not to do it... and I find myself explaining my choice more and more... for test thats optional, not demanded, more and more low-risk women are having it done. I'm not judging, but I just find it fascinating.
Knowing I'm pretty easy-going and can roll with the punches, I was sure I would be able to handle (as well as any other parent) a high-needs child. Knowing I was very low-risk, and having an intuition that everything was ok, I really dug in my heels and refused that test.
It makes me wonder about all the choices women have to make when they are expecting, finding out terrible news, and having to decide how to proceed, or if to do so. The toughness of pregnancy goes beyond the changing body and goes way into the change in mindset.
When you look at it, pregnancy is way more challenging than it seems.
