Down Syndrome Awareness Day 5

Good morning! I know what you’re thinking: two posts in a week? When was the last time I did that! Well, I have some advocating I need to do and I don’t believe I’ve talked about Down Syndrome Awareness Month yet-shame on me! October is probably best known for Breast Cancer Awareness but it’s also Down Syndrome Awareness and today is day five!

On Facebook, Baskets of Love-Down Syndrome is posting facts for each day of October to spread awareness. Today’s is about how common Down Syndrome actually is. Who knew right?

It’s funny, before Jameson, Down syndrome never popped out for me before-I guess it’s not something I was looking for. I like to compare it to buying a new car, once you buy it you see it EVERYWHERE! That’s how it’s been for me. I never realized how-for lack of a better word-surrounded by the Down Syndrome community we are. It’s pretty spectacular really.

For something so common it’s strange to feel so unaware of it. Ignorance isn’t always bliss ya know?

When you find out your child has Down Syndrome, or any other diagnosis I’m sure, you go through a period of feeling alone, worrying that your child will feel alone. I can tell you from experience that simply is not that case. You saw from our Buddy Walk pictures the friends and family we had surrounding us, not to mention all the other families that were there with their children! These are local people!

There are programs, the Special Olympics, classes that can teach him basic life skills so one day he may be able to live independently (or he can stay with mommy forever which is fine by me!)-basically everything any other child can participate in, Chooch can participate in and more!

Statistics get a bad rep mostly. You hear a lot of “don’t be a statistic” and for a lot of things that’s true. I am happy to say that our family truly feels blessed to be apart of the 1 in 700 statistic for Down Syndrome. We wouldn’t have it any other way!