Children With Disabilities

Most women during the last decade undergo a number of diagnostic tests when they are pregnant, including generally a test for Down Syndrome. However, my aunt did not have such a test because, at 26, she was far younger than most mothers who give birth to babies with this syndrome, which includes a number of physical symptoms (such as slightly slanted eyes and shortened fingers and toes) as well as cognitive disabilities ranging from the mild to the severe. Those Down Syndrome individuals with the most severe cognitive disabilities associated with this genetic condition are unable to live independently or even in a home environment and tend to be institutionalized. My cousin has a moderately severe level of mental disability, and has always been able to live at home with his parents and his siblings.

Because my aunt and uncle were not expecting a child with disabilities (after having had four children who had no health problems) their initial experiences were fairly chaotic as well as traumatic. Because I lived close by (only six blocks)

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called her and she was very articulate in convincing the two doctors that no mother should be discouraged from nursing and that since my aunt and cousin would be staying in the hospital for several days there would be plenty of professionals around to judge if my cousin was getting enough nutrition from nursing alone. It turned out that he was, and this was an important lesson for both me and my aunt: It's important to trust one's own instincts and not assume that professionals necessarily know what's better for a particular individual or a particular family. And sometimes, even when you think that you are right and a particular professional is wrong, it may be important to bring in another professional (like the lactation expert, in this case) to help argue one's point (Barlett and Wright 82). Other experiences later on in his life with other professionals proved to be smoother. For example, Down Syndrome children often develop speech skills much later than do children without this particular disability (because of the same physical problems that prevent their nursing). This was true of my cousin. My aunt and uncle and my oldest cousin all took classes in how to help my cousin develop his speech and they began working with him w
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Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1325
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page)

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