Hi Maiki, Andy, Shilpa, Piorot, Danielle, Jemme....
I was on this site after a long time and was surprised that there were so much of arguments over this issue.
As a parent, I can only say, yes, there are loads of good from bad and I too have got my rewards too. But at the same time, as a mother it becomes very difficult to see your child go through all that he or she has to go through in order to live. No matter how positive one is and how courageous one is, it is indeed very very difficult. It is okay for you to go through any physical pain, but when your child suffers, it is the most painful experience one can have.
Even after so many years ( my daughter is 30) the pain never seem to go away. Does that mean I have not been positive or did not instill the correct attidude in her? Everyday of my life I have prayed.. God, please give me all her troubles and make her better. Everytime I think of her, tears come to my eyes.
Yes, after reading all the posts, I feel Andy is right in so many ways. I think he understands what each Thal or their parents go through .. all their lives. Forget about who can afford and who cannot afford treatment or how much better it has become for Thals now in terms of medication etc. That is a another issue alltogether.
You too have come a long way Maiki... seen a lot of suffering and pain. So has all the other Thal adults who are doing so well in life inspite of all the hardships.
But you have still not felt what it is for a mother to see the sufferings day after day and will probably see all her life. Your mother me and all the other mothers try to be brave but there is still a lot of pain within us. And I am not sure if most of us would like to go through all this again? It still breaks our heart with each needle prick, with each complication, not to talk of the fear of what might happen next all the time looming over us.
We have seen this for so many years. so you can imagine what a young mother might go through at first. You try to so hard to be brave, and instill that in your child. But behind closed doors, tears never stop.
One can argue, as i have seen in the posts.. that calamities can occur any time in life even if your child did not have Thal.. it could be somethimng else... or that no bed is a bed of roses... right!.. ... .. but again that is another matter altogether. But to struggle from day one of your life with something for which there is still no cure and the supportive treatment is so painful and complicated.... can be desparing for any mother.
I may be wrong in my thinking... but this is coming from my heart.. I hope you will understand.
So each woman will have to make their own decisions I guess..and there is no use of arguing as to what is right or wrong because what is wrong for you may not be wrong for another. And what is right for me may not be right for another. No one can decide for anyone I guess. And the question of morality should never arise in anyone's decision.
Take care
shikha