January 21st

A’s work colleague told her about a new mother she knows who had all the standard pregnancy tests but still ended up giving birth to a child with Down’s syndrome, and it’s made A decide she should an amniocentesis, the slightly risky final test for determining if our child may have that same condition (I think it also tests for spina bifida). It carries a 1% risk of causing a miscarriage, but A told me later (a little tearfully) that she fears our marriage wouldn’t survive the burden of caring for an unhealthy child. And much as I hate to admit it, she may be right….