Mom pens letter to doctor who recommended abortion for her baby with Down syndrome
The mother of a 15-month-old baby with Down syndrome sent a letter to the doctor who had once advised her to have her baby terminated.
Courtney Baker had been thinking of writing the letter even before she gave birth. Aside from wanting to have closure, she also wanted the doctor to see her baby, Emersyn Faith, the way she does: perfect.
"Every action, from opening and closing the mailbox to raising the red flag, was closure for me," she told ABC News. "I have no idea how the doctor might have reacted to my letter, but I do have faith that God can work any miracle and he can change any heart."
In the letter, she recounted the story of how baby Emmy was diagnosed prenatally with Down syndrome. She had been anxious of her pregnancy because she did not know yet what the condition of her baby was. When the doctor told her the diagnosis, he suggested that the baby be terminated.
"I told you her name, and you asked us again if we understood how low our quality of life would be with a child with Down syndrome. You suggested we reconsider our decision to continue the pregnancy," Baker addressed the doctor in the letter, which had since been published on Parker Myles website where it was shared more than 19,000 times on Facebook.
She remembered that she felt pressured to have her baby aborted even after she told the doctor she wouldn't do it.
"The most difficult time in my life was made nearly unbearable because you never told me the truth. My child was perfect," Baker wrote.
Baker wanted the doctor to know that he was wrong. Baby Emmy, she said, has added to her family's quality of life and has given them "a purpose and a joy that is impossible to express." She said that through her daughter, she has learned what love and true beauty is.
Through her letter, she hoped that the doctor would see how kids with special needs like her daughter "can change the world."
