*92% of pregnancies with a DS diagnosis are aborted

I wanted to pass along this message from my good friend, Jessica. Her words in blue.

I want to spread the word about a new book that just came out in the hopes that it will get into the hands of the people who need it most. "Road Map to Holland" is a book written by a mom of twin boys, one of whom has Down syndrome. This book does a beautiful job factually, emotionally, and honestly capturing of the journey through the birth, diagnosis, and early growth of a child with Down syndrome. Groneberg clearly displays the confusion, guilt, exhaustion, fear, and (later) unparalleled joy that the news, 'Your baby has Down syndrome' brings. I hope that all new parents of babies with DS will read this book and find validation, encouragement, and most of all hope as they walk through the initial maze of doctors' offices, therapy appointments and stacks of insurance papers. Groneberg rightly emphasizes that the delights and treasures brought to their family by their son with DS makes it all worth it. It also lists, in the midst of the narrative and in an extensive appendix at the back, just about every resource that a new parent needs to know about -- something that takes most of us years to learn about and track down. Currently 92% of pregnancies with a DS diagnosis are aborted, and with the new prenatal test available that number is expected to rise much higher. Therefore, a book like "Road Map to Holland" is incredibly important for many to read and pass on in spreading the word that a DS diagnosis is NOT a death sentence and it is NOT what many doctors still present it to be: beyond the capability of any typical parent. Though the numbers of babies born with DS are dropping each year because of high abortion rates, it is still statistically possible that one of you will meet someone or know someone or even have a baby with DS yourself.

Please consider reading this book or at the very least, tuck the name of this book in the back of your mind for the time when you can lighten the load of a new parent of a baby with DS by telling them about this fantastic book.

Jessica has two adorable sons, one of whom (is that when you use whom?) has DS. You can check out her blog about her boys and the excitement of living in Alaska at www.smithsinalaska.blogspot.com (sorry, I can't get it to link).
*I googled the percentage before posting and I found percentages in the range of 85-94%