stories of prenatal diagnosis - Through the Unexpected

We know that prenatal diagnosis is more common than many think. Yet, we rarely hear the stories of the people that have received unexpected news about the health, development or genetics of their unborn baby. We wish to change that so parents no longer feel hidden or isolated.

We have collated parents stories to share with the variety of reactions, experiences and outcomes.

Note:

These stories appear in random order.
Stories which help one person, may be unhelpful for another.

Please use the dropdown category box to select a particular topic or to avoid other topics.

The decision-making category includes stories that reflect the vast array of potential experiences.

Click on the logo/image to go directly to the story, or select the View Profile link if you wish to read more about it first.

Please contact us to let us know about any other stories we should include here.

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One Screened Every Minute: Kaisi (podcast)

Kaisi received a non-invasive prenatal screening result showing a high chance for Trisomy 18 or Edward’s Syndrome. This result came soon after she lost a twin who was stillborn. After many months of having the pregnancy monitored and gathering information, the couple chose to terminate.

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One Screened Every Minute: Belinda (podcast)

Belinda is a full time professional and mother of four children. She shares her experience of non-invasive prenatal screening and termination following a Trisomy 21 diagnosis. Belinda grew up as a hearing child of deaf parents.

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The agony of choosing termination for my baby who had foetal anomaly (article)

There is a silence around the death of a baby, and a greater hush around the issue of termination for foetal anomaly. Laura Doward shares her life-changing experience.

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One Screened Every Minute: Sallie (podcast)

In this episode Sallie talks about decision making following a prenatal screening result showing a high chance for Trisomy 21 or Down syndrome when she was pregnant with her eldest child Oskar. She and her husband Josh decided to decline invasive screening and continued the pregnancy.

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Australian Birth Stories: Sarah Jade (podcast)

After a long and traumatic 33 weeks of pregnancy, Sarah let go of her second child Aksel, who had severe brain malformations.

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The heartbreak of perinatal and infant loss (podcast)

Families shared their experiences of receiving life-limiting prenatal diagnoses and moving through pregnancy and perinatal palliative care.

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Australian Birth Stories: Nadia (podcast)

Nadia’s first son, a boy named Pio, was diagnosed with a rare chromosomal abnormality and was born via cesarean at 20weeks. She discusses her disbelief at the diagnosis and the subsequent grief of her loss followed by the healing arrival of her rainbow baby, Riviera.

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Special: antidotes to the obsessions that come with a child’s disability (book)

“Most of us expect to meander through the motions of love, marriage and (textbook) baby in the carriage, but once in a while life has something a little more special in store…”

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