Jamie Freeman, from Detroit in the United States, has published Down Syndrome Diary, a book containing the positive stories of 26 families raising Down syndrome children.

Down Syndrome Diary is intended to push back against negative and ill-informed societal views about Down syndrome.

Jamie was 16 weeks pregnant when she found out that her son, Benny, had Down syndrome. But what surprised her most was the negative response of her doctors to the diagnosis.

“You were given 30 pages of medical information of all the things that are going to be wrong with your child, and essentially, you’re given a document that tells you this child’s life is not going to be worth living”, Jamie told Fox 2.

Yet, when Benny was born, Jamie fell in love with him immediately. Since then, she has kept a journal reflecting on all her positive experiences with Benny, to be shared with other families, as well as hospitals and doctors.

The diary also contains the experiences of 26 other families who Jamie came to know after sharing her experience online.

The work has now been published, since, as the book itself says, it “became the greatest gift someone could receive upon hearing that their child has Down syndrome”.

SPUC comment

A SPUC spokesperson said: “It is incredibly important that Jamie has published this book, pushing back against the ill-informed and discriminatory attitudes towards children with Down syndrome.

“Many parents come up against a wall of negativity when their unborn child receives a Down syndrome diagnosis. And it is often the case that doctors will repeatedly suggest an abortion.

“But every child matters, as does the sanctity of life. This is why Down Syndrome Diary is such an important publication. SPUC hopes that it will be read widely.”

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