I remember when I was told my daughters diagnosis. We were taken to a separate room where the physcian told us in kind words that our daughter would be in a "vegetative state" and that she would never have any consciousness awareness. We took our daughter home expecting just that, we didn't know any different, we were not the medical professionals and who were we to doubt them. Jason and I knew that even if she did live a "vegetative state" that she was still our daughter and we would give her the love that she deserved. It wasn't long after our daughter came home that we knew she was far from living a so called "vegetative state". Our daughter would smile,respond to our voices, and even an occassional cry. As she got bigger, we began to see her personalilty. She's funny, anwry, and very lovable. She will laugh at silly voices or babies crying, she will smile when she hears familiar voices, she will play with toys, she cries when she is upset, hungry, or not feeling well. My daughter, along with many other children with her condition, live a life full of love and are consciously aware of their surroundings. We allow them to live life as if they do not have a disability. We never set limitations on our children and we allow them to show us what they are able to do. For all those parents who have a child living with a disability, never set limitations for your child. They will do what you allow them to do. If you set limitations on your child, then who knows what oppurtunities they will miss out on.
You've developed the strength of a draft horse while holding onto the delicacy of a daffodil ... you are the mother, advocate and protector of a child with a disability." -Lori Borgman
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