Mother of down syndrome child has no regrets

Christel van Baalen and her daughter Renee van den Bogart at their Karaka home. Renee has Down syndrome. Picture/ Glenn Jeffrey

Christel van Baalen was told when she was pregnant with her second child that the baby had Down syndrome and she was asked if she wanted an abortion.

After the test results during the 18th week of pregnancy, she was given 10 days to decide.

"That was the hardest 10 days of my life," says Ms van Baalen, of Karaka, south of Auckland.

She and her partner, Anthony van den Bogaart, decided to proceed with the birth of Renee, who is now 4 1/2. She attends a playcentre and Barnados early learning centre, and is enrolled to start at Karaka School when she turns five.

"I have absolutely no regrets whatsoever," Renee's mother says.

"She brings something else to my family; maybe that we are a bit more aware of things that can go wrong in life. I think we became a little bit more tolerant."

Ms van Baalen said she knew during the pregnancy that she was at increased risk of having a baby with Down syndrome because she was 43, so she had tests for it.

The first did not detect the condition, but the second did.

After hearing the results of that test, Ms van Baalen looked in a library and found a "very outdated and negative" book about Down syndrome. She also contacted the Down Syndrome Association and was visited by a representative.

"My partner never had any doubt in his mind. He wanted the baby. I couldn't have a termination because I couldn't live with myself ... Once I started talking to people and learning about Down syndrome, it wasn't like the big bad thing that I thought it was going to be. I had been trying for 3 1/2 years to have another child, then I fell pregnant. I couldn't go through with it [an abortion]."

She describes Renee as "a character. She can be a handful, very stubborn", and she has speech problems, for which she receives specialised help.

"She will be able to do everything that any other child can do, except it takes her a little bit longer to learn."