Down Syndrome Association of Central New Jersey

On behalf of the Down Syndrome Association of Central New Jersey, congratulations on the birth of your new baby!

We are a local non-profit parent support group. Most of our members are parents of a child with Down syndrome, and all of us went through a wide range of emotions when we heard the unexpected news that our baby had an extra twenty first chromosome.

We want to welcome you exactly as you are and where you are—be that rejoicing in the life of your child, mourning the loss of certain dreams about your family, timidly beginning to imagine life in a new way, confused or fearful about medical challenges, grateful for your baby boy or girl.

We hope you can enjoy your baby and all the wonderful things about her or him. Our children are living examples that much of the expectations for children with Down syndrome in the past are inaccurate. Today people with Down syndrome are artists and athletes, they graduate from high school and some complete 4-year certificate programs at local colleges, spend time with their friends, and work at a variety of jobs. They love their families. They share hopes and dreams. They are more similar to other children than they are different.

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Finally, we hope you will be open to the possibility of meeting some of us, and our children. We’ve found that thinking about Down syndrome in the abstract can be difficult and scary, whereas interacting with other parents and children with Down syndrome generally makes the abstract concrete, and concretely encouraging. Please join us at one of our meetings. Someone from our group would be happy to contact you to provide further information, support, and encouragement. To be in touch, just e-mail us at dsacnj@arcmercer.org (please include “New Parent” in the subject line) or call 1-866-369-6796 and leave a message.

 

To download the free booklet “Understanding a Down Syndrome Diagnosis” visit https://resources.lettercase.org.