The Daily BuzzProfessor gives perfect response about how to avoid having a disabled child
Having a child is one of the greatest gifts that life has to offer. Just ask any loving mother or father and you’ll hear endless stories filled with pride and joy. That said, kids don’t come with an instruction manual and having children while you are still one yourself can be scary.
As proof of that consider this purely hypothetical question asked by a 16-year old teenager. “How can I minimize the chances of having a disabled child?”
The boy goes on to expand, stating it would be terrifying to have a severely disabled child while planning to pursue a career in computer science and medicine, and that it would be hard to leave his wife if she didn’t abort the child.
It just so happens that the boy’s completely hypothetical question was given an incredibly real-life answer. It came from Matt Might, who not only has a child with an incredibly rare genetic disability, he happens to be the doctor that first distinguished the condition, giving it a proper name. Might is a computer science professor at the University Of Utah and a professor at the Harvard Medical School.
First, your question is trivial to answer: to minimize the risk -- to zero -- that you'll have a disabled child, don't have a child.
Any attempt to have a child will incur risk, although you can take measures described in other answers to lower it.
He properly answers the teen’s question directly, which is where most people sitting on their laptop replying to the random questions of others would end it. The professor on the other hand goes on to explain in detail that the birth of his disabled son took him on a journey of self-discovery.
Hopefully I've just dispelled your fear that having a disabled child is not compatible with a strong career in computer science or medicine.
In fact, what if I told you that much of what I've done was the result of my having a disabled child? Because I too (naively) believe in love, and love my wife and son dearly?
Might said hisson's disability presented him with the opportunity to help discover a previously unknown medical condition and dedicate himself to finding ways to treat it, and that it strengthened his marriage, as he and his wife worked together to spread awareness, organize research efforts and make a tremendous impact on the world that stretched far beyond becoming a successfully tenured professor.
My son forced me to systematically examine what matters in life -- what really matters -- and in the end, I came to appreciate a quote from his namesake, Bertrand Russell, more than I could have ever imagined:
"The good life is one inspired by love and guided by knowledge."
It’s safe to say Dr. Matt Might taught this curious 16-year-old a lesson on what it means to be a parent that he’ll probably never forget. Perhaps he’s a little less worried about having a disabled child now.
What a great dose of both reality and inspiration!
