This thread is of a sensitive subject

[highlander]

I was reading on sky news website about a british woman who is going to have a baby with two heads, she has ignored advice from doctors to go ahead with the birth. Doctors have told her if the twins do survive they will need intensive care, the prospects of survival are bleak and if they do survive thier lives will be bleaker. I know this is a personal decision of the parents, but i personal feel that more should be given to the standard of life of the twins should be taken, and the personal or religious off not having an abortion should not come into it. I know by typing this may upset people and dont mean to do so. I miscarried a child myself and know the heartache of losing a child is, some said it was god's way to do so, now i ask myself, why has god not dealt with this poor child, what chance of survival does it have and the pain it will suffer, i am not meaning any child who has been born handicapped as there are advances in modern medicine that have given them a better standard of life than what they would have been given years ago. Would anyone like to give thier thoughts on this matter?

http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/UK-News/Rare-Twins-To-Be-Born-With-Two-Heads-And-One-Body-To-Mother-Lisa-Chamberlain-In-Portsmouth/Article/200901215201485?lpos=UK_News_First_Home_Page_Featu re_Teaser_Region_0&lid=ARTICLE_15201485_Rare_Twins_To_Be_Born_With_Tw o_Heads_And_One_Body_To_Mother_Lisa_Chamberlain_In _Portsmouth

[AfternoonDelight]

I read this story this morning as well and I was horrified... What a situation to find yourself in - trying for a baby for years, finally conceiving only to be hit with this bombshell...:eek:

As always - anything that is outwith the norm generates debate and this is one such thing. Personally I think that the quality of life for the children would be very limited. Yes there are scientific advances but imagine the bullying, staring, etc these people will have to endure... Never being able to live "normally" never marrying, having children of their own.

But then there is the arguement that a life is a life no matter what... I don't think I would go through with the preganancy though. I wonder if this woman's motivation is not just a bit selfish?

[newpark]

I too read this today and my own personnel choice would be to abort. I am not a fan of abortion but in these curcumstances I don't think emotional or phisycially I would be able to care for them. Also I look a few years down then line and think of what kind of life they would have. Would anyone marry, employe etc etc someone with 2 heads and I would not want my children to grow up wondering why I took them into this world. You get bullied at Thurso high for far less than having 2 heads I can't imagine the turmoil these babies will go through at certain stages in their life. As I said this is my opinion and I too am intrested to see others thoughts.

[AfternoonDelight]

I have been thinking about this - a genuine question - if your brain controls everything your body does - how can it possibly work when there are two heads but only one body? Is one brain dominant, do they work in sequence, do they work together? If they are two different people, what happens if one wants to do something the other doesn't? :confused

[weeboyagee]

The mothers personal choice should be respected. Only if the mother's life is to be in danger because of the birth should she be encouraged to abort. A little simple in statement, sad perhaps, but my opinion anyway.

A terrible situation by any measure however.

WBG :cool:

[Sapphire2803]

I shouldn't think that doctors advise abortion in many cases.

I'm pro choice. Abortion is not something I particularly approve of, but I don't believe that it's up to me to decide for others. I think it's abhorrent that many women use abortion as a form of contraception.

Now that I've explained my opinion of abortion (barely and not very well) it may mean a tad more when I say that in this case (assuming a lot without facts) I would probably have gone along with the doctors and had my pregnancy terminated.



P.S. I think I know her (vaguely) and if she's the person I think she is, then this doesn't surprise me at all, especially the fact that the Sun have got hold of the story.

[changilass]

Whilst I understand the reasons for her aborting, how can she be expected to kill a child she so desperately wants.

[highlander]

Thank you all for your honest answers, i know by starting it may end up like opening a can of worms and upset people, this is not my reason for starting the thread, it is a difficult topic to talk about. The difficult part is should it be left up to the parents to decide, this is a question i cant answer, i remember reading years ago how a severely mentally handicapped woman was pregnant and the courts stepped in to have the child aborted but i cant remember what the outcome was, i know this woman is not handicapped, should the courts step in with a decision to tell the woman to abort the twins because i too think that the twins health should come first.

[Sapphire2803]

Whilst I understand the reasons for her aborting, how can she be expected to kill a child she so desperately wants.

Because wanting a child shouldn't purely be a selfish decision. This shouldn't be based on what she wants, she should make the decision based purely on what is best for the child.

I agree though, an absolutely heart breaking decision to be forced to make.

[teenybash]

Not too far back there was a programme about Abby and Brittany Hensel who are conjoined twins...Google for an insight into these lovely girls who live a full and active life...............it might change minds about terminating such a pregnancy...........:)

[Sapphire2803]

Not too far back there was a programme about Abby and Brittany Hensel who are conjoined twins...Google for an insight into these lovely girls who live a full and active life...............it might change minds about terminating such a pregnancy...........:)

There are quite a few stories like that, but it does depend on what organs are shared and all sorts of other factors.

[ett23]

The mothers personal choice should be respected. Only if the mother's life is to be in danger because of the birth should she be encouraged to abort. A little simple in statement, sad perhaps, but my opinion anyway.

A terrible situation by any measure however.

WBG :cool:

Glad to see I'm not the only one who feels that way. I have a friend who fell pregnant in her 40s (20 years ago now) and was told by doctors to abort due to high chance of baby ending up with downs syndrome or the like and of course she refused the abortion, had a healthy baby girl and has never looked back. I would never have an abortion myself unless my life was in danger. I say give the babies a chance - who knows, maybe things will work out better for them than the medical experts think!

[squidge]

Abortion is a purely personal decision. When a woman finds that she is to have a child everything kicks in to nurture grow and protect that baby. To then switch that off and make a decision to terminate a much wanted pregnancy must be heart breaking. To be honest I think that even when the pregnancy is a terrible shock it must still be a difficult and painful decision to terminate. I beleive whole heartedly in a woman's right to choose but having been an older mum and faced the possibility that my baby could have a disability my husband and I sat down and discussed what we could live with. We decided that there was nothing that could make us love our much wanted baby any less than we would love him if he was perfect so we declined any invasive tests and hoped. Someone said to me that I could find myself at 60 looking after a disabled teenager but to be honest any one of my boys could have an accident tomorrow and need caring for and I would end up caring for a disabled grown man at 60 - would I get rid of them because of it? Nope.

I wish them all luck and hope for the future.

[balto]

I for one would normally be dead set against abortion, but come on what sort of life will this child/ren ,have, surly it would have been kinder to let them go when the parents 1st found out about their condition, rather than deliver them only to have to watch them die, would have been better for the baby/ies and parents if they had.

[ShelleyCowie]

This is a touchy subject, but abortion is a subject that can not be avoided with some people!

I was told i would not have kids. Reasons i will not share with the org as it is obviously personal! But i have a 3 month old son! Perfectly healthy booming boy! Full of energy, smiles and giggles! I did not believe is was pregnant because the doctors said "it is completely impossible". Not something i wanted to hear when i was 17 at the time!

So i understand why the woman does not want to terminate. On the other hand the childrens survival has a low percentage 20% if i remember from reading the article, pain is also an issue. But the mother and father has made the decision not to terminate. To me that is their choice.

I hope people read the story not to be angry but understand where she is coming from!

[Venture]

I for one would normally be dead set against abortion, but come on what sort of life will this child/ren ,have, surly it would have been kinder to let them go when the parents 1st found out about their condition, rather than deliver them only to have to watch them die, would have been better for the baby/ies and parents if they had.

Twins like these do survive.


http://images.google.com/images?oe=UTF-8&sourceid=navclient&gfns=1&q=Abigail+and+Brittany+Hensel&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=X&oi=image_result_group&resnum=4&ct=title

[Bad Manners]

I'm not one to belive in grey areas however this is one of those times the decision has to be that of the mother and whilst a good argument could be put to have an abortion it is the mothers choice and should not be pressured into any one choice. it would appear that the doctors have given her all the facts and forecast all the problems which is only fair with this information the mother can make her own decission. if she chooses to proceed then the doctors are duty bound to do their best to make the child/children safe and pain free.
it is a very hard dissision but one she has to make on her own

[purplelady]

I know the pain of losing a baby and I was 18 weeks at the time and while i feel you should not abort a child because it has downs or something am not so sure it is in the parents or childrens best interest to carry on , they may well have a good life but is it fair to put them though everything life will throw at them, tis hard enough with out the problems they may well have , if indeed they make it. I hope for everyone corncerned it all works out but it is not really looking good is it .There seems to be a lot of conjured twins lately does'nt there xxxxxxxxxx