Spreading Awareness of Down Syndrome

Alexis Risch
Sep 8, 2018 · 3 min read

Most people have seen other people who have Down Syndrome or know someone who is related to someone with down syndrome. For me, my little sister, Josie, has Down Syndrome. As two daughters of a single mother we have both stuck together and are each others best friends. Not many people are educated about the causes of Down Syndrome and what the effects are onto a person who has downs or their family.

This is my little sister Josie and I

Every human is known to have 23 chromosomes, each chromosome being numbered from 1–23 and studied by those number names. The National Down Syndrome Society states that people who are born with Down Syndrome have a full or partial copy of chromosome 21. Down Syndrome is more common than one can think. According to the National Down Syndrome Society, 1 in every 700 kids are born with downs. That is about 6,000 babies born in the United States each year who are diagnosed with Down Syndrome. Also, there are three different types of Down Syndrome; Trisomy 21, Mosaicism and Translocation. Trisomy 21 is when there are 3 copies of the 21st chromosome. The National Down Syndrome Society explains this by stating that “Prior to or at conception, a pair of 21st chromosomes in either the sperm or the egg fails to separate. As the embryo develops, the extra chromosome is replicated in every cell of the body.” Whereas, Mosaicism is where there are two types of cells, some contain 46 chromosomes where others contain 47 chromosomes. However, Mosaicism is less common than Trisomy 21, only 1% of the Down Syndrome population has this form of downs. Translocation Down Syndrome is only 4% of all cases but, it is when there are 46 chromosomes but the 21st chromosome is copied.

I am one of many people who are trying to make Down Syndrome Awareness spread. Throughout the whole month of October it is considered Down Syndrome Awareness Month and there are tons of Buddy Walks going on! Buddy Walks are the walks designated for Down Syndrome Awareness. Our family has participated in a couple of them that are in own our county. In St.Pete, Florida, there is this huge pumpkin patch where on one weekend they have a HUGE Buddy Walk to participate in. The atmosphere of a Buddy Walk is fun, enjoyable, loving, cheerful, and emotionally awesome.

There are many ups and downs when having a sister with Down Syndrome but, I took a few minutes and talked with my mom about the challenges of having a child with Down Syndrome. My mom said that she was always scared that my sister would be taken by someone because she would not be able to say if she was in trouble or to get to the right people to help her if she was ever in trouble. She never knew if Josie would be able to say or write her name, remember my moms or my phone number, or our address. Our biggest challenge that both of us agree with is the fact that no one understands what we have gone through and they do not realize how the words they use or the looks they give affect us.

I hope this brings awareness to all who read this. Thank you.

Alexis Risch

Bringing Down Syndrome Awareness

Alexis Risch

Written by

Alexis Risch

Bringing Down Syndrome Awareness

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