A newborn baby has been abandoned by her adoptive parents after they saw she’d been born with a rare genetic condition.
Abigail Lynn was left in the arms of her birth mother, Christina Fischer, as the parents who were meant to be give her a better life left the hospital in tears.
Northwest Florida Daily News reports that Fischer, from Florida in the United States, watched as her child’s adoptive family fled.
“I let her (adoptive mom) take the other wristband into the NICU,” Fischer said. “She came out crying, looked at Debra (Fischer’s other child) and left the hospital. We never heard from them again.”
Abigail was diagnosed with Treacher Collins syndrome – a disorder that impacts facial bones and tissues.
The condition also often influences a patient's ears with hearing loss occurring in about half of all individuals with the syndrome.
The new mother said there were no health concerns detected during any of the prenatal testing. “They just told me her ears looked a little small,” she said.
Fischer, who opposes abortion, turned to adoption after deciding she wasn't in a position to raise another child.
Fischer was already a mum to 18-year-old Debra. “I wasn’t ready to start again,” she said.
The 36-year-old found herself "basically homeless" after the caravan park she was living in towards the end of pregnancy shut down.
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As a parent of a girl who also has a rare genetic disorder, I can fully understand the intense fear and grieving that comes when you see your baby for the first time and can see things are not normal. It was a time of great horror and intense pain for me. I cried for a long, long, long time. I was terrified about her future and how she would survive in a society obsessed with beauty. I understood how animals abandon their young when they are born with deformities. This sounds incomprehensible and cruel but it is real and raw. It is something you can never comprehend until it happens to you. 7 years on and she is THE BEST thing that EVER happened to me. She lights up my world and the world of anyone that knows her. Most of my fears have so far been unfounded. I would never judge the couple that we're going to adopt her for running away. I understand it. And for the birth mother, it will open her mind in ways she never imagined and bring blessings she didn't know she needed. I wish them love and great happiness.
I admire your honesty. As the mother of a mildly disabled daughter I know about the fear for their future, the hope that someone will love and care for them as much as you do, that they will have as close to a "normal" life as possible. It is heartbreaking at first, full of difficult decisions, but as you say, it can also be a joy.
Thanks for your honest, raw and refreshing comment Guest, it left me with a happy smile for the day.
It is not something I have experienced, however I can appreciate it would be difficult and confronting as a parent so I would never criticise how anyone might feel. I'm glad to hear it worked out with your little ray of sushine and once again, thank you for the smile.
What about the parents who planned to adopt? I am sure they were grieving as well - maybe they were not in a position to raise a child with a profound disability. Remember this is the USA - no Medicare for the whole population there. Maybe they didn't have the money to afford ongoing medical care, time off work and other needs this child would need. No mention of the money these people probably paid for ante-natal care (as is the practice in the USA). They've suffered a loss as well - not just financially but the family they planned for and expected is done.
Sounds like they were i'll prepared to have a family then.
not sure treacher collins could be called 'profound', i know of a few people that live just fine with it.
*ill prepared to have a severely disabled child when they'd been advised the child was healthy and without genetic abnormalities. Just as the birth mother was ill prepared for any baby whatsoever.