What to expect - just found out my unborn child will have learning disabilities

kellyholmes802
kellyholmes802 Online Community Member Posts: 1 Listener
edited October 2021 in Autism and neurodiversity
hi I am 21 wks pregnant. 
I have recently found out that because of abnormalities my baby will likely have mild to moderate learning disabilities. 
I have no experience in this area. I would like to hear from parents of children with learning disabilities what to expect for the baby & how it may affect me & my other 3 children. Tia 

Comments

  • Sam_Alumni
    Sam_Alumni Scope alumni Posts: 7,602 Championing
    Hi @kellyholmes802
    Welcome to the community and congratulations on your pregnancy.  It can be a really scary time getting an unexpected diagnosis.

    There is lots of information on the mencap site about learning more about learning difficulties.

    @motherscuffer got a diagnosis whilst pregnant and has written a few guest posts for us. Do you have any support for Kelly?

    We also have a lot of information here for families who have just received a diagnosis for their child.
  • ParentingAdvisorVikki
    ParentingAdvisorVikki Online Community Member Posts: 45 Connected
    Hi Kelly,
    Im a mum of 4, 2 of those have special needs, specifically learning and social. My youngest son who is now 6 has Autism, sensory processing difficulties and a load of other things. BUT he is amazing, and amazes us every day. 
    What to expect: your child may not hit milestones on time, that may be late or even early. All children, (disabled or not) develop differently. 
    As Sam said above, it may be worth having a look at out info for families, or on the mencap site. 
    Feel free to shoot me a message with any questions! 
  • feir
    feir Online Community Member Posts: 394 Empowering
    hi, guess you can't expect anything.

    i have a son with moderate difficulties, with some problems with cognitive functioning. also he is vulnerable and that's always a worry. otherwise he's not too difficult to handle and is a nice kid in general, just more dependent than a child of his age would be usually. my other kids don't seem to be affected, he gets on better with his younger siblings because he is nearer to their age mentally.

    i see him struggle with things and that upsets me a little and heightens my awareness that he is different, it's also possible he will need life long support but i'm hoping he will become as independent as he can be. sometimes he is depressed and/or has anxiety.

    overall though i am also happy with my son and he is thriving the best he can because we have the right support available to us that works for him.

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