Abstract
This paper discusses a blog about an occasion in which a child in a womb was diagnosed with an impairment that might have led to her death soon after her birth. After expressing some thoughts on the issue, the author of the paper views the case via the data supplied in the textbook and considers it from a biblical point of view. It is concluded that the determination of the spouses and certain coping mechanisms helped the family to successfully give birth to the baby.
Introduction
In certain cases, families are faced with serious problems with the health and development of their children. In this paper, one such case is considered from the author of this paper, as well as through the prism of information provided in Parritz and Troy (2013), and from the biblical perspective.
The Author’s View
The blog presents several “letters” that a woman wrote to her daughter while still being pregnant with her (“Letters to Catherine,” 2008). The girl was diagnosed with congenital diaphragmatic hernia via ultrasonography, and it was likely that she would not live for long after the birth. It is possible to assume that, once the mother became aware of the diagnosis, the letters started working as one of the coping mechanisms that the mother employed to deal with the psychological stress that she experienced because her baby, one that she wanted to have very much, might die.
The Perception Based on Parritz and Troy (2013)
According to Parritz and Troy (2013), families play a significant role in the development of a child (p. 20-21). Although it might be hard to talk about the development of the baby in the presented case, for the blog provides information mainly about the period during which the child was in the mother’s womb, it is clear that the family (mainly the husband) supplied the mother with the support necessary to endure the situation and to successfully produce the baby.
The girl may be classified as belonging to the “at-risk” category, particularly to the category of children facing a specific risk (Parritz & Troy, 2013, p. 35). However, it is possible to assume that the profoundly beneficent family environment (which appears to be such from the blog) might have had a positive influence on the child’s further development, possibly safeguarding her from the health risks she was to face in the future.
A Biblical Perspective
The Bible reads that “children are a heritage of the Lord” (Psalm 127:3 King James Version). Therefore, it is possible to assert that the decision of the family to produce the baby despite the possibility that she might die soon after the birth (“Letters to Catherine,” 2008) was the right decision, according to the Bible. It is also stated that “she shall be saved in childbearing if they continue in faith and charity and holiness with sobriety” (1 Timothy 2:15); so, the fact that the family lived in harmony, mutual support, and faith provided a beneficent atmosphere that assisted in dealing with the health condition of the baby, in this case offering strong psychological assistance.
Conclusion
Therefore, it might be assumed that the letters to her child served as a coping mechanism for the mother in the discussed case. Taking into account what has been written by Parritz and Troy (2013), it is possible to state that the family environment significantly helped to achieve a positive outcome. Finally, according to the Bible, the right decision of the family to produce the baby might also have assisted in this situation; in particular, the determination might have offered strong psychological support.
References
Letters to Catherine. (2008). Web.
Parritz, R. H., & Troy, M. F. (2013). Disorders of childhood: Development and psychopathology (2nd ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth Cengage Learning.