For the first time ever, Shawn (now 3 1/2) was able to participate in placing the ornaments on the tree. He was so determined to find the perfect place for every ornament. As one fell from the tree that he did not place on well enough, you could see his heart start to shatter just as the ball did when it reached the hardwood floor. We had to explain to him that it was, "Okay" and that there were plenty more that would fill the tree. I could have watched him all day decorate the tree, although the lower branches may not have lasted that long. All of a sudden, Shawn said, "Uh oh!" He started to run to the bathroom where stripped off his shoes, pants, and underwear so he could climb up on the toilet to "Pee Pee in the Potty!" Soon after that tears flowed from my eyes. This was the first time that I ever noticed my son, on his own, have the urge to go to the bathroom and act on it. Why is this such a big deal to me? It is because the doctors told us that this may never happen.Because the doctors were working so close to the nerves that help with bladder control, they could not guarantee that Shawn would ever be able to control his bladder or even feel the urge to go to the bathroom without soiling his pants. We had accepted that this may be true when he did not show any sign of wanting to potty train before now, but all of a sudden Shawn started to understand the concept of controlling his bladder. Of course we did what we knew to help coach him, but accident after accident caused discouragement until NOW. HE DID IT! Shawn was beaming, Mommy was proud, YaYa was proud, I celebrated the only way I knew how, by bawling like a baby, several tears of joy! Sadly, success stories like Shawn's are limited.
Congenital anomalies, also known as birth defects, are structural or functional abnormalities, including metabolic disorders, which are present from birth. Congenital anomalies are a diverse group of disorders of prenatal origin which can be caused by single gene defects, chromosomal disorders, multifactorial inheritance, environmental teratogens and micronutrient deficiencies.
Approximately 134 million babies were born in the world the same year that my Shawn was born in 2009. 4 million of those children were born in the U.S. alone. If you consider the statistics that we know about congenital anomalies, that means over 4 million were born with some sort of anomaly and Shawn was 1 of the 121,212 in the U.S. Of those U.S. newborns nearly 8,200 newborns did not make it.
Those 8,200 children were born with potential and the opportunity to change world that we live in, but tragically lost because of something that, in a lot of cases, could have been avoided if more awareness and preventative care were take. Those that were lucky enough to survive still may never be able to do some of the things that all of us take for granted every day. Because my son only has one kidney left, he may never be able to cross an Ironman finish line like I did. I must confess that this makes me sometimes feel so guilty that I took my life and health for granted for so many years. This is also what drives me, sometimes too much, to attempt what most would consider impossible. It is not for personal accolades or fame as many seem to think. It is because I am overwhelmed by the staggering statistics, and I feel lucky and thankful to be the father of a success story!
