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Apr 27, 2013, 09:35 AM
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Member Since: Apr 2013
Posts: 39
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I don’t have children so I wanted to say that up front just in case my opinion seems out of touch with the realities of parenthood. I generally don’t hop into threads about parenthood for this reason but I wanted to post on the topic this time because my heart bleeds for all parents or potential parents who suffer from mental illness.
I’ve read quite a few posts on this forum from parents or grandparents who are feeling as if they have potentially brought a curse to the lives of their offspring. I totally understand the feelings and statements made in these cases but I always see the positive in them as well.
If it does happen, the child will have people in their lives who are informed and educated about it. People who are likely to spot it early and get help for the child. People who are less likely to cause the trauma that can come from having their own parents introduce them to the experience of stigma very early in life when it can do the most damage.
A child who does not become afflicted also has the advantage of potentially growing up to be a very special person because of the trials they have watched others go through in their family. I have seen this first hand in the lives of more than one friend. Their now adult children are just amazing people who have tremendous empathy for every other human being that they meet.
The people who post here are all in this category. You know and are far more educated than many people in the general public and many of them pass on difficult genetic predispositions to their offspring as well.
I’ve also wanted to profess my admiration for so many of the parents who post here. You are all heroes in my book. 
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