Pillow Angels

I have to admit when I first heard about Pillow Angels I gasped. My thoughts were along the lines of how could they, that's not right, poor kid. But the more I read the more I understood, and the guilt set in for me for judging the parents, and the more I began to think to myself that these parents loved maybe more than most people understood. People were viewing them as monsters, what people were not seeing was that these parents loved their child so much they were willing to be judged and ridiculed to do what they thought was right for their child. They were sacrificing themselves, sometimes publicly, sometimes across the world for their children. They love their children.

OK for those who don't know about this at all I will explain what I understand about it. There are children who are brain damaged for various reasons. Their parents have decided to stunt their growth at "X" age. The children go through hormone therapies, operations, etc. They stop growing, they stop maturing, they even if they are female never reach puberty because they have hysterectomies. Is this right, is this fair, moral, ethical? I don't know, who am I to judge? I do what I feel is right for my children. I cannot imagine someone standing over me judging my decisions. The fact is the parents of these children are the one's who most likely will be caring for these children for most of their lives. I think they are the ones who need to take into account what is best for not only their child, but the family as a whole.

The fact about these Pillow Angels are they cannot walk, talk, they are usually tube fed. They need to be changed since they wear diapers, or have their catheter bags emptied because they have catheters in. They have to repositioned throughout the day and night because otherwise their bodies will develop bed sores. The list of the care goes on and on, but the list of things that they will never be able to do is endless. We are not talking about the average child. I find it strange that there are so many people who do not have a child with such a disability, who have never even been around a child with such a severe disability yet still feel they have the right to have such a strong opinion on this.

I don't know, I guess you can color me confused about this. Like I said at first I was a little shocked by it all, the news always paints a story how they want to, how they think it will get the most attention. I just wish when people hear a news story would take the time to educate themselves on the facts before they jump to conclusions and make judgements. Pillow Angels were really brought to the public's attention recently with the story of Ashley and The Ashley Treatment. The whole story is heartbreaking. But you need to read both sides of it. The media's side and the parent's side. What you will fins is vastly different stories.

In closing I want to touch on Ashley's case specifically. I have to say that I truly believe Ashley's parents did the right thing. They did what they thought was right for Ashley and their family. In looking at Ashley she looks happy and healthy and I hope she lives a long, happy, and healthy life. Sometimes the first person, or the first person who publicly, makes a step in an unpopular direction is vilified which is what I believe was done in this case. I believe one day The Ashley Treatment will not be the uncommon choice and people will look back and see Dr. Gunther, one of the doctors involved who later committed suicide, will be looked at as a crusader. Hopefully there will also come a time when Ashley's family will not feel they need to remain anonymous, but rather be proud to stand tall and say we made a decision for our daughter that we felt was right, look at us, face us, we love our child. If you have time google Ashley's blog her parents made for her, it is touching, and may change your mind about this controversial procedure.