Made with love

October is Spina Bifida Awareness month. In honor of this I have been making yellow awareness ribbons with red hearts in the middle and giving them to family and friends to wear in order to "spread the word". However, I am still working on what "the word" is. Because so much is still unknown about what causes SB and how exactly to prevent it, I am still working out how exactly I want to spread awareness. There are two things I know. First, I want people to know it exists. I had never heard of SB before Nathan was diagnosed. Second, women should be sure to take their pre-natal vitamins everyday, but should ALSO eat a diet rich in folic acid. While at our SB walk last weekend, I spoke with a gentleman about a study being conducted to try to identify genetic factors that influence SB (www.sbgenetics.org). It was an interesting conversation. They are seeking mothers who have had children with SB for their research. During our conversation, we discussed folic acid, the roll it plays in prevention, and that fact that for some women, what is in prenatal vitamins may just not be enough. He went on to say that this research could also lead to a pre-pregnancy test which would determine if a woman is at higher risk for having a baby with SB. These women would then be prescribed the "mega" dose of folic acid that mothers who have already had a child with SB are prescribed. It seems so simple to me, really. Just increase the dose of folic acid in prenatal vitamins. Sigh. I digress.

Ever since this walk, and seeing how far we were able to go raising money, I have had this gigantic urge to DO SOMETHING. So, I bought a awareness bracelet. I made ribbons. I am doing some research online. Nothing is fufilling this urge. In the back of my head I have an idea. It's a big idea. I would need help from other SB moms. It's been mentioned before, and I think someone really needs to just jump on it. However, it's a big undertaking. But I feel called.

Sigh.