YouTuber Jesse Ridgway says he and his wife terminated pregnancy, revealing heartbreaking reasons ‘This choice was not made lightly’

“This week, my wife and I made the very difficult decision to terminate a pregnancy with trisomy 21,” Ridgway write on X. “This choice was not made lightly. We are so grateful for all of the personal stories you have shared with us, especially the unconditional support we have received from our fans no matter what decision we make.”

Ridway acknowledged that some people may be “disappointed” by the update.

“We are devastated. This is extremely traumatic for both of us, especially Ashley,” he wrote. “She had surgery earlier this week and is recovering. Thankfully, everything went well, but emotionally we are exhausted.”

“When I first read the news, I was shocked but optimistic. If they are a little slow mentally, then we’ll make it work. I signed on to be a parent, no matter what…but I just don’t fully understand what Down syndrome means,” Ridgeway wrote.

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He went on to explain that Down syndrome is different from autism, adding, “50 percent of babies with Down syndrome have heart defects. 75 percent of babies will have hearing impairment. More than 50 percent of babies will have vision problems. Impaired immune function, developmental disabilities, learning disabilities, physical delays, poor muscle tone, facial structure problems, shortened lifespan, etc… Unfortunately, the list is long, feel free to look it up… Down syndrome is not a ‘blessing’, it’s objectively speaking from a health perspective.”

He added, “I didn’t realize how hard it was on the child, let alone the family… They tend to be completely dependent on others for the rest of their lives. The risk of miscarriage is also close to 50 percent, which makes it even worse… They may never see the light of day, which puts Ashley at even greater risk.”

Ridgeway added that he believed the decision, while difficult, would be “good for our family in the long run.”

“Thankfully, we have options,” he added.

Ridgway further wrote: “It will take a little time to move on, but we are excited to try again in the future and hope for better results.”