Many married couples know what it's like to be asked when they will have kids, but for Charli Worgan and her husband Cullen, people often asked them ‘why'.
The parents from Sydney both have different kinds of dwarfism and face a lot of public judgment, especially when Charli got pregnant with their first child.
After she had her first daughter, the excited Aussie mom decided to create a social media account to share their family experiences – she had no idea how popular it would get.
Now, they have two lovely daughters, and Charli's Instagram has more than 300,000 followers.
Recently, Charli shared that she is 14 weeks along with her third baby, but the news was mixed with sadness.
With every pregnancy, Charli has to go through tough genetic tests. Because of Charli and Cullen's genetic conditions, their kids might inherit one type of dwarfism (from either mom or dad), be of average height, or even have both types of dwarfism, which doctors say could be deadly.
Charli talked about the pain of not being able to celebrate the 12-week mark in her pregnancy like most other moms do.
“While most moms at 12 weeks are happy to announce their pregnancy, I was waiting for Chorionic Villus Sampling (CVS – similar to an Amniocentesis) – that involves a big needle going through my belly to take a sample of the placenta, which has a 2% chance of causing a miscarriage, to check my baby's genetic makeup.”
Their daughters, two-year-old Tully and four-year-old Tilba, have one of the two types of dwarfism, so when Charli got pregnant with her third child, they were anxious to find out which of the four possibilities their baby would have.
Charli explained in her Instagram post:
1. We would have a baby of average height
2. Our baby would have Achondroplasia, the same form of Dwarfism as me.
3. Our baby would have Geleophysic Dysplasia, the same form of Dwarfism as Cullen.
4. Our baby would inherit both genetic variations, know as “double dominant dwarfism”, which from all professional medical evaluations would be fatal upon birth. I would have had the choice should this occur to carry on and see how things go, or to terminate the pregnancy.
Charli mentioned that the reality of her situation is that she was waiting to find out: “If I can bring this little one into the world come March 2021, or if his or her journey finishes here.”
By sharing her life so openly, she has faced a lot of criticism, which she also talks about in her post.
“I've faced criticism for deciding to have babies with these odds, and that's a whole discussion on its own. However, by sharing this small part of the puzzle, those who doubt can see that bringing a child into this world with my odds is not an easy choice, and it's all about being kind?”
Now, the couple has three beautiful children who are all doing well, and the family keeps sharing their ups and downs.
Her baby boy Rip was born at the end of February, and she posted a picture of herself with her newborn along with some wise words for every parent.
“I'm tired, but I feel so grateful and lucky. There's no ‘correct' way to do motherhood, but I'm sure there's no ‘wrong' way either.”
In the end, Charli shows everyone that her life as a parent is just like anyone else's; many parents can relate to the challenges and joys of bringing children into the world.
Her posts are an inspiration to all and I wish this family all the health and happiness on their journey together. Please share.
