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Former reality TV star Emily Maynard has opened up on her baby boy's Down's syndrome diagnosis.
Emily, 36, took part on the 15th season of hit ABC dating series The Bachelor and its spin-off, The Bachelorette.
She is now happily married to Tyler Johnson, and the couple recently announced the arrival of a little boy, Jones West Johnson, who was born on 31st August.
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The pair have also confirmed that their son was born with Down's syndrome, a condition in which a person has an extra chromosome.
The NHS explains people with Down's syndrome will have some level of learning disability, as well as distinct physical characteristics.
Typically a baby born with Down's syndrome will have an extra copy of chromosome 21, for a total of 47 instead of 46 chromosomes altogether. This usually happens by chance.
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Emily's Instagram announcement included a family photo showing her daughter Ricki, 17, whom she shares with her ex-fiancé Ricky Hendrick; Jennings Tyler, seven; Gibson Kyle, six; Gatlin Avery, five; Magnolia Belle, two; and Jones West.
She wrote: “SURPRISE! On August 31st, Tyler and I welcomed our sweet son, Jones West Johnson, into the world. During my surgery we learned that he was born with Down's syndrome, and while it was certainly a surprise, we have so much peace in God’s perfect plan and know Jones is going to be a blessing to our family."
She added: “He was in the NICU for a little over a month and is thankfully now home in all the chaos and we couldn’t love him more.
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“Thank you to everyone at @levinechildrens for all that you did for our family.
“I’m so happy to finally share the news and can share all the pictures with you guys! He’s absolutely the cherry on top!”
Screening for Down's syndrome is offered during pregnancy in England with the test taking place at the dating scan – usually around 11 to 14 weeks – however it is the parent’s choice whether to have any screenings.
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Emily explained that she opted out of genetic tested in a recent interview with People.
“I was in shock,” she said about the diagnosis. “It was not on my radar at all. And I refused to believe it. I just wanted to hold him and for everything to be OK.”
About 6,000 babies are born with Down's syndrome each year in the US and 700 in the UK, making it the most common chromosomal disorder according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC).
The mum also explained that Jones was born with a rare congenital colon abnormality which required a month-long stay in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).
“I was just grieving all of it and that the experience was different from what I had expected,” she said.
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Emily has gushed that her newborn is ‘the easiest baby’ and ‘our biggest blessing’.
“I’m still learning about Down’s syndrome but I'm trying to also just experience Jones as Jones and not as different than any of the other kids.”
Gregory Robinson