This Mother Says Her Kids With Microcephaly are ‘the Greatest Gift God Has Ever Given Me’

By Dustin Siggins Published on August 11, 2016

With Americans increasingly scared about Zika as the first domestic mosquito-borne cases have been discovered in Florida, Haneefa De Clercq says that women who bear children with microcephaly will be taught “how to love.”

De Clercq should know. Two of her three born children — her fourth was miscarried — have the disorder. Pregnant women with Zika are at a much higher risk of having children with the disorder, though the facts have been distorted in media coverage.

“That’s what I want those mothers to know, that it’s not the end of the world because you have these kids,” said De Clercq, speaking to ABC25. “They will teach them so much. They’ll teach them how to love, they will teach them patience.”

In her interview, De Clercq said that Andrea, 37, and Robbie, 33, have the respective maturity of a three-year old and a seven-year old. However, both children have their loves — Andrea for technology, Robbie for art — and De Clercq told ABC that she thinks they have photographic memories.

“I never expected that I could give them an instruction and that they would follow that instruction and do it properly,” she explained. “I see the love between them and it gives me tears of joy.”

The Zika virus, which has been spreading from South America for almost a year, is spread primarily through mosquito bites and sexual intercourse. For most people, the effects are minimal, but it can cause microcephaly and other disabilities in unborn children.

More to Know About Zika as Virus Spreads

The international abortion industry has used the virus to push for expanded access to abortion for women who are Zika-infected. However, the odds of Zika turning into microcephaly are about one percent for women infected in the first trimester, according to several studies conducted through the spring and summer.

A study published by The Lancet found evidence of disabilities for babies born to women infected in the third trimester, indicating that current tests are not thorough enough to catch all possible disabilities. Microcephaly, however, may be entirely limited to the first trimester, according to studies.

Microcephaly has received the most attention among medical professionals and the media. Some doubt has been expressed as to whether Zika is responsible for microcephaly cases in Brazil, which has been considered Ground Zero for the virus. The New England Complex Systems Institute reported a disconnect between the spread of microcephaly among babies born to Zika-infected women in Brazil compared to Colombia, and theorized that a pesticide could be causing some of the disorder’s presence in that country.

Whatever the truth about the effects of Zika, children are still a great gift from God, according to De Clercq, “Everything is in God’s time, and if we have the patience to go through that, the rewards are so much greater, and my kids are the greatest gift. They’re the greatest gift God has ever given me.”

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