If a baby is born with a terminal illness, is it ever okay not to fight for the life of the baby?
In this episode, Dr. Betters answers the question, "My friend’s son was born at 30 weeks with a rare skin condition. Babies with this skin condition usually die within the first days to first month of life. My friend has chosen to spend tens of thousands, maybe hundreds of thousands of dollars on medical treatment for her baby in hopes he will live. While I think her decision to fight for her son’s life is admirable, is it ever appropriate not to fight for the life of a new baby? If it wasn’t for modern medicine, babies like this would tragically, but naturally dye instead of going through weeks of suffering only to dye or have an incredibly poor quality of life. As Christians, can’t we also embrace death with hope rather than always avoid death? By the way, I am asking this question in order to think more complexly about this issue and in order to prepare myself if I am ever in a similar situation. I certainly don’t plan on telling me friend your answer! My role with my friend is to pray for her and walk alongside her in her suffering and encourage her as long as it is called today."