Finding Love Being a Hemophiliac?

     Finding love being a hemophiliac seems stupid when I write it, because we wouldn't have so many hemophiliacs if no one loved them, right?  My son, Marques (9), is starting to talk to me more about liking girls...every year now he seems to find a girl in his class he has a crush on.  For the first time though, I started worrying about some girl saying she doesn't like him because he has hemophilia and wears a helmet to play. 

     I expect it is normal for all boys to get turned down by girls for one reason or another...I use to turn guys down for being short...until I met my husband L.O.L.  When I was starting to date and felt the relationship might be serious, I would tell the guy about the possibility of me having a hemophiliac child...I first did this at 17 and the way I was crying probably scared the hell out of him.  I always thought me having the possibility of having a hemophiliac son would be a deal breaker.  I don't want to raise my own kids to think that way.  I want my daughters to be confident that any one worthy of marrying them would stand by them to raise a family regardless what God put before them.  (I pray there is a cure for hemophilia before they have kids)  I hope my sons choose their spouse the same way.

     So I guess I have to be strong for Marques when he comes home that first time and says, "She doesn't like me because I have hemophilia".  I need to be ready for what I am going to say to him so that he doesn't let the fact that he has hemophilia hinder him from being the "Mac Daddy" he thinks he is.

Raising a Want To Be Athlete



Marques playing football at Boy Scout camping trip

     I know I am like every Mother that thinks about her son playing sports.  Even though my boys have severe hemophilia A, I still brought them the little toy basketballs and footballs.  Yes, at the time it made me sad thinking they could never play for their school sports team or recreational teams. 

     Of course I felt guilty because their fathers (twice married) love sports and I know they would not have imagined having a son that could not play.  But still hemophilia does not stop my son Marques (9) from thinking he is an athlete.  I know he is at school during lunch playing football with his friends, which is why I still make him wear a helmet.  I remember (laughing), when he was about 6 I went to pick him up from his after school program and he was in the playground playing football and when he saw me he was trying to act like he was just watching...whatever.  We tried to get him involved in Boy Scouts, so he does have some outlet, but even at Boy Scouts they play sports at camp or sometimes at the meetings.  What can a Prophyholic Hemo Mom do but make sure he is treated and ready to give an extra dose if needed.  All the fathers make comments about how he should play football and we have to give the speech....he has hemophilia a bleeding disorder...yada yada.

    
     But now, I don't know if the old rules apply anymore about hemophilia and sports.  Of course there are different levels of sports you should and should not play.  I don't think we will see a famous hemophiliac playing football...but maybe basketball.  I read an article in Hemaware, a bleeding disorder magazine, that studies were done and proved that high impact sports like basketball did not increase the number of bleeds versus lower impact sports for boys on prophy treatment.  All these studies are so new and contradict everything put in my mine by my own father and information I was given when Marques was first born. 

    
     But times change, medicine gets better and more available and just maybe my son can play for his school basketball team!  I did check with his Hemophilia doctor and she just said we would look at changing his prophy days to practice days and go from there.  I will be cheering from the stands with my ice bags ready to go!

     Does your son play sports?  Why or Why not?