Did I just put my head on the chopping block? See what you think.
Background: I am an inactive (20 + years) but not DA/DF etc. I still get invited to various gatherings etc. and I genuinely have affection for most of the so-called brotherhood, my problem is with the organizations man-made and ever changing rules. My two biggies are shunning and blood and this fact is known by most Jdubs that know me well. We just dont talk about those subjects and we get along just fine.
My wifes PO knows I have problems with these two issues and he sent me a bunch of information on monochorionic pregnancies (stuff printed off the internet). I guess this is in response to some information I once shared with my wife about natural transfusions in these types of twins. So in response to what he was kind enough to share with me, I decided to write him a letter and give him a good witness on the subject. I also gave my wife a copy of the letter.
That was a few days ago and I have not heard anything back yet. I will share with you a copy of the letter, see what you think. Personally I think I made some pretty good arguments but logic and reason does not necessarily work with these people as many of you undoubtedly already know.
I toyed with the idea before, I think I even posted a draft asking for comments but never went trough with it. But now that her PO sent me this info, well I just could not pass up the opportunity. I cant believe I had the balls to send him it but what is done is done and its too late to change my mind. Maybe I will soon join the ranks of you so-called apostates :-) as DF. Anyway here it is verbatim:
**** EDITED FOR ANONYMITY ****
(Brother PO),
Thank you for the interesting information on Twin-to-Twin Transfusion Syndrome (TTTS). Actually I was familiar with much of the information but it was good to look over some of this information again. I appreciate you taking the time to do this. I noticed you highlighted certain segments in yellow highlighter such as the high mortality rate some 80% without treatment and that twin-twin transfusion syndrome is a serious complication of monochorionic twin pregnancies etc. I assume you were trying to make the point that this is a defect, an imperfection, and in that respect your efforts did not fall on deaf ears so to speak, as I agree that you are quite correct in this respect.
Yes TTTS is a serious complication, especially if not treated very early before the damage is done to either or both twins. Usually it is the donor also sometimes called the stuck twin that suffers the most, as this baby is the one drained of its life-giving blood supply. Other serious complications in a closely related type of pregnancy can include conjoined fetuses commonly referred to as Siamese twins (depending on what day the egg splits). When such twins share the same sack, entanglement of the umbilical cord and resulting strangulation of one of the twins has been known to sometimes occur too.
(Brother PO), the information you presented is quite accurate, however it is written from the standpoint of describing a serious condition that SOMETIMES occurs in these twins, not what normally occurs. What is not brought out with any emphasis, is that THE GREAT MAJORITY, 80-90% of monochorionic pregnancies ARE BORN PERFECTLY HEALTHY.
Multitudes of such twins are born and live perfectly normal lives and they are closer to each other then any other type of normal twin right down to their very DNA. The condition of TTTS occurs ONLY when there is a SEVERE IMBALANCE in blood flow from one twin to the other, only then does it become a problem. When the two fetuses share the same placenta, vascular couplings or links develop between their circulations. The medical term for this is anastomoses. This condition is unavoidable, normal, and quite harmless, as some blood flow and intermingling of the blood of the twins is not a problem since they share an exact match in their DNA. These anastomoses can be of three types: vein-to-vein, artery-to-artery and artery-to-vein. Fortunately in most cases even when there are multiple vascular connections within a single placenta, little or no twin-to-twin transfusion should occur provided the anastomoses are in balance. Its when the anastomoses are out of balance that there is a problem because one twin pumps too much of his blood supply into the other twin and the recipient twin disproportionately receives too much of this blood.
Commingling of the blood however in all cases is unavoidable as the blood supplies of the twins are directly and physically connected to each other through the shared placenta with its cross-connecting anastomoses, but as previously stated this is not a problem as the DNA match is perfect.
That said (brother PO); I believe the large and what I consider most significant point that you apparently fail to see from your research thus far is that AT ONE TIME THESE TWINS ALSO SHARED THE SAME BLOOD SUPPLY. AT ONE TIME THEIR BLOOD, WHOLE BLOOD AND NOT JUST FRACTIONS WERE COMINGELED IN THE NATURAL SETTING OF THEIR MOTHERS WOMB.
And while yes it is true that SOME of these types of twins, a small MINIROTY, unfortunately suffer serious illnesses, MOST however dont.
ALL OF THEM, YES EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THESE TYPES OF TWINS AT ONE TIME SHARED THE SAME BLOOD SUPPLY; that fact is inescapable.
I pose a related question to you (Brother PO). White cells are on the prohibited list of blood components are they not? Yet milk, cows milk, even human mothers milk contains many white blood cells. Colostrum, also known as first-milk is loaded with white blood cells even more so then normal milk. So my question is why are white blood cells on the prohibited blood component list?
(Brother PO), in a nutshell here is my reasoning on this issue. If God in his wisdom allows such things as the sharing of whole blood between two distinct individuals to occur inside the womb, why are we sacrificing thousands of people each year, letting them die because receiving whole blood or certain restricted fractions is prohibited outside the womb? Why in Gods name must good and decent people, some of them just innocent children, why must they die? Who is pleased or served by this sacrifice?
(Brother PO) I cant forget the image of the Awake magazine cover with pictures of a dozen or so children whos lives were sacrificed to this blood policy. Do you remember that issue, it was a few years ago I believe? You of course remember (dead sister X ), I cant forget her image either besides her picture is in my bedroom. (Dead sister X) also sacrificed her life to this policy, when she made the decision to stop her cancer treatment. She could not continue with her cancer treatments without transfusions, something she was told was prohibited by God. Without treatment her aggressive cancer has a 100% mortality rate, she knew that, and that it was only a matter of time. I remember in the weeks before she died being at her house. It was a very strange and morbid gathering but we were all there to say goodbye to (dead sister X) because we all knew she would soon be gone. Im glad I went, it was the last time I saw her alive.
That is why (brother PO) I just cant in good conscience publicly defend the current blood policy, and I know Im not alone in this thinking. More then one brother on a hospital liaison committee has confided in me that they too were conflicted over certain aspects of the blood issue. I know I sure cant explain why taking white cells during a medical emergency transfusion is prohibited, but taking millions of white cells in milk, mothers milk, or even cows milk is somehow OK. I cant explain why human colostrum, also know as the first milk, a milk loaded with tons of white cells is not on the prohibited list. Can you?
If its not OK to take white cells intravenously, why is it somehow OK to drink them? Should drinking milk be a conscience issue? Why is receiving donated organs now a conscience issue since such transplanted organs contain millions of human white cells, cells which are on the prohibited blood product list?
The question you must ask yourself (brother PO), knowing the facts that you do know, (and please research the facts for yourself) would you still feel comfortable supporting this position. Would you feel comfortable serving on a judicial committee when deciding the fate of someone who followed their conscience and Gods own example that modern medical science has now shown us? Think about it.
I dont expect a reply, these are questions for you to answer for yourself, I only hope though that perhaps I have made my position and my reasoning more clear. Again I thank you for the effort and thoughtfulness in bringing this information to my attention and wish you warm regards.
Sincerely,
(My Name)
PS: I also shared a copy of this letter with my wife so she would better understand my position as well.