Children’s Stories
Read about the life changing work being done with children at the Chingari Rehabilitation Centre. With the help of our therapists, every year children at the centre learn to sit, stand, walk, and speak.
Children’s Stories
Read about the life changing work being done with children at the Chingari Rehabilitation Centre. With the help of our therapists, every year children at the centre learn to sit, stand, walk, and speak.
Affan’s Story
Affan Ahmed suffers from dyskentic cerebral palsy. He was born on February 2nd , 2020. His father is gas affected. Affan has been attending Chingari for treatment for the past three and a half years. His mother, Mrs. Anam, told us about their experience:
In the early days of joining Chingari Trust, I would go home and cry whenever I saw a child eating at Chingari Trust, because Affan couldn't chew anything back then. My heart ached, and I felt terrible. I wondered if my child would ever be able to chew and eat. Strange thoughts would come to my mind. But today, thank God, due to the efforts of Speech Therapists at Chingari Trust, Affan has started chewing.
When he was born, he had fits and a fever. For a year, we thought he was just weak and had a fever. A year later, a doctor told us he has a condition and needed medical treatment. He asked us to consult at Government Hospital. That's when his condition was truly diagnosed for the first time and we know about his need for therapy sessions. Someone told his father about a therapy centre at Polytechnic square, where he got a check-up and his father paid five hundred rupees. After that, they told him he needed physiotherapy sessions, which costs seven thousand rupees per month. His father does roof waterproofing work and only earns around fifteen thousand rupees per month, so it was not possible for us to afford seven thousand rupees per month for his treatment.
After this, one of his father's cousins, who lives in Qazi Camp, told him about Chingari Trust - that no money is charged there and the treatment is also good. That's when we started bringing him here, he was two years old then. He is five and a half years old now.
When he came here, he was not able to chew anything. He would vomit as soon as he drank a little milk. At that time, there was a lockdown due to Covid, which also caused a lot of trouble. He couldn't even speak. When Ishrat Baji (Caretaker in Chingari Trust) used to distribute food, I used to refuse her saying that he was not able to eat anything. Then the speech therapy madam would say that you should try to feed him. And by the grace of God, he slowly started chewing the food. Now he has even started saying the names of fruits and has also started speaking a little.
He has also benefited a lot from physiotherapy, earlier he was not able to control his neck. Whenever he had to sit, he would sit bent. Couldn't even turn over. Today, thanks to God, he has started controlling his neck and also turning sides. He has started to straighten himself by lying upside down and from face to face upside down. He has also started trying to hold things. He has also started to understand many things.
He likes Chingari Trust a lot. At night, if we pass in front of Chingari Trust, he would tell his father that Abba, this is Chingari Trust and would like us to take him to Chingari Trust.
He is very fond of travelling outside. His grandfather lives in Arif Nagar, and he loves visiting their house. When his sister studies, he says, "Mother, I'll study too." He also loves biryani from hotel. If his elder brother says so, then he'll also say, "Amma, I want to eat hotel biryani." He has some difficulty chewing hard food, so I feed him by breaking it into pieces. When I teach him the Sipara (Arabic alphabets book), he repeats Alif Ba after hearing it. When I teach counting, he starts repeating numbers and also repeats the alphabet. He also attends a special education class here. When the teacher leads him on an activity with beads, he tells her to give him some colors and he'll want to do the coloring.He gets very angry when his sister teases him and says that Amma will not take him in her lap anymore. There is a shop in front of our house and whenever we take him anywhere, it is necessary to buy a packet of biscuits and Gujarati Papdi for him from there, otherwise he won’t go inside the house.
He's very attached to his father. After leaving here, he'll call him and ask, "When will you be home, father?" He'll say he'll be home by evening, and he'll tell him to come early. He's started understanding so much that if his father doesn't pick up the phone, he'll say, "father is reciting namaaz." He watches Shiva cartoons on mobile phone with great interest. He also enjoys watching C.I.D. (Indian crime thriller television series) with his brother.
When we came to Chingari Trust for the first time, we were told that we would have to stay at Chingari Trust for two to three hours for his therapies and special education sessions. Then we thought how will we stay for so long but when we started coming here, we felt so good that not just three but we can stay here for even four hours also. Earlier we thought that only our child was facing the problem, but when we came here we saw that there are other children too who are facing the similar problem. Some had more problems than us, some less. Seeing all this, our hearts also got solace that we are not the only such parents.
My life at home isn't so easy. Earlier, when my mother-in-law was alive, she used to help me with household chores. But since she passed away a year ago, I've had to manage everything alone. I have to take care of the house, take care of him and I have three more children, I have to take care of them too. This at time makes me bit irritable at home.
He wants to become a Hafiz (a person who has memorised the quran) when he grows up. I want him to be able to do his own work and not be dependent on anyone in the future.
Atif’s Story
Atif Shaikh was born on July 13, 2015, and has been receiving treatment at the Chingari Trust since September 2019. He receives physiotherapy, speech therapy, and special education. He suffers from developmental delay, microcephaly, and seizure disorder. His father is a gas survivor.
Talking about Atif's life, Atif's mother Mrs. Saira Bano told us “When Atif was born, he wasn't blinking or taking milk. The doctor told us he was having seizures. They kept him in the hospital on machines for twenty-one days before discharging him. For nine days, they didn't even let us see him. For five months after his discharge, he had seizures every eight to fifteen days, and then they stopped. But now he's ten years old, and when he turned nine and a half, he had seizures again. Initially, we had him treated by various neurological doctors. Finally, we took him to Gauri Pandit Madam (paediatric neurologist), who referred us to Chingari Trust. Atif was three and a half years old at that time. Before coming to Chingari Trust, he couldn't speak. We were overjoyed when he said "Amma" and "Papa" for the first time. And when he wrote small ‘a’ and big ‘A’ for the first time, we were very happy that he can also write. Both me and my husband work and my sister takes care of him. Once someone told my sister that you are taking care of such a crazy child, that day I felt very bad. Atif's very fond of vehicles. He often tells us that “when I will grow up then I will be driving the car and mummy & papa will sit in the back”. When Amir bhai (Chingari's Van Driver), comes to pick him then also he says that one day he will drive the van and take children to Chingari. He also likes watching Motu Patlu, Shin Chan and The Hulk cartoons on television. He also loves playing with other children in the neighbourhood.”
Telling us about Atif's physiotherapy treatment journey at Chingari Trust, his physiotherapist, Dr. Lubhna Baig, says that all his developmental milestones were delayed. He couldn't hold his neck, sit, stand, or walk. He also had balance issues and poor functionality in his hands. But now, all his milestones have been achieved. He can hold his neck, his trunk control and muscle strength have improved, he has less difficulty walking, and his gait has improved. His sitting posture and balance have also improved significantly, as has his hand functionality.
With regards to his speech therapy, his therapist Nousheen Khan says that initially Atif was unable to speak a single word. He would constantly drool. He also had difficulty in chewing and swallowing food. Atif's also struggled with eye contact and keeping his visual attention. He also faced issues with his tongue and lip movements. After a prolonged course of speech therapy, he has started speaking in full sentences and the drooling has completely stopped. He is able to chew and swallow his food properly. His visual attention and eye contact have also improved.
He has mastered lip movements for speech, and his tongue movements have also improved by about sixty percent. He can now recite poems and tells us about his daily routine.
Atif’s class teacher, Ritu Rai, tells us that initially Atif was completely dependent on his guardians for all his daily living activities. He was socially active but needed supervision. His communication and interactions with other children were limited. In class, he could only write "A" by joining dots. Now, he has started doing some tasks on his own, such as brushing his teeth, bathing, eating, and dressing. Other tasks he can achieve with assistance, such as tying shoelaces, and buttoning and zipping his clothes. Socially, he has become quite confident and friendly. He enjoys playing group games like cricket with his friends. He has begun to understand social rules and follow simple commands. He displays responsible and cooperative behaviour with both his peers and teachers. In class, he can copy and write the alphabet and single words independently. He can also count from 1 to 300 and spell out his numbers. He can identify fruits, vegetables, vehicles, and animals. He can read the time on a digital watch. He can also use money and purchase small items from the shop.
Krishna’s Video Story
Krishna is 10 years old, he has delayed speech and language development and ADHD. He has a twin sister (Vaishnavi) who has Autism. Krishna’s mother has been bringing both children to our Chingari Clinic for 7 years. When he arrived he could only say two words but with daily therapy his speech has improved, he can now deliver full sentences with ease, as he does in our video.
