A disabled child also requires emotional and social security and ironically such children are left behind when it comes to socialize them, family due to hesitation, grief, anger and insecurities tend to keep the disabled child behind the walls. Many of the disabled children have been found to be emotionally and socially insecure and it is also a responsibility of the family to understand their emotional and social needs besides looking after their physical needs as well.
- Dealing with grief, hesitation and insecurity is must: In a family particularly the parents should get rid of their hesitation, fear and shyness and should try to give suitable exposure of the society, peers group and other members to the disabled child.
- Strengthening the image of family : Parents should try to balance their timing of caring and parenting a disabled child. Usually a major portion of the time is consumed only in taking care of the necessary tasks of the disabled child but here parents should understand that it is also essential to spend a quality time with their disabled time to give him/her emotional security and this will also strengthened a sense of a family in the mind of the disabled child.
- Taking help of Rehabilitation Professional: Rehabilitation professionals can better advice the family and the parents to provide a holistic and safe atmosphere for the disabled child. They can even guide about the necessary steps and things to be kept in mind while giving a social exposure to the disabled child.
- Value the disabled child : it is very essential that the parents, family and siblings give value and respect to the disabled child and do not treat him/her as an unproductive member of the family. Never find the fault in his destiny but try to help, support and motivate the disabled child to grow and become self-sufficient.
- Give empathy and not sympathy : a disabled child never wants your sympathy but your empathy. He/she wants you to understand his condition and moreover expects you to help and motivate him. A disabled child also needs a compassionate guidance and little extra attention otherwise your sympathy is just futile for him.
- Recreational activities and peer groups : parents and other family members should join some of the NGOs or nearby homes where the disabled children can meet other children of same disabilities and can meet new people. Such homes and NGOs organize short trips and recreational activities for disabled children and also provide other productive activities which are learning and useful.
Thus, the upbringing of a disabled child requires the parents to understand every aspect associated with the same, it is important to realize that the child with disabilities is not supposed to be lying on the bed all the times, and others perceive him/her with sympathy and mercy but that child also deserves to be independent and self-sufficient. A disabled child also deserves to be grown up in a healthy and free atmosphere and rehabilitation is a way to provide him that atmosphere and conditions.
Yesterday, I was listening to the Indian Prime Minister on radio and he gave a suggestion to use ‘divyang’ in place of disabled. I feel that we can eliminate more than half of the psychological negativity with the right use of the word as it affects the mental strength of the respective person. To the point of social and emotional thrust, there is only one way to quench it! Spend time with them and establish fair conversation. Observe their activities and notice their behavior. You are there! 😀
I understand, Children with less motivation than normal average individuals require far more attention and interest that what most people or the common person has no idea about! I grew up with a sibling that had a disadvantage from birth, due to a common medical condition! Sure, it was hard and without the knowledge of not knowing, not being able to understand, lack of education to understand what i was seeing or looking at? Made it all more difficult to maintain a proper common medium! My normal normality was the problem, as i would have to switch on and off to deal with proper etiquette! Our brains mode was developed to work in a one way passage, having to stop and step back day in and day out to meet certain behavior etiquette was some work to put in? So, of course dealing with people with learning disability, physical disabilities, behavior disability is hard, no doubt it! ” when i mean disability” is when one side can’t always have there way, or one can not think that it’s there way or the highway! Life is full of compromises, in which you put in what you get out! Being selfish and rude or negative with never solve anything? Therefore, the past is the past, no matter what one does will never change facts, stories, and fiction? Avoiding reality will mostly cost, and the price of selfishness and wrongful thinking will determine the nature of ones individuality. Basically what i am saying, is that everyone is human and everyone has feeling, wither they are disabled or normal or challenged. Karma will basically always surface wither your highly educated or a fictional character hiding among shame, hurt, lies, any criminal minded ruins.