MEET SHAFFIQUE

I realize that 2 months has already gone by and you have not met my little stars! They have made soo much progress that knowing they could not walk or stand without supervision or help will be a bit hard to believe...I thought that if I wait any longer, the kids will be off to school before I get a chance to write about them!

Many of the children here have been brought to the MOP by other family members because both parents have died. The care of the child usually falls onto siblings or grandparents who are unable to financially manage the child or their disabilities. Some single mothers have no choice but to ask the Brothers to take the children in because they cannot work and care for the child at the same time. Many of these single moms have more than 1 child to feed. Proper medical care can be financially devastating and completely out of reach for most Ugandans. Children with disabilities require more help than most families can manage. Some of these children are sadly abandoned because it is still thought that a disability is a curse. Families do not want the "curse" to spread to the other children and will leave a disabled child to fend for themselves. The LOVE and care that the Brothers provide helps these children begin to heal and gives them a FAMILY as well as a sense of belonging.

Shaffique and Brian (my helper) 

Shaffique: One of my first PT clients at Busega. He is a very smart and sassy young man with hydrocephalus. He is quick to smile and generally knows the lay of the land. He did receive a shunt early on which prevented his head from growing as large as Vincent’s but he was still left with delayed speech, poor balance and poor motor control. Shaffique was only able to stand for short periods of time holding onto bed rails, tables or the tricycle with help when I first met him. He generally did not speak but used eye gestures and a few simple words. He also liked to break out into full blown tantrums if he could not get his wants/needs expressed or if his “wants” were not answered within 30 seconds or less. I found myself constantly asking Shaffique, “ What do you want? Use your words. I can’t read you mind!” Mom….are you reading this???? I seem to recall this was a favorite saying of yours as well! Alas, it never worked. I would take him back to his room and usually in an hour or two he was back to his smiling self. 

My little "football player"

                  AFTER 2 MONTHS OF PT: Shaffique can now stand without pulling himself up on an object. He can get on and off the tricycle on his own (and ride it without my help). One can find him walking in the dorms, climbing up onto the bunk beds and cruising the bunks to socialize with his dorm mates. He is also speaking in clear full sentences! This is both in Luganda, his native language, as well as English. MOVING the body helps kids learn to communicate....this is something I knew but the results have been so very obvious! He can go up and down stairs and ramps using a railing with me only standing by and he can now walk a distance of 20 feet before falling. Shaffique's most favorite thing to do is "kick the ball" in PT. He can now do this without falling 50% of the time.

Standing in front of Mary

Despite all this, any walking still takes all his energy and concentration. Kids need a lot of encouragement to have the motivation to walk for this reason. They will fall much of the time which can be terribly frustrating (anyone learning to ice skate can attest to this). Shaffique has responded well to the encouragement of the Brothers to walk. He has made good progress for this reason because he is walking not only when I am there but when I am not!

I was able to take some pictures of him wearing a USA Tee...It was unplanned but we got some good shots! Shaffique as well as the other children LOVE to have their pictures taken! They will chase me around as soon as the camera comes out. I rarely am able to take a picture of just one child as 8 or more will try and jam in the picture, waving wildly and make funny faces. I wish I brought a better camera. I am using my phone to take pictures and many of them are too dark to post. RATS!