MADURAI
Since the intensified lockdown began in Madurai, child psychologist Rani Chakravarthy has been flooded with calls. Hundreds of parents of special children have been ringing her to find out ways to calm their children, she says.
“Special children are used to having set schedules and patterns. They don’t like sitting in a single place for long. The inability to go out of house is bound to frustrate them and create anxiety. Hence, many of them scream and yell. This is a common complaint,” she says.
Ms. Chakravarthy says in order to ensure that special children are engaged during the lockdown and continue to see holistic growth, there is a need for parents to play the roles of therapists, special educators and physiotherapists. Providing phones and engaging them by switching on the television will rarely contribute to their growth, she says.
Hence, she suggests a number of methods to engage children to ensure that their movement and speech therapy is not disrupted.
“We call this home environment training. The idea is to teach young children everyday activities and engage them in household chores. Children can wash vegetables, identify colours, learn to comb their own hair, pick out stones from grains and even learn to put on their clothes. We also engage other young children to do these activities. For special children it takes longer and must be done with much more patience,” Ms. Chakravarthy says.
She says such activities will help them ignite their cognitive skills and also give confidence to parents. “With everyone now being at home, both the parties can get to know each other better. Parents can see a visible change in the attitude of the child if they play with them. An evening game of flying kites or painting their faces can lift the mood of the children,” she says.
Master physiotherapist Y. Hajira, who runs her own clinic, says parents must take a special interest in caring for their children and ensuring their muscles do not grow stiff.
“For those with cerebral palsy, it is necessary to provide regular physiotherapy. Parents can help children climb up and down a flight of stairs for strengthening their legs. Playing with balls or sorting out vegetables will help in finger gripping techniques,” she adds.
Ms. Hajira says parents are usually present in all physiotherapy sessions. “They would have observed some simple exercises that they can follow at home,” she says.
Ms. Chakravarthy says the entire family must be involved in caregiving and engaging special children so that it removes the burden on a single caregiver. Getting fresh air either on the terrace or outside their house in the evening will help, she adds.