Equip deafblind children with skills for life!

Here is a story about a handsome young man named Vind who loves to play the swing.

Vind will be turning 14 year old in September 2018. He was born with a condition known as Glaucoma. It is an eye disease that is often associated with elevated intraocular pressure, in which damage to the eye (optic) nerve can lead to loss of vision and even blindness. Glaucoma is the leading cause of irreversible blindness in the world. Due to his poor condition, he needs assistance to manage his daily routines.

Previously, he was with our Early Intervention Program (EIP) from he was two years old. However when he was six years old, he was sent to a special needs school for primary followed by secondary education until he reached 13 years old. He was released from the school because he had difficulties in learning, lack of attention and his progress was very slow than the other students. Despite being a slow learner he is able to communicate in Tamil, which is his mother tongue, but Malay (our national language) and English is still beyond him. Apart of having Glaucoma, Vind is also diagnose with some degree of mental retardation which explains his poor social skills. 

According to Vind’s teacher, since Vind joined the Deaf Blind Multi-Handicapped programme in April 2018, his progress has been slow. Vind is classified as trainee in Group 1 (G1). Which means he will only learn basic living skills. Vind is currently learning to count from 1 to 5 (cognitive skills), how to properly wash his hands and walk with assistance (daily living skills). 

Despite of his condition, an adolescence will always be an adolescence! Just like other youngsters, Vind’s favorite food are snacks and cakes. He prefer to sleep or just ‘hangout’ by himself most of the time. However, when he is on the swing, he turns into a whole new person. Just like most people, playing on the swing makes him so happy and helps him release some of his frustration. Just imagine that when we are on the swing, the feeling of flying and freedom can really boost our mood and improve our quality of life. We hope that starting Vind off with some basic living skill will enable him to aspire to greater independence in the coming days.