VIJAYAWADA: Every morning, Nagesh joins the members of Amaravati Walkers and Runners Association (AWARA) to clean River Krishna’s riverbed and surrounding areas which are littered with plastic. One would not be mistaken if he is taken for a man with a civic sense.
However, once we dig deep Nagesh is actually undergoing rehabilitation after suufering from a serious health issue. As per medical experts, community services often prove to be a boon for addicts as well as physically and intellectually challenged people to come out of the shell of their former selves.
Nagesh, who was a farmer and a truck driver is one such example. “I suffered a brain stroke because of which I was bedridden. Doctors told me that that I should accept the fact and lead the rest of his life in this vegetative state,” said Nagesh.
His doctor and founder of the AWARA group, scientist and environmentalist Ajay Katragadda treated him for a while and then suggested that he join the cleaning activities, saying that it as a part of his treatment.
“Nagesh took help of the other members for around six months till he was strong enough to climb the stairs. Slowly, he gathered confidence, picked a stick and started picking trash alongside the river. Within six weeks, he covered a distance of one kilometer by walking on the sand barefoot,” shared Katragadda while speaking to TNIE. Now Nagesh poses challenges to able-bodied walkers by walking six kilometers at a stretch.
Katragadda added that patients recovering from brain stroke during the course of physical rehabilitation need a purpose to be fulfiled at the end of their recovery process. “Studies indicate that mere weeks of holistic community work such as cleaning river beds have a calming effect on people suffering from depression, anxiety and alcohol addiction. The same holds true even for chronic diseases as well as long-term illnesses such as stroke, heart and kidney problems, neurological ailments and musculo-skeletal diseases,” he said.
AWARA also recently engaged a man suffering from hemiplegia and an alcohol addict with brain and heart damage in cleaning and other social service activities conducted by the group.
Meanwhile, psychiatrists believe that community service is one of the best treatment methods for those suffering from mental illnesses. “People who suffer from psychological ailments need a sense of belongingness, which is satisfied through such activities. The extra care, attention and love that they receive through other group members help them recover faster, sometimes even better than solely through medication. Such patients are advised to take up such activities so that they can socialise with other people,” said Dr I S Reddy, a renowned psychiatrist in the city.