"Main Modi ko call kar ke bolungi ke mujhe mere ghar ki yaad a rahi hai, mujhe jaane do (I will call Modi and tell him that I am homesick, please let me go)." Sunita Sharma keeps telling her parents and brother that she is fed up staying indoors all day at their Lajpat Nagar flat and misses Shimla, their hometown.
The 36-year-old Sharma suffers from intellectual disability, and cannot grasp the lockdown. Same goes for 16-year-old Akmal Amiri, who has Down Syndrome, and resides in the same locality after his family moved here from Afghanistan, 12 years ago.
The pandemic is a testing time for all of us, and it has equally, if not more, has impacted individuals with special needs. In the case of Sunita and Akmal, both had set routines – Sunita’s daily walks in the park, apart from the market trips, and Akmal’s daily workout at the gym with occasional trips to his favourite haunt, Select Citywalk.
It was an uphill task for their families to make them understand the situation in the initial days of the lockdown. "Sometimes, he gazes from the balcony for one-two hours continuously," says Akmal’s sister Morsal Amiri. "We keep telling him it is very dangerous outside, and that Modi has asked everyone to stay indoors. But he still keeps asking, 'did Modi say anything about ending the lockdown?'"
At times, they get aggressive, which is completely natural, explains Delhi-based psychiatrist Dr Anju Sharma, pointing at lack of communication as the cause. “At this time, even parents are frustrated with things going haywire, and are not able to give proper attention to their kids. Those with special needs are neither able to go out or express what’s going on inside them, and in turn rebel.”
Dr Sharma suggests that whenever a kid gets hyper, just leave them on their own for two-three minutes, because if you respond immediately, you will never be able to change their behaviour. “After five minutes, come and hug them by rubbing on their spine from end to end. It leads to generation of neurotransmitters, which suppresses their anger. Also, make them do breathing exercises,” she adds.
Doctors say that kids with intellectual disability have high emotional quotient, which slows down their logical mind. But they are creative. So, parents and siblings can come up with activities to keep this family member busy.
Like Sunita’s mother, Mathura, asks her to help in doing the dishes and brooming the house. “She loves to sing while doing these chores. She has a habit of talking to herself, so we make sure that she doesn’t sit alone. Her intellect is that of a three-year-old kid. So, we keep an eye on what she is doing. Sometimes, we play songs on the speaker for her because she loves dancing too, and we join in too.”
Akmal, despite struggling to be coherent, is excited to tell us about his new routine. “Earlier, I used to go out but now I can’t because Didi says there is corona. So, I do colouring, playing games on my mobile and watching comedy. I also help to peel and chop the vegetables,” adds Akmal, who is a big fan of Salman Khan and wishes to meet him someday.
Since his sister Morsal is not going to work, she makes sure to spend more time with him. “I have taught him to spell his name, and we keep revising the address of our house. But he is more interested in colouring. Everybody in the family used to get colouring books and colours for him, so he has a plenty of stock to keep him busy through the lockdown. He always wants to be like others. He wants to study, and work likes us, and we always support his aspirations,” she adds.
Be careful with your actions around these individuals, Dr Sharma says , and offers a few pointers. "These people can understand things just by observing the behavior of people and things around. So, don’t make them watch news and stressful things.Instead watch comedy, which activates the pituitary glands. Find out their interests and make them do more of that. In the study of psychology it is observed that people try to dominate those who can be suppressed. But, we have to give them what they seek. Love and communication are the keys to change them for good."
When the lockdown ends, Akmal plans to go the mall to have cake and coffee, and Sunita wants to visit her hometown for a wedding.