Combating Covid-19: People of determination use #StayHome time to hone their skills

Dubai - Keerthana M Shenoy, who has a 19-year-old autistic son Sujith Shenoy, said parenting during a pandemic is an entirely new challenge.

With the shuttering of schools and training centres, parents of the people of determination (PoDs) are facing a new challenge - to become full time playmates, teachers and caregivers while working from home. Although the Covid-19 outbreak has caused a considerable amount of disruption in their lives and routines, parents and even teachers are finding novel ways to help PoDs to not only cope but make the most of the stay-at-home policy by teaching them new skills that help them stay independent and connected to all.
Keerthana M Shenoy, who has a 19-year-old autistic son Sujith Shenoy, said parenting during a pandemic is an entirely new challenge as the child has to radically change his full routine. "PoDs need to be kept occupied all day and for that they need a proper schedule. Otherwise, there is a possibility of having behavioural issues. So, as parents, we had to chalk out a plan to keep him busy.
"My son had a fixed schedule that he would follow every day, which would mostly comprise of outdoor activities such as skating, going to learn some vocational skills and attending sports activities at Dubai Club. But suddenly, everything stopped. It is the immense support I got from several online groups that help me overcome this situation. In these groups, parents of other PoDs share skill-building activities, online games, reading material and relevant resources that are available for free online," said Shenoy.
She added that for a smooth transition from outdoors to indoors and from social gatherings to social distancing, parents have to plan well and also seek help from other online support groups. "We are now bonding together as a family as we talk to him more and engage him in different household chores that will help him become independent. He also practises Taekwondi moves, exercises with his father and plays indoor cricket."
Sujith's parents are using this stay-at-home time to explore their son's creativity and bond with him. They also explained to Sujith the reason for this change in his routine by detailing about covid-19.
Thilaga Ramakrishnan, mother of non-verbal autistic boy Harish, said her son's training institute - Al Noor Training centre - has been a great "support system" to help her son stay engaged and happy. "I was worried at how I will manage to keep him at home all the time as he loves going out and is very fond of his training institute, therapists and teachers. However, his institute has designed some online activities to keep him occupied and they conduct live sessions on Zoom Cloud Meetings where he gets to see his teachers and therapists," Ramakrishnan said.
Apart from practising yoga and other exercises with Harish, Thilaga said she is using this 'stay-at-home' time constructively by teaching her son some self-help skills so that he becomes independent. These include cooking, making his own bed, doing the laundry etc.
Wemmy de Maaker, founder and managing director at Mawaheb from Beautiful People, an art studio for adult PoDs, said all her artists are coping well and happily implementing the stay-at-home policy as they are constantly connected to each other through WhatsApp groups as well as through online video conferencing which has kept their spirits high and happiness factor up.
"We believe in staying positive and making the most of whatever is available. We are working with adult PoDs which is why we inform and educate them about whatever is happening around them. Before we closed the art studio, we informed all artists about Covid-19, what it is and how it is spread and urged them to wash their hands more often and to keep clean.
Wemmy added that since the team of art mentors and all artists keep in touch, it seems like a normal week to all of them. "They are connected with their Mawaheb friends by WhatsApp so they do not feel lonely or isolated. We give them art homework and then discuss it through these apps. They all take their responsibility to work from home on their art skills, fitness exercises and social skills seriously. The encouragement of the team is giving our artists a positive mind set and energy to stay strong and positive. I'm very proud of both our team as well the artists," she said.
How can people of determination make #StayHome life creative?
>Keep connected with friends through social media, video conferencing apps
>Engage in doing house chores like cooking, making own bed, cleaning etc.
>Parents can seek help from support groups by sharing online skill-building activities, games, training classes etc
>Learn new skills to be more independent
>Keep a proper schedule for activities
>Don't forget that physical activities are important and try doing some exercises
>More family time would help preventing behavioural issues
saman@khaleejtimes.com