Rainy month

December is always a wet wet month like usual. Darren & Derrick will be having cough, flu & fever on and off like usual. I am prepared this time, stock up lots of medicine from the chinese medical hall. And as I expected both of them are down with cough, flu & fever. Darren is having fever today, but he is better after some paracetamol.

Mrs. Mohan from PCS JW invited me to her class at the training centre, where she is having her course. I was sharing about my experience with Darren this one whole year since he was diagnosed as moderately autistic. We have not been through a lot, like other parents, who has older children, but I hope my sharing will be of some help for the teachers on training, for them to help other special needs kids in Singapore. I feel happy & satisfied just by knowing that my little sharing will benefit other kids as well.

Mrs. Mohan was asking me about my delivery process during Darren's birth, and I was remided of the difficult labour. They have to practically pushed him down, by pushing my stomach as his head is a bit too big for the contractions to flush him down. And they tried to use forcep also.It was a 15 hrs labour. So, with regards to this, I went to the internet and found this article;

Birth Trauma.
The nature of your birth can be one of the most crucial factors in determining your whole future - whether for better or for worse, whether as a positive influence or a negative influence - not just your babyhood or your childhood, but the very nature of your whole life.
On the positive side, a fluent and easy birth may contribute to a healthy, happy baby, who subsequently enjoys a contented and comfortable childhood and consequently develops the skills and confidence which lead to a happy and successful life.
On the other hand, birth can be very traumatic. It can result in severe physical disabilities which significantly limit development and capability. It can result in psychological and emotional trauma which determines the whole psycho-emotional development of the individual.
There are of course many stages in between these two extremes, but ultimately each and every one of us is significantly affected by the nature of our birth to a greater or lesser extent.
In its most severe manifestations, a difficult birth may lead to brain damage, cerebral palsy (spasticity) or autism, or may contribute to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (cot death). In less severe cases, it may lead to dyslexia, dyspraxia, learning difficulties, hyperactivity, epilepsy, obsessional behaviour, personality disorders, and a wide range of developmental difficulties.
But in each and every one of us (supposedly "normal" individuals) the nature of our birth, in some form or other, may play an important fundamental role in determining every aspect of our nature - our physical constitution, our underlying level of health and strength, our mental ability, our emotional stability, our muscular co-ordination and consequently our sporting and other motor skills. Compression, tension and restriction around the base of the cranium may significantly restrict blood supply to the brain, with profound consequences on brain development, affecting our intelligence, our memory, our academic ability, or determining whether our left brain or right brain develops more fully - and consequently whether we are more artistic or mathematically minded.
Birth trauma may contribute to a susceptibility to allergies, asthma, migraine, squint, ear infections and a whole multitude of other disorders as well as influencing the development of all our body systems - the nervous system, the digestive system, the immune system, and consequently in so many ways may determine our very nature.

Kudos to all the special ed teachers, I admire your passion, love & patience in dealing with our"very special kids". Thank you from the bottom of my heart, especially to those people involved in Darren's interventions & therapies. Mrs. Mohan, Sanjay, Vivian, Kyoko, Suan Lin, Teacher Fadi, Jane & others whom i might forget.