Introduction Before we were introduced to our respective Community Teacher (CT), I felt apprehensive and nervous because I have never really interacted with someone with physical disabilities for a period of time; apart from my aunt who is hard of hearing. The data retrieved from 2010 suggests that there are approximately 97,200 individuals with disabilities in Singapore (Raghunathan, Balakrishnan, Smith & Md Kadir, 2015). I feel that constant social exchanges between an individual with disabilities and a person without, is minimal unless they are family. This was a very valuable experience for me as I came to realise how little I know about physical disabilities; and also, debunked common stereotypes and misconceptions I developed.
Key Assumptions …show more content…
I was then quite worried that my words would seem insensitive or rude. Thus, the session with Prof Donald was really beneficial in making sure we have some basic communicative skills for interacting with an individual with disabilities. However, all my worries were futile as Mdm R was extremely welcoming and caring towards all of us. As we shared that we were very stress about school and assignments, she was the one who motivated us and reassured us that all our efforts would be worth it in the end. Her positive outlook in life was also something that I really admire her of. This was very inspiring to me as if her situation happened to me, I never would have possessed the same attitude and instead just mop around all day. For us, we often use the line – ‘omg I feel like dying’ for every little challenge we experience. According to Angus & Van Der Poll (2013), “severe sepsis and septic shock were typically lethal… Even with intensive care, rates of in-hospital death from septic shock were often in excess of 80%”. Thus, for the case of Mdm R; she was just very grateful and feels like god has given her another chance. This opportunity is very beneficial as people often come to a realization or learn a lot more, if they gain first-hand experiences; and is also such a unique learning opportunity to directly learn about someone who has physical …show more content…
The amputation of his fifth toe (fifth metatarsal and phalange removed) actually bought about emotional distress as he actually shuns away from social interaction amongst his friends during the first few weeks after his discharge. In contrast with Mdm R who shared with us that she had a relatively positive outlook and did not shun on social interaction; I came to realize that the extent of the amputation does not equate to the amount of self-perceived societal barrier that they impose on themselves. However, I also realized the importance of family support in this period. The initial period was a challenge for him and the whole family as it was hard to see my father getting weaker and weaker. We became more affectionate and loving after this period as well? Saying words like ‘I love you’, and ‘thank you for this... and that…’ became a lot more frequent as I came to appreciate how we should treasure them now and not regret in the future that we did not show appreciation for them instead. The relationship amongst our family was also strengthened as we all underwent this ‘change’ with him though not physically. I feel and experienced the importance of a strong family support for amputees and hope that everyone would have the same as well as it really helps them to feel important and