1. Cerebral palsy is a very serious disease
Almost all parents despair when they hear about a diagnosis of cerebral palsy. Recently, newspapers and mass media have promoted the idea that severe forms of cerebral palsy confine children to wheelchairs for life, prevent them from living a full life, and so on. At the same time, the media constantly talk about the various torments experienced by children with this diagnosis. However, in practice, many people do not even suspect that there may be people with similar disorders among them, but they are no different from others. Children can talk calmly, and with the right approach - move.
It is known that every disease can have a form - from mild to complex. In practice, cerebral palsy can be called a disease, but only the cause of certain disorders. The essence of the diagnosis is that even during the child's stay in the womb, his brain develops incorrectly, as a result of which he is born with certain disorders. As a rule, certain areas of the brain that are responsible for language and coordination are damaged. Disruption of a certain group of muscles can be called this diagnosis, but it is far from complete paralysis. Modern medicine has already found more than 1000 reasons that develop this condition, but they are all different and can cause different types of disorders.
To date, there are 5 forms of cerebral palsy, including mixed types:
- Ataxic. It turns out that the child has reduced muscle tone. All his movements are slowed down and he can lose his balance.
- Dyskinetic. This is probably the most complex form, which is characterized by involuntary movements. As a rule, almost every limb can be affected.
- Hemiplegic. With this form, the legs and arms of a child or an adult remain affected, but only on one side.
- Spastic (diplegia). With this form, there is a rather large lesion of the limbs on the hands or feet. Very often it is observed that a person walks with bent knees. A similar form, as a rule, envelops about 40% people with a diagnosis of cerebral palsy.
- Spastic (tetraplegia). A severe form of the disease, in which a person is not able to fully control his own muscles due to their excessive tension. To date, this form is diagnosed in 2% people with this diagnosis, but only they are talked about in the news and written in newspapers. In other cases, one way or another, the situation is not too negative.
Even after the child was given this diagnosis at birth, other aspects and symptoms arise. This is due to certain factors of life, which are individual for everyone. The consequences of the disease after a year of life are already a consequence, not cerebral palsy itself. There are people who, with severe forms, were able to overcome spastic diplegia, study at the university and live a healthy life, enjoying constant active recreation with others.
According to statistical information, 3-8 children out of a thousand are diagnosed with cerebral palsy, and the vast majority have a mild form. In this regard, it cannot be said that this is a very scary diagnosis, because if you make a number of certain efforts, you can achieve high results and live a normal life.
Some data indicate that Da Vinci also had the same disease as a child - he had a less severe form of the disease, but still the symptoms were very similar. He could not control his right hand normally, and it was difficult to step on his right foot properly. But this did not prevent him from becoming a world-famous person.
2. Cerebral palsy can be completely cured
Many parents whose children suffer from this disease get hope when they hear that cerebral palsy can be completely cured. Unfortunately, even today, it is not possible to correct those disorders and processes that occurred in the brain even before birth. However, parents continue to collect money and spend it on alleged treatment that does not produce significant results. But it cannot be said that this diagnosis cannot be alleviated. The fact is that it is not worth spending a lot of money to enroll a child in expensive rehabilitation centers. Only constant and individual work is required. It is possible to compensate for a number of certain violations only with constant development of the limbs, legs, arms, neck, etc. In the early stages of a baby's life, it is very important not to correct the consequences, namely to prevent further improper muscle work. You need to work constantly.
3. Cerebral palsy as a diagnosis cannot progress
Many whose children do not have a severe form console themselves with the fact that the disease will not develop. On the one hand, this is because the structure of the brain remains unchanged. But at the same time, it is important to understand that even the lightest form before adulthood can lead to problems with the spine, if you do not work physiologically. If you do not take care of the child all the time, there is a risk of complications that may arise as a result. Therefore, if the parents do not want the child to suffer pain all the time, it is necessary to deal with it from birth. The problem is that in our country, few people talk about it, and parents often do not consider it necessary to conduct regular classes, which leads to deplorable consequences.
All parents of children with cerebral palsy are well aware that the damaged part of the brain is more sensitive than others. This suggests that even flu or pressure can cause additional problems. And in some cases, experiences can cause completely new consequences, so it is necessary to protect the child from negatively influencing factors.
On the other hand, children cannot be kept in a special isolation ward. Doctors even say the opposite: children with a diagnosis must be constantly in society, because only in this way will they be able to strengthen their own bodies. But if certain procedures cause symptoms of cerebral palsy, then it is worth refraining from them for a while, because it is impossible to do more than the norm for a person with such a diagnosis.
Moms and dads must work with children aged 12 to 18, because this period is difficult and dangerous for every child, including a healthy one. The body is undergoing restructuring, its tissues and bones are constantly developing, so it is very important to take this factor into account. There are cases when children who could walk are forced to sit in a wheelchair from the age of 12 due to pain, but they remained there for the rest of their lives. With those who could not walk independently until the age of 12, it is also better not to work much during this period of time.
4. All consequences are related to cerebral palsy
Not everyone knows that almost all the consequences of the disease are limited. But almost all parents and relatives of children believe that even impaired vision and hearing are consequences of this diagnosis, which is not true. They even believe that autism is closely related to cerebral palsy. Those who believe that curing this disease can get rid of others are wrong. Each question should be approached comprehensively.
Also, not everyone knows that Sylvester Stallone was born with certain difficulties. His facial nerves were damaged. He could not move his cheek, lips and tongue. Even now, the actor has not quite expressive speech and too upset eyes, but they attract the viewer.
Very often, many doctors say that they do not want to undertake the treatment of this diagnosis, because they do not see much sense. They ask - What do you want if you have cerebral palsy? And a person only needs adequate treatment, and as a result, the doctor prescribes certain drugs and therapy that alleviate the patient's condition. A person with this diagnosis should always be attentive and listen to his own body. He should know what kind of therapy is right for him.
5. A diagnosis of cerebral palsy is a reason for isolation
It cannot be said that this myth arose because of real statistical data. Most likely, these are the very fictions of certain people who believe that it is impossible to live a normal life with a diagnosis of cerebral palsy. Even after boarding schools, only those who have absolutely no desire to continue their studies or go to work remain in the houses. And these are units. Many children enter higher education institutions, and others go to work, so this diagnosis cannot be called fatal. Very often, the fair sex get married and stay to work with their children. Of course, in schools where children with mental disabilities study, the situation is completely different: they, as a rule, stay to study further and stay longer.
This myth was created by those who cannot get a job, the requirements for which are too high even for a completely healthy person. Very often, upon receiving a refusal, such a person turns to journalists, who dispel the myth even more. However, those who can talk and move are more likely to find good jobs and not complain.
As an example, we can cite Kateryna K (a graduate of one of the specialized centers). She has a severe form of Little's disease. Kateryna can walk independently, but she can work at the computer with the help of one finger, and she speaks intelligibly only to people who know her. She really wanted to enroll and study to become a psychologist, but she was rejected at the university, as the teachers did not want to teach her. However, she did not give up and entered another specialty. As a result, she graduated from the editorial faculty remotely, and even helped her classmates pass tests! Of course, she could not find a permanent job for herself, since she did not have a special employment document for this. But today she successfully works on educational sites as a moderator and even has her own site where she publishes her poems!
6. Practically all children with this diagnosis were born into a family of drug addicts or people with alcohol addiction.
Such a statement is not supported by any statistical data. First of all, a child's disability is influenced by the environmental environment, improper working conditions, unhealthy food, lack of an adequate lifestyle, and genetics. Children with disabilities across the land do not occupy 5% of the total number. This means that each mother and each father has a 5% probability of becoming the father of a child who may have developmental abnormalities.
Even in the early stages of a woman's pregnancy, it is possible to see how correctly the brain is developing with the help of prenatal diagnostics, which is carried out quite successfully.
When a woman crosses the threshold of pregnancy at 12 weeks, she has the opportunity to carry out this diagnosis, but this is not an accurate diagnosis, but a level of risk. It is impossible to give the most correct prognosis of the future child, but it is possible to determine a number of reasons, as a result of which health problems may arise. Already after 18 weeks, you can perform an invasive check, which can give an unequivocal answer. It is carried out only in those cases when the result of early diagnosis corresponds to high risks of a possible disease. In rare cases, the diagnosis can lead to a miscarriage (2%), but it cannot show all possible pathologies. Even when the child is in the womb, there is no way to diagnose him with cerebral palsy.
7. Others pay taxes for children diagnosed with cerebral palsy
At this stage, about 150,000 children with various abnormalities live in our country, and about 20,000 of them have this diagnosis. The state really cares about them. However, they are not paid for by people who go to work and pay their blood taxes. Only our servants of the people and those who do not work at all live off the taxes of the ordinary population. Children diagnosed with cerebral palsy have relatives and parents who often pay taxes for them.
In America, one dollar invested in a child with a similar diagnosis grows to 25. Thanks to the current system of rehabilitation of people with special needs and their relatives, children with cerebral palsy do not become a burden for others. In Switzerland, for example, children with disabilities may not be looked after by the state. The country does everything possible to ensure that they live a normal life and are no different from those around them. Children usually receive help from the state, they go to educational institutions, and their parents work. The state does not pay any pensions.
In our country, a person caring for a child diagnosed with cerebral palsy and the same child for two can receive no more than 1,500 hryvnias per month. At the same time, one of the parents cannot go to work all the time, and for special children of specialized kindergartens and schools - units. Promised benefits and price reductions for a number of certain drugs do not work in practice. Therefore, as a rule, a larger percentage of children with special needs live exclusively at the expense of their relatives. Taxpayers have nothing to do with them.
8. If the parents sinned, then they will definitely have a child with cerebral palsy
The principle, which is called an eye for an eye, has not worked for a long time. This myth was still dispelled when Christ came into the world. The disciples asked Jesus - who is sinful - the child who is born blind or the parents who have sinned? Christ replied that neither he nor his parents were to blame. This happens so that God's affairs are on it.
9. Parents of a child with a diagnosis are not happy
There are very many families in the world where children with cerebral palsy grow up, and of course, they have a lot of problems with it. However, it cannot be said that moms and dads are dissatisfied with life. They are more often grateful to God for what they have, because some parents cannot have their children at all. The concept of happiness is very individual, relative and temporary, so it is impossible to firmly say that parents are unhappy. To a greater extent, problems can concern only everyday life. Otherwise, life proceeds exactly the same as everyone else's. Enduring society is no less difficult. The attitude of other people towards children with special features can often be negative, but this fact cannot affect parents and children with special features.
10. It makes no sense for mom and dad to live with a child who has cerebral palsy
Any person who does not value spirituality and completely denies faith will, of course, only say so. He does not appreciate the importance of a child with this diagnosis and considers him an outcast in society.
However, in practice, every person in the world has importance, because the world itself is material and not only spiritual. Special children are a full-fledged society, it has the same meaning as all others. They have significance for a number of certain events, which sooner or later will change the consciousness of one or another person. There are no situations in life that do not happen just like that.
11. A common myth: children diagnosed with cerebral palsy are not complete and cannot communicate with other children
And what does the concept of a full-fledged child mean to you? What is the criterion of this phrase? The fact is that if everyone around were the same and could do absolutely identical things, the world would have dried up a long time ago. The development of the universe directly depends on different, not one and the same.
Yes, children are different, they can be different. But at the same time, they have absolutely the same rights and freedoms. They want the same, they feel and love the same. If we talk about identity, children with a diagnosis of cerebral palsy learn even more easily than completely healthy children. They can be much more active and lead a healthier lifestyle if they perform regular activities. The main thing is to help the child. The sphere of feeling and love is available to everyone, regardless of whether the child has a deviation or not. Manifestation of emotions and feelings is not always the same, but it is subject to everyone.
12. A child with a diagnosis can infect another child
Remember that disability is not a disease, and therefore it is not possible to get infected from it. Disability is a certain status that a person with limitations receives. For example, someone who has impaired functions of movement, breathing, speech, digestion, energy, etc. It is a mistake to believe that all this is transmitted socially.
13. Negative impact on the gene pool of children with cerebral palsy
Only genetic diseases can be inherited. The diagnosis of cerebral palsy cannot refer to such. Children with this diagnosis are not born for genetic reasons, which is a proven fact.
14. Children with cerebral palsy cannot study in regular institutions, as this negatively affects healthy children
Inclusive education is personalization. This has nothing to do with the fact that a healthy child will study according to a program designed for children with special needs. Each child should learn personally (one way or another), which is especially important.
If children with special needs are present in the general class, it will only have a positive effect on others. They will develop a sense of kindness, help, and patience. And no one, not even the best teacher, can tell about this.
15. Children with cerebral palsy are not like everyone else, so they CANNOT be integrated into society
Unfortunately, people know very little about children with disabilities and abilities. In this regard, it is difficult for an ordinary person to accept such a child on equal terms, and this is a kind of problem. The human psyche is created in such a way that it sees only ideals, and a person with defects is perceived completely differently. For example, if we had never seen animals, we would definitely be scared at the sight of even an ordinary dog. Even 20 years ago in the United States people with abilities were treated much better than in Ukraine today.
16. Deviation in the psyche significantly affects mental development. Children with cerebral palsy are retarded
There are many psychological and mental illnesses in the world that cannot be corrected. But there are peculiarities in development that do not pose a danger to others. Even if a child, for example, has speech disorders, this does not mean that his intelligence suffers. Often this is just a physiological feature, while his thoughts are always collected in order.
What can be recommended to parents who have heard that their child has a similar diagnosis?
First of all, there is no need to panic. It is very important to give the child much more attention than you were given as a child. It is very important to behave with him as if only healthy people grow in your family, and to saturate him with positive energy. Most often, walk with him in the fresh air and try to do what parents usually do with their children during their free time. It is not recommended to tell the child that he is different from others. He will come to this with age on his own.
Secondly, it cannot be assumed that the child will fully recover. A father must accept children as they really are. Many believe that the main treatment should be only in the first years of life, but this is not so. You should take care of your baby from birth to adulthood - this is the only way to get good results and relieve symptoms. In the diagnosis of cerebral palsy, it is very important to give the child the concept so that he wants to cope with the disease himself. If he does not understand the reason for his difficult treatment, then it is not worth waiting for the results.
Third, you don't need to get angry or look the other way at those who make stupid recommendations and look at your child differently. Parents probably faced this diagnosis not so long ago, so they should show leniency. You need to be tactful and never panic. Only a calm attitude can lead to good results.
The most important thing is to believe only in the best. Your child can become a full-fledged member of society, because he is not deprived of basic qualities - kindness and love!!!