Wirajaya Center Makes Masyita Smile Perfect
Translator :
Karlina Irsalyana
MAKASSAR (February 27, 2023) - Reality does not always match expectations.
Sometimes, expectations are reluctant to turn into reality. That's when humans
need to strengthen the foundation of their faith because life must go on. The
existence of a gap between expectations and reality is never wanted by anyone.
Likewise M. Jamil Taufik and his wife, Sari, only work as casual laborers every day and do not have a steady income.
Residents who live in Tallo District, Makassar City are forced to face the
reality that their youngest child, Masyita Naura Krasiva (5) experiences
obstacles in her growth and development process.
At the age of 13 months at that time, their
beautiful daughter was diagnosed with a spastic type of cerebral palsy (CP). The
disease paralyzed the nerves of the brain so that for years, Masyita was only
able to lie down, unable to sit, stand, and walk alone. The misery didn't stop
there. Cerebral palsy has also robbed Masyita of her ability to communicate
verbally.
According to the mother's statement, at first, the
cute little girl had a high fever with a temperature of 39 degrees. When she was
about to be taken to the hospital, apparently a large-scale mass demonstration
was taking place on the route to be traversed, causing severe traffic jams to
be inevitable. No doubt, Masyita was too late to get medical treatment.
The assessment carried out on November 30, 2022, by Wirajaya
Center stated that Masyita was able to turn her body back and forth while lying
down. Her legs became smaller and cramped, and her left hand was able to grip,
while her right hand still often had muscle cramps. Therefore, Wirajaya Center provides
physical therapy services to try to get used to the movements in Masyita's
muscles. Even when this article was written in early February 2023, Masyita was
able to position her body to sit even though it was not perfect. Apart from
physiotherapy, the results of the assessment also recommended that Masyita get
an adaptive wheelchair to help her practice a better sitting position as well
as assist in terms of mobility.
The physiotherapist who has been treating Masyita,
Murniaty, explained that Masyita's growth still looks like a 9-month-old child.
"If a child is 5 years old, right, they can already play, jump to and fro,
run, and so on. However, Masyita can only lie down, toss and turn from side to
side, even crawling is not good, she can only sit for a short time. At first, her
neck couldn't be straight, the shape of her legs crossed her knees because her
legs were so stiff."
Dealing
with brain damage is not as easy or fast as it might seem. It takes a long time
and also cooperation with parents.
“For example, in terms of communication
barriers. Keep talking, just because the child has a communication disorder,
then the parents don't talk to her. The way to communicate must be the same as
when communicating with other children," said Murni.
According to Murni, when parents want to talk to
a child who has CP, they have to be face-to-face. “That way, children besides
being able to see their parents, are also able to see the movements of
their parents' mouths and store them in their heads to understand them. Our
main goal for this child was not for healing."
First of all, continued Murni, children with CP
must be able to control their movements so they can position their bodies
properly.
"At least she can sit. If she can sit, it
means that her neck and spine can be positioned properly. If her neck and spine
are in a good position, preparations for learning to stand can be done,"
said Murni further.
Every child is a precious treasure of the
Creator entrusted to their parents. Every parent is obliged to care for and
raise with all love, body, and soul. Faithfully, Sari brought Masyita to Wirajaya
Center polyclinic almost every day to undergo physical therapy. She revealed
that her son was very comfortable with the physical therapy she underwent at Wirajaya
Center.
"Thank God, Masyita has experienced a lot
of development since getting physiotherapy here. How many places have we
visited for therapy that are not the same as the physiotherapy services here. Her
right hand was starting to become active, and her left wrist, which had been very
stiff, now began to move. Her appetite has also increased, she can even
scream," said Sari.
Masyita's family is far from well-off. They live
in a relative's house with four other families who often do not treat them
well.
"They don't seem like relatives, we are
often insulted, especially Masyita. Very often Masyita is said to be paralyzed. Masyita's two older siblings were often asked to do heavy work at the
house. I just said, 'that's the risk if we stay at someone's house. Be patient,
God will surely help us. If you say it's painful, it's very painful for us, but
what can we do?” Sari said, her voice trembling to hold back her emotional
turmoil and sadness.
To meet their daily needs, this family often
owes money to neighbors. "If Masyita's father gets more money, that's what
we use to pay off the debt," continued Mrs. Sari.
This reality made Sari often cry silently, not
wanting her children to know. Moreover, her children often ask when they can
move out of the house.
"Thank God, we have received all kinds of
help for our daily needs," said Jamil. "My principle is, if we like
to help, then the help will be easy for us to get," she continued.
Despite living within financial limitations,
Masyita's parents still intend to send Masyita to school. “She has to go to
school no matter what. Money can still be found, the important thing is that
our children can succeed, "said Jamil.
"If there is a wheelchair, it can help
Masyita learn to sit up straight. We can also do other things," said Sari.
In addition, she also really hopes to get business capital assistance to sell.
"So far, officers from RT or RW have
visited us several times, they said they would receive assistance from Social Office,
but until now we have never received any assistance at all, even though we have
already collected the required files," said Sari.
Among the many abilities that CP took from
Masyita, there was one thing that could not be forcibly taken from her. That's
the smile. The results of the assessment also revealed that even though she was
unable to communicate through words, Masyita would always smile when she heard
her name being called.
"Now she can understand what we are saying,
but she can't convey anything with words, only with gestures," said Jamil.
Arrived on the awaited day. During the
heavy rain that has mercilessly lashed all over Makassar in the past few days,
the car belonging to Wirajaya Center drove to Masyita's family residence to
hand over Social Rehabilitation Assistance (ATENSI) aid in the form of an
adaptive wheelchair to Masyita, Friday (17/2/2023).
With this wheelchair, Masyita no longer needs to
do all her activities in bed. The sitting exercises can also be more intense.
"Now she eats in her wheelchair, not in bed
anymore," said Sari.
With great emotion, the mother endlessly gives
thanks for the help they receive.
“We are very grateful. Thank God, thank you very
much to the Ministry of Social Affairs and Wirajaya Center for the assistance
of physiotherapy services and adaptive wheelchair aids. We can't reply to it all,
let God do the rest," said Sari.
She also hopes that her son can continue to
undergo physiotherapy at Wirajaya Center at least until she can move
freely.
"We are sure, Sita will be able to walk
like other children."
Of course, all parties hope that the various
services and tools provided by the Ministry of Social Affairs through Wirajaya
Center for Masyita and her family can perfect the little angel's smile.
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