{"id":7142,"date":"2023-10-25T11:21:27","date_gmt":"2023-10-25T09:21:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/disabilityconnect.co.za\/?p=7142"},"modified":"2023-10-25T11:21:27","modified_gmt":"2023-10-25T09:21:27","slug":"raising-a-child-with-cerebral-palsy-i-chose-not-to-be-another-barrier-in-her-life","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dev.disabilityconnectexpo.com\/index.php\/2023\/10\/25\/raising-a-child-with-cerebral-palsy-i-chose-not-to-be-another-barrier-in-her-life\/","title":{"rendered":"Raising a child with cerebral palsy: \u2018I chose not to be another barrier in her life\u2019\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

In October 2017, Reokopetswe Molobi (33) from Ramaphosa village in Moretele Local Municipality, had a difficult  and prolonged labour. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

By Precious Mashiane – Health-e News<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMy pregnancy was great. I had no complications until my due date. I was admitted and spent three days in labour,\u201d she says. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMoments after my daughter was born they told me she has cerebral palsy.  That was the first time I had ever heard of it.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cerebral palsy is one of the most common disabilities in childhood. South Africa doesn\u2019t have a registry of the number of people living with the condition. But it\u2019s estimated<\/a> that for every 1 000 babies born,  about 10 will have cerebral palsy. This is a group of disorders that affect a person\u2019s ability to move and maintain balance and posture. It\u2019s caused by damage to the developing brain. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The birth of her child completely changed Molobi\u2019s  life.  She had to adjust and accept mentally that she was a mother to a child with special needs. She remembers how difficult it was to find a nanny who could take care of her daughter. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI struggled to get a nanny because I could not just get a regular nanny, it had to be someone my daughter trusted and someone who knew about and understood cerebral palsy.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Challenges<\/strong> <\/h5>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s expensive to raise a child with a disability. There are regular check-ups, transportation is the worst,\u201d says Molobi. Like millions of other South Africans, the single mom doesn\u2019t have a car and relies on public transport, especially taxis. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

She says taxi drivers are rude to her and her daughter because the drivers expect them to be fast when entering the taxi. There are no wheelchair friendly taxis in their local taxi association. Sometimes they wait for over 30 minutes before a taxi even stops for them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another challenge is meeting the physical needs of a growing child. Assistive devices like specialised wheelchairs, for example, are costly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe changing of the bakkie [a special wheelchair]  to accommodate my child is also a challenge because a child cannot be in one bakkie forever. The more she grows we\u2019ll have to change it [wheelchair] so that she is comfortable.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
Stepping up and raising awareness <\/strong> <\/h5>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s been a hard journey for Molobi. But she has a great support system. This is her first child and she didn\u2019t know how to take care of her at first. But her mother has been there for her all the way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In March 2021 Molobi started a foundation called Binang CP Foundation. The aim is to spread awareness and educate people about the disability. She also helps other parents whose children have cerebral palsy to access the relevant institutions. Most of all she wants to advocate for those who, like her daughter,  can\u2019t speak for themselves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI feel a difference has been made since I started.  More parents are coming forward,  that is what I call a milestone,\u201c she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Binang CP Foundation has hosted more than five events and workshops for cerebral palsy awareness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI chose not to be another barrier in her life by not letting her explore. I started the foundation because I wanted people to see that disability is not a curse; there are still people who think disability is a curse or witchcraft and discriminate against people with disabilities,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Molobi says her daughter is a blessing. When she sees a smile on her daughter\u2019s face she says she \u201cwouldn\u2019t change this for anything in the world\u201d. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Molobi\u2019s daughter is turning six years\u2019 old in October and is currently enrolled at pre-school. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Seeking help<\/strong> <\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Dr Jeanette Modungwa,  a medical doctor who works for the Department of Health in the North West works says cerebral palsy can be caused by congenital abnormalities during the foetus\u2019 development. Sometimes it can be caused by brain damage due to a baby being deprived of oxygen during birth. This usually happens when the birth is prolonged. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

She highlights the importance of parents seeking out medical help when they are worried about their children\u2019s development or them missing milestones. The first step is to go to their local clinic where children can be referred to specialists for further evaluation. \u2013 Health-e News<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In October 2017, Reokopetswe Molobi (33) from Ramaphosa village in Moretele Local Municipality, had a difficult  and prolonged labour.  By Precious Mashiane – Health-e News \u201cMy pregnancy was great. I had no complications until my due date. I was admitted and spent three days in labour,\u201d she says.  \u201cMoments after my daughter was born they […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7144,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_eb_attr":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[36,37],"tags":[474,39,41,312],"class_list":["post-7142","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-disability-spotlight","category-focus","tag-cerebral-palsy","tag-disability","tag-disability-connect","tag-united-cerebral-palsy-association-of-south-africa"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dev.disabilityconnectexpo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7142","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dev.disabilityconnectexpo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dev.disabilityconnectexpo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev.disabilityconnectexpo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev.disabilityconnectexpo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7142"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dev.disabilityconnectexpo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7142\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev.disabilityconnectexpo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7144"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dev.disabilityconnectexpo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7142"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev.disabilityconnectexpo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7142"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dev.disabilityconnectexpo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7142"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}