Special Needs

Unconditional Love for Children in Unexpected Moments

My daughter Moy Moy doesn’t speak at all. She is 27 years old, has quadriplegia and is completely non-verbal. But that doesn’t mean she doesn’t communicate. This morning I woke at 5 am because Moy was making sounds. They were

By Jo Chopra

Communicating Better with People with Disabilities

Whenever anything would go wrong in the early days of our foundation for children with special needs, Paula (our volunteer teacher-trainer, life-coach and best friend) would say, “Never mind! Worse things happen at sea.” Difficult times require clarity of thought,

By Jo Chopra

Motivating Kids With A ‘Loving Push’

When Tristan was three, he started Pivotal Response Training. At the time, he hardly spoke. So, like any good parent, while we waited for him to take this first verbal step, we took care of all the others that would

By Shalini Sawhny Braxhoofden

The Mountain of Early Intervention

I was one of those lucky teenagers who had no real problem with acne. I sailed through adolescence with only two or three pimples – so few I can’t even remember them. I do remember, however, friends for whom those

By Jo Chopra

The Art of Teaching Self‑Control

A few months ago, I missed my train from Delhi to Dehradun. I had to get back home that afternoon and there was no way I was willing to pay for either a flight or a taxi. So I worked

By Jo Chopra

ADHD in India: A Portrait of A Complex Condition

For a long time in India, parents of kids with ADHD despaired, having no name for what troubled their child. In 2006, when Neha* noticed her son struggling, she wasn’t sure where to turn for help. “At the time, teachers

By Mihika Mirchandani

Echolalia Means Living Inside A Pixar Movie

It was a rainy afternoon. Tristan and I had been walking down the sidewalk when he dropped his ball and it rolled into the street. He lunged after it – right into oncoming traffic, had I not grabbed onto him.

By Shalini Sawhny Braxhoofden

Disability Doesn’t Excuse Behavioural Problems

Shilpi is an absolutely impossible child. If she doesn’t like the food she is served, she hurls it against the wall. Bath time is a daily screaming match, and no one is allowed to brush her teeth. To avoid tantrums

By Jo Chopra

Speech Disorders Can’t Be ‘Caught’

In my 10 years of practicing speech therapy, I have interacted with hundreds, if not thousands of parents. All of them are different: some are concerned; some are confused; some feel helpless; some feel frustrated. At the same time, they

By Merzia Maskati

Autism and Language and the Beauty of Speaking Literally

It was a rainy autumn, when Tristan potty trained. Autistic kids can have trouble learning to listen to their bodies, and it had been a veritable cha-cha-cha that had frustrated us all – a few steps forward, setbacks and then

By Shalini Sawhny Braxhoofden

The Myth of the Superwoman with a Special Needs Child

I am the director of an organisation for children with disabilities and their families in Dehradun. Recently, one of our major funders asked us to conduct what they call a “Family Burden Survey.” They wanted to get a sense of

By Jo Chopra

The Long Wait for First Words

I remember the moment of Tristan’s first words clearly. He was in my aunt’s garden in Pune when he came face-to-face with the family canine. “Dog,” he said. We were delighted. We practically threw a party. He was two and

By Shalini Sawhny Braxhoofden

Sensitising A Doctor (And The World)

Recently, I took my daughter to an ENT specialist because she has developed periodic breathing, holding her breath for up to 40 seconds and then suddenly exhaling. She does it for most of the night, and it disturbs her sleep.

By Jo Chopra

Finding Our Balance After Autism

When my husband and I were newlyweds, we seemed to have an almost telepathic connection. We would say things at the same time, make the same decisions independently. We seldom felt the need to discuss or compromise; the rare occasions

By Shalini Sawhny Braxhoofden

Social Media, A Lifeline for People Dealing With Disability

Every parent remembers (in a haze, maybe, but we do remember) the early days when the first baby had just arrived. The broken sleep. The chaos. The complete inability to plan anything further away than the afternoon. Baby number two

By Jo Chopra

For Parents of Kids Who Fell Far From The Tree

I am reading Far From The Tree by Andrew Solomon, and it is a slow, painful process that leaves me alternately breathless and buoyant. I feel as if I have been put through a threshing machine at one moment, sent

By Jo Chopra

Thinking of Luck And Narrow Escapes

As advocates for children with special needs, one of the things we keep discovering is how insightful and observant children are about each other, how much they notice and how much they connect. On my frequent walks with Moy Moy,

By Jo Chopra

An Au‑some New Year

When I was a teenager and into my twenties, the months leading up to New Year’s Eve brought so much anticipation. It was the one evening of the year that we were allowed to stay out all night and party

By Shalini Sawhny Braxhoofden

Page 2 of 3