Constant Worry
Mdm Angeline Lai faces much adversity in raising her two children, Felicia and AJ Chris. Her daughter was diagnosed with asthma, hyperthyroidism, and eczema when she was a newborn and required frequent hospital visits due to recurring bronchitis and hyperthyroidism issues. Up until she was three years old, she always seemed fatigued and did not grow in height and weight. On the other hand, AJ Chris has asthma and a Developmental Paediatric condition. When AJ was 3, he was suddenly diagnosed with gastrointestinal bleeding. To make matters worse, the doctors could not carry out the proper examinations to figure out what was wrong due to his young age. They were afraid that endoscopes would cause further injuries to his organs, requiring major surgeries to correct. Unlike other children, AJ Chris experiences pneumonia attacks instead of bronchitis. Thus, AJ requires monthly visits to the hospital due to the random nose bleeds, asthma attacks and fever spikes.
With the frequent hospital visits, her daughter would frequently ask why she was always sick and complained why her parents had given birth to her with those illnesses. Initially, she felt that the frequent blood test was very suffering due to her fear of needles. However, after 2 to 3 years, she settled down herself and composed herself during blood tests.
“What is more frightening is I am scared of needles, and when she is taking the blood test, I will cry and wonder why does she need to suffer even though she is so young,” said Mdm Lai
As a single parent, Mdm Lai constantly worries that her children will not be taken care of if anything happens to her. She does not know who she can depend on and does not know who to talk to in times of need.
“I would have to tell myself that tomorrow will be much better. ”, Mdm Lai shares.
Club Rainbow’s Impact
For the first six years of dealing with her children’s illnesses, Mdm Lai had not received much support during this challenging period. However, she stumbled upon Club Rainbow Singapore (CRS) when she visited the Medical Social Worker area in the hospital. A volunteer noticed that she was feeling very stressed and cried very frequently and thus approached her. From there on, Mdm Lai established contact with Club Rainbow. Her daughter’s illness led to frequent hospital visits and affected her academics greatly. In this aspect, CRS reached out and provided assistance in studies through volunteer tutors and provided Mdm Lai with emotional support through social work intervention. In addition, it gave her someone to confide in private as she dealt with her children’s illnesses. CRS also partnered with corporates to organise outings and parties during festive seasons with volunteer-sponsored gifts, giving children with chronic illnesses fun experiences and opportunities. Mdm Lai expressed her gratitude to the Club Rainbow for organising and providing these meaningful events.
Since joining CRS as beneficiaries, AJ Chris and his family have been various forms of assistance, ranging from monthly food rations to annual bursaries, aimed to alleviate their financial stress. Over the past five years, CRS has also administered support for AJ Chris’ academic endeavours through its tuition programme, recently renamed Leap for Primary and Secondary.
Through CRS' referral, the family's HDB flat received a makeover as part of the MediaCorp programme, "RenovAID" in 2019. The renovations proved to be instrumental in improving the family's living conditions and daily comfort.
When asked what she feels that the general public can do for her, Mdm Lai expressed that she only wanted to send a message - that children require a lot of attention, so do give children more attention while they’re growing up. She asks that parents cherish the moments with their children and bond with them, stating that children with chronic illnesses have difficulties bonding with their parents as chronic illnesses can pop up at any point, causing constant worry and a permanent toll on parents. Above all, she wants all parents to appreciate their time spent with their children and give their children all the attention they need
<edited 30 August 2022 - Geraldine Tan>
<edited 18 September 2022 - Rachel Fernandez>