Story of Tulasa

Story of Tulasa Rawal(written in 2019)

Tulasa Rawal is 11 years old child from Kharpunath Rural Municipality ward no. 2, Humla district. She is fifth daughter child of father Luware Rawal and mother Batuli Rawal. She belongs to low-class family. There are 8 family members in her family they are father, mother, 4 brothers and two sister including herself. Their family used to engage in normal farming life as all other villagers. They grow different crops like Wheat, Millet, Bouquet potatoes. For vegetables most of the time they farmed Potatoes, and other seasonal vegetable like Cauliflower, cabbage only. On top of this, Tulasa’s father Luware runs a small teashop at Chhaharey, on the way between Sarkegad and Simkot to run his family.

Before joining Head Enable Home, Tulasa studied in grade one at Shankar Secondary School at Thali, Humla for two years.  She used to go to School sometimes at the age of 8 but there was no progress in her study and she still in same class because the community people used to bully her by calling bad words, ‘Kochi’ which means broken lip, she felt bad, discourage and stopped going school and almost stayed at home doing nothing for two years. One day, one of the villagers told her father about the HEAD Nepal and immediately his father, herself and one of the local guardians Mr. Bali Rawal came at HEAD Nepal and presented the situation, complication and nature of disability of Tulasa Rawal. She faces difficulties in speaking and eating.

She is inflexible with eatable materials and even difficulty in her speech. In September 2018, Bram and Loes, a Dutch family doctor and occupational therapist diagnosed her with Lip and palate cleft (Palatoschisis) with swelling of the right lip because of irregular formation of teeth on that side. She is able to express herself, Speech is a little different because of the palate cleft. She has a nasal voice. While reading she faces problem in pronunciation. She has problems eating pieces of fruit, especially the chewing is hard. Pieces of food may fall out of her mouth when eating. She already is cutting the fruit in small pieces before she is eating it. She never able to go hospital for checkup and have no any support for her treatment the family has no financial capacity.  

Fortunately, with registration to Head in May 2017, she is having the joy of learning at HEH, a residential educational center in Simikot operated and managed by HEAD Nepal. She got a proper place for her stay and education. After completing all the registration process, she was admitted at the Kalashilta Primary school, Simikot, Humla. She joined at class one. she is very talented student where she always got a 1st position among her class. She felt more comfortable and easy to learn here rather than village but still the community people steer at her all the time when she go home. She visited District Hospital when there is orthopedic camp or any other medical/surgical camp. The doctor recommends to take her to Kathmandu for further examination and treatment. There is possibility of operation and she can be improved after operation which is only possible in Kathmandu.   

There is still a problem in her upper lip and due to that problem in every week she was suffered from the headache and fever. She went to hospital and doctor prescribe her medicine like paracetamol that she had a side effect of her lip. Furthermore, Tulasa is happy to stay in the residential educational home with other friends. No one tease or bully her in HEH because rest of other friends are also with disabilities and love each other a lots in every struggle. She is one of the best dancer, participated in each and every activity in her school as well as happily play with other friends of the HEH and HVH. She is well frank and kind to other small brother and sister as well. She had drastic change in her study and personal growth and courage to stay without any fairness after the interventions of the Head Enable Home. 

Similarly, she used to share her own opinion with Home manager Manisa Aidi that if she will have chance for an operation, she will feel easy to express herself and she looks good and eat properly like an ordinary person.

Update – She is in Class 5 now and has gone under an operation of lip in March 2020 at Kirtipur Hospital with transportation support from Dr. Katrin Hagen, the president of Med-Solutions Foundation Switzerland. She now need to go for second time operation for further correction.

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