Success Stories
Journey From Sadness Towards Happiness...
It was an emergency & my wife was admitted in early morning in a small private hospital. With my mother I was waiting outside the O.T. just to hear that the mother & baby is well from the doctor. I was totally nervous & time seemed too long . Suddenly, a sister called my name & we came into paediatrician's room. An ice cold wind blew through my spinal cord ,as I was specially called by the doctor. I guess something went wrong either with the mother or the baby . My brain returded and toung became dry. Entering the room & breaking the silence I asked the doctor "how is the mother??? " Mother is Fine" the doctor request to take my seat. "How is my baby??? "I was motionless! "It is a boy". With a low voice & sympathetic way he said "The baby is born with birth abnormalities! His lip and palate is split". My mother could not control herself from wiping & moaning.I felt mountain like load on my heart. Doctor continued , "You should take extra care for the baby as it can not suck breast milk properly, mother have to press the breast milk out & with a special spoon you have to feed. The baby may develop many complexities . "
In the mainwhile mother & the baby shifted to their bed . I went there, just taking a look of the baby turned into the mother's face , red watery eyes & tears rolled down . "Where you were till now? Look at my child ! Will you go far away from us ???" I press her hand lightly and close my eyes!
"Be strong ! He is fine . Look at his Smile. Everything will be ok. It is not your fault.Doctor said it is curable. I will find out a great, top doctor . We'll sell our property but he will be treated by a Special Surgeon wherever it may be ! It's my promise to you,dear!"
I understand she was depressed , disturbed & psychologically shaken by this unexpected incident .She heard the baby's crying in her sub-conscious state in the O.T. & asked "is it all right? My baby for whom I have been waited for ".... "yes, but your baby boy is Gonna kata " , the doctor said . In that trance like state she could hardly understand what they mean to say . They show a little white thing ...He was smiling with his cracked upper lip . Our Shreyan ,she saw him for the first time & kissed on his forehead. From that day a new struggle of our life began. We the parents & all other family members were happy for his advent as he is our first baby, but as well as worried for his feeding & recovery.
Everyone looked at the baby curiously & criticized my wife. "She must cut something during Grahan " was the common remark!
To know details about it the only option was to go through the google search & youtube.From there I came to know about cleft lip and palate, The Smile Train. There I found the name of many doctors and addresses of many hospitals from Northern to Southern India .But at last Came to know that Varanasi is the best place for the surgery & there is a doctor who has done the record numbers of cleft sergery Dr. Subodh Kumar Singh.I told my wife "look there are many doctors in India who are working on the cleft but if this doctor operate our child that will be great!" After watching the acadamy award winner movie 'Smile Pinki ' we found a clear ray of hope & it lighted up the dark .Being a resident of Bengal we get worried how could we communicate with them.
Somehow from a site I found Dr. Subodh Kumar Singh's mobile number and call him with hesitation .I never forgot that very day when my wife got first counselling over telephone by our dear Dr Subodh Kumar Singh. We felt as God put His hand on us ! He took all treatment related responsibilities & made us tension free. His voice was so tender and soothing...And his speech was enough to console a worried mother crying for 27 days... From then my child was in touch of their care . The counsellor also paved the way of gaining the baby's weight & proper way of feeding.
When he was just 93 days old we rushed to the Hospital.Not in the sense of its enormous structure but G.S. Memorial Hospital is really the centre of excellence of the cleft world.We find many children like our little one and parents like us from rural U.P & neighburing States .We feel very homely .The members of the Hospital guide us .Each and every member of G.S. Memorial family welcome us so heartily that we had never before in West Bengal .The Great Doctor talked to us so cordially that it seems that if God has his ethereal existence he would look like him and behave like him. My little kido got His ' miraculous touch'. His upper lip repaired perfectly & it was totally free of cost .In those 6 days we cooked & ate on the roof of the Hospital, talked to other parents & children, exchanged our language , food with them and try to understand their culture. A special type of relationship developed with them, where we could passionately narrate our story. Shreyan returned home with a new look & great smile ! We won !
Another phase
Another phase, the second count down began! Doctor want to operate my baby's cleft palate at the age of 9 month.We tried our best to take care of our baby but he often cought cold & cough and chest congestion. It developed bronchiolitis. It was very hard time. Once we had to return from Varanasi as my child was not fit for surgery even after staying for 6 days, due to, chest congestion which he got during train journey. Thanks to Dr. Tripathy sir whose spiritual learning console the hearts of wretched parents in the time difficulty..Then it was his 12th month when he was operated by the Doctor.
One thing which always made me sick if his voice got nasal effect in future. But Doctor told us 'don't worry it will be normal'. Proving all what doctor said my child utter his first word and gradually speaking , reciting rhymes with us without any sound effects. It is really a great achievement for us. Many many thanks to our Doctor, Smile Train and all members of G.S.Memorial Hospital for their co-operation .As a father of a cleft baby my request to all parents of cleft children, please contact with Hospital immediately so that the poor children can get proper treatment in time. If they are operated in time, lips & palate will be normal in future as common people.