Today I visited the school for mentally disabled children in Ulricehamn. The teachers at the school are interested in finding out more about how other countries work with mentally disabled children. It was an interesting morning and they already knew quite a bit about what goes on in this field in other countries. They want to get in contact with schools or organisations that work with disabled children in Denmark, the Netherlands and Germany and they are mainly interested in communication tools and communication systems. Four of their children cannot talk at all and they have developed a way of communicating with the world by using images and body language. I was impressed by the energy and devotion the teachers showed the children at the school and by their interest in learning more. They talked about different studies and the research surrounding autism in the US (research results that we are using in Sweden today) and they wanted to know more about how disabled children in other countries are cared for.
About ten years ago it was decided in Sweden that mentally disabled children should not be institutionalised but that they should go to normal schools and live at home. I guess we have all seen the film “One flew over the coco’s nest“. It is a fantastic film and it brought about a much-needed debate about how we, as people and as society, treat and look at mental disorder. However, it probably also led to a general idea that being institutionalised is a punishment and an unworthy way of living. In today’s Sweden they have a much more individual approach and now the idea of living in an institution is regarded differently. It is not regarded as a punishment but might be a very good solution if the facilities are right and they get the right resources.
Looking at the children I met today it was easy to see that each child have different needs and that the support they need is great. I don’t think it is possible to give this support in a normal family or at a normal school. The children and their families need so much more help and support and luckily I think they get this here in Ulricehamn!
If any of you have any contacts or ideas regarding this subject just let me know. I heard that it is difficult or not possible to comment on this blog but you can always mail me (first name. surname @ ulricehamn.se ).
As for our family life we are still living in the summerhouse but now the carpenters are back working in our house. They think they will be ready in two weeks time (have you heard this before or what….?). I found some old doors for sale on the internet so now I have asked the carpenters to make me a large cupboard using the old doors. Jochem is using the phrase “less is more” more and more often as I come home with new things for our house but I never understood that statement.
We have a step competition at work and as I can never say no to a challenge I now walk as much as I can every day. I park the car at the kids school and walk a few kilometres to work and each evening I go for a walk with the kids. I have now had to promise them step counters as well. So far the average is around 8200 steps a day but if I want to win the competition I have to start doing sports again which I hope to do next week. Jochem is not interested in walking so I signed him up for the whisky club instead!
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