This is Omar, lighting up the room with every step he took, as he stood and held the rollator on his own, going around the tiny room to show us how many steps he can take. Omar was silent the whole time, but his determination and focus to keep going spoke louder than words.
Omar, a 16-year-old boy, was diagnosed with hypoxia when he was 4 months old, a condition that prevents his tissues from getting enough oxygen. This means that his body does not function as any other 16-year-old child, affecting his ability to walk, communicate and do what other kids his age find easy to do.
“Now it’s easier for Omar to take further and steadier steps. He sometimes gets scared, but the rollator helped him walk on his own,” Omar’s mother, Maryam, told us.
Omar has 6 other siblings, including his sister Sidra, who also suffers from a similar condition affecting her ability to walk and communicate properly.
Lucy, our previous Middle East Communication Regional Manager, with Jamal our Health Officer in Deir-ez-Zor listening carefully to Omar’s mother, Maryam
His mother shares some of the obstacles she goes through.
“I have to carry both Omar and Sidra down the stairs as they cannot do it on their own,” She told us. “Omar uses the wheelchair when we go out, because the roads here are very bumpy and it’s hard to use the rollator, but now at least we can go out together.” The mother added.
The mother is a trained nurse, but unfortunately with the crisis in Syria, the chances are few for her to get a stable job, especially with her situation at home.
“Omar is very smart, but unfortunately, in my area there are no schools that are specialised for children living with disabilities, so he is not at school.”
Marwa, the Medair physiotherapist who helped Omar through his journey, noted that his steps are steadier and he’s more confident than he was at the beginning.
Our teams in Syria work to assist people living with mobility impairment, providing equipment to help them and their families become independent.
Find out how you can help children like Omar here.
In Syria, Medair’s work is made possible by the European Commission’s Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations, Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), Swiss Solidarity, SlovakAid and generous private donors like you.
This content was produced with resources gathered by Medair field and headquarters staff. The views expressed herein are those solely of Medair and should not be taken, in any way, to reflect the official opinion of any other organisation.
