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Elderly man, mentally-ill son live outside Institute of Mental Health
While some families look for ways to desert their mentally-ill kin, K Sukumar, 59, camps all day outside the premises of the Institute of Mental Health in Aynavaram to stay close to his son Muthu.
"He understands what I say. He nods or shakes his head in acknowledgement. Sometimes he mumbles," said Sukumar, a balloon vendor, wiping the drool dripping down Muthu's face. Sukumar refused to admit Muthu in the hospital, saying he was better off with him. "He has some episodes of mental illnesses. But I don't have the heart to admit him in the hospital. He is all that I have," said Sukumar, who worked as a fish vendor in Ennore, before moving closer to the institution in the city with his son and a bundle of clothes in hand ten years back.
Muthu's condition deteriorated following his mother's death. "He used to do chores on his own when she was there. He used to talk as well but after she died, he seems to have gone into a different world," said Sukumar, as Muthu grunted to catch his attention. He inched up his lungi and pointed to a purplish bruise, which he got after a fall.
Sukumar leaves his son in the care of the security guard at IMH before going to work. "People hesitate to give me work when they see him. So I leave him here. Often, when I return I see him sitting alone at the bus shelter where we usually spend the night," said Sukumar. "I don't know what will happen to him once my life is over but as long as I'm alive I want to be there for him," he said, opening a tiffin box with gruel for Muthu.
Source:Elderly man, mentally-ill son live outside Institute of Mental Health to be close to help - The Times of India
Also read:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/...abandon-mentally-ill/articleshow/29085267.cms
While some families look for ways to desert their mentally-ill kin, K Sukumar, 59, camps all day outside the premises of the Institute of Mental Health in Aynavaram to stay close to his son Muthu.
"He understands what I say. He nods or shakes his head in acknowledgement. Sometimes he mumbles," said Sukumar, a balloon vendor, wiping the drool dripping down Muthu's face. Sukumar refused to admit Muthu in the hospital, saying he was better off with him. "He has some episodes of mental illnesses. But I don't have the heart to admit him in the hospital. He is all that I have," said Sukumar, who worked as a fish vendor in Ennore, before moving closer to the institution in the city with his son and a bundle of clothes in hand ten years back.
Muthu's condition deteriorated following his mother's death. "He used to do chores on his own when she was there. He used to talk as well but after she died, he seems to have gone into a different world," said Sukumar, as Muthu grunted to catch his attention. He inched up his lungi and pointed to a purplish bruise, which he got after a fall.
Sukumar leaves his son in the care of the security guard at IMH before going to work. "People hesitate to give me work when they see him. So I leave him here. Often, when I return I see him sitting alone at the bus shelter where we usually spend the night," said Sukumar. "I don't know what will happen to him once my life is over but as long as I'm alive I want to be there for him," he said, opening a tiffin box with gruel for Muthu.
Source:Elderly man, mentally-ill son live outside Institute of Mental Health to be close to help - The Times of India
Also read:http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/...abandon-mentally-ill/articleshow/29085267.cms
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