My struggle and achievement

My struggle and achievement by Mahesh Chinnawar
It is said that winners don’t do different things but they do them differently. I think if one sets out for getting the treasure of success, with greater determination and sincerity, spirit will always conquer over the physique, what ever may be the critical and adverse way has been followed. I was born in 1971. I came to this world with disease called muscular dystrophy. A progressive muscular disorder with which I had to live the life without movement, my lower limb, my legs were without muscle power. It made me a person with disability. The disease divorced me from standing and walking forever. But it couldn’t bend my spirit at all. I was unable to stand and walk as my spinal and extremities muscles were weakening day by day. I had been admitted and treated for five years of my childhood, under different specialist and physicians. I was admitted to J. J. Hospital Mumbai when I was six. An unbearable truth had been told to my parents which made me panic too. The doctors revealed the reality and told that there was no treatment in the world to cure this disease. 'Only miracle can cure the child’. It was not only a shock but a severe attack of thousand hammers on my tender mind. But I had to fight and struggle against any thing in my way to get and do some thing. I was determined. Where there is a will there is a way, I kept it in my mind and didn’t lose any chance to prove it, as I conquered the top position in my class. I always stood first defeating my disabilities. I could not stand and walk. My rikshawalla would help me. I could not forget the great help from my friends. I was admitted in an English Medium School after my primary education in Marathi. The medium was changed, but the top ranking didn't change, I stood first there too. My native place, Umarkhed, is a taluka, a backward place without good facilities of higher education. There was lack of educational atmosphere and facilities which are supposed to be essential things for achieving one’s academic goal and consequently becoming successful. Because of the disorder I, though willing, could not go to far away places for further education. I didn’t look back. I decided to work hard with a vision to become successful in my life. It didn't prove fruitless and I stood first in my school, praised and honored by some institutions including State Bank of India and Lion’s club, marching towards social commitments. I was on the way to success at the same time there has been progression of the said disorder making me weaker and weaker. The disease compelled me to use wheel chair for my daily activities. From that moment it has been giving me help The wheelchair didn’t make me feel bad but it gave me inspiration to go ahead and work continuously. I chose science faculty after my 10th with a dream to become a physician and cure the people and to make them happy. Again my will and hard work paved way to another success for me, making me the First in my 12th in my Tahsil and First in disability category. I got scholarship sponsored by my junior college and lions club again awarded me. The dream had to be fulfilled. I joined B.A.M.S. (Bachelor of Ayurvedic Medicine and Surgery) at Yavatmal, as I was interested in Indian medicine especially in Ayurvedya and Panchakarma. I had to go to Yavatmal my district place, which is 120 km. far from Umarkhed. I had to leave my home and it was a very horrible thing for me to go away from my mother who had been my world and my God. But in the due course of time I made up my mind and left home for studies. The days of the college were so good for me to get knowledge, confidence, intimate friends, love from teachers. The only difficulty, to some extent, was to change the classrooms, go to different wards of hospital for theory and practicals on the wheelchair. I passed my B.A.M.S. in first rank. During. the last year of B.A.M.S. I was yearning to do post graduation. Merely to be a graduate doctor was not my dream. I got the highest marks in main subjects in graduation, and on the basis of merit I got admission to the post graduation course in Amaravati University. The time was favorable for me. As my dream was going to be fulfilled again. Defeating my disability, I did my work including hospital duties and research activities. I completed my thesis and I became an M.D with First merit in the University. My struggle for education for 21 years brought me a golden fruit. My college, Aryavaisha Samaj appreciated my work and honored me. Those who saw me while doing the duties, research work, could easily understand that the disability was now defeated by my will. I went Gujrat Ayurveda University later, at Jamnagar for Ksharsutra Therapy (Ano-rectal surgery) and after that I worked at Ayurveda Panchakarma Hospital, Nagpur for a year. In those days I participated actively in diagnostic and surgical free camps and attended conferences and C.M.E. I did not restrict myself only to books and my field. In my school and college, I won many prizes in chess. I was a champion. I won many quiz and puzzle games too. One thing to be mentioned here is that, I wanted to live the life independently but it was a surprising thing for the people as I started my own clinic, ‘Prashanti Chikitsalaya’, at Umarkhed my native place on 23rd Nov. 1999 on Birth day of Bhagwan Shree Satya Sai Baba, being a devotee of him. I served the people and cured their wounds. I have been working as a full time consulting physician. A step towards my commitment to society and humanity, I charge less fees. The poor are treated free of cost. My patients including men & women, children from different strata of the society come to me. Even doctors come to me for Ayurvedic Treatment. Though it is very hard for me to work in my hospital on the wheel chair. I do it happily. When patients come to me I forget my pains and sorrows. I serve them and treat them. I believe in the principal “To serve humanity is to serve the God”. I did that what I had thought. My academic career gave me the fruits of my hard work as I excelled in my academic life. I have to reflect this excellence in my profession. The patients waiting for me in my hospital and their satisfied faces after the treatment tell me that I did it. I did it I am successful in making people happy. My heart cant bear that the heart patients who are economically weak, are not getting the surgical treatment because of its cost i.e. about Rs 1–2 lakhs. But I am happy to say that I helped them. I send such patients with the necessary records and documents to Nagpur and Puttaparthy at super specialty hospital where they are treated almost free of cost. In last six years I have sent more than 40 such patients to Nagpur and Puttaparthy and ‘their heart beat’ makes my heart to work more and I get energy to do service to humanity. I provide my services free to the poor persons with disability. It is part of my moral obligation and not because of sympathy. Diabetic patients need treatment for a longer period and it is very hard for poor people to do investigation and to get medicine regularly and it is expensive too. So last year in Sep. 2005 I organized Free Diabetic Camp. I did investigation and treated more than ninety patients and given them medicine totally free and organize the same after every three months. Since Feb 2006 throughout Maharashtra, people were suffering of epidemic of Chiken Gunya. Doctors association, Umarkhed organized three days free camp 28, 29 and 30 Aug. I worked and treated the patients here. They were treated freely. We all have definite abilities stored in us. Our ability never restricts us, our thoughts do. If we think we can, then we can do. If we think we cant, then we cant do. People have always suggested me to have some other profession rather than this one. They suggested me what I should do as a person with disability. But I wanted to accept the challenge so I preferred this profession of a physician. I always wanted to be a part of the mainstream education system and life too. Now I have my own hospital. I am the boss over there. I am living the life with great satisfaction which I have got along with a great struggle. I believe in the epithet ‘Do struggle, you will win’.
The author writes regularly for CTH. He may be contacted at contact@crossthehurdles.org