Aaryan is eighteen and lives in Dundee with his mother, Pronita and father, Subhayu. Aaryan’s brother, Agnijo, lives at university in Cambridge most of the time but visits when he can. Pronita tells us:
“Aaryan has Down’s syndrome, which he was diagnosed with as a baby, learning difficulties, and autism which he was diagnosed with around age three. Aaryan loves music, is funny and cheeky. He’s a real charmer, and brings a lot of joy into our lives!”
“We care for Aaryan 24/7. Aaryan needs to be bathed and cleaned, he can eat by himself but I would need to cook for him. Even when Aaryan has carers around, we need to be here in case he reacts negatively to something. I care for Aaryan during the day, and my husband takes over at night because Aaryan has sleep apnoea. It’s challenging.”
Aaryan used to enjoy school and had lots of friends, but after COVID, he struggled to cope. When his brother, Agnijo, moved to University, Aaryan’s mental health suffered even more, and he struggled to have other people in the house, even familiar family and friends. It was hard for us as parents to see him like this, and we just wanted the old Aaryan back.”
How did you use your Take a Break Scotland grant?
“After COVID, we knew Aaryan’s grandparents were going to visit from India. We had missed them so much, but as a family, we were really down at this point, because of Aaryan’s mental health.
“Caring for a loved one with such high needs can be very isolating and frustrating. You feel overlooked. We don’t often get to do the same things many other families do, so when we received money towards a break, we were so happy. Without Take a Break Scotland, we probably would never have done it. Their help gave us that push.
“We decided to go to the Highlands together. It allowed us all to travel as a family and spend time with Aaryan’s grandparents, who we hadn’t seen in so long. We had the best time, and all talk about it often. When Aaryan is happy, we’re all happy.
Take a Break Scotland acknowledged us and supported us when we needed it, allowing us to create lots of happy family memories.”
