Stoic and resigned, she battles on

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Former national paralympic swimmer, single mother of three, refuses to be called useless and a burden to anyone

Ani says the hospital has been doing its best in raising some funds to facilitate her ‘Achilles Tendon with Bone Block’ operation.

FOR many of us, a tragedy in life is already one too much to bear. Now imagine having to endure five.

Ani Nios, 59, got polio when she was just 10 years old, and her condition later worsened to a stage where she had to use crutches.

Because of that, she often had accidents that resulted in many injuries.

Having suffered from polio during childhood, Ani now depends on crutches to aid her mobility.

Nonetheless, Ani got married and was later blessed with a daughter whom she named Mabellyn Maxzine, now aged 32.

Then her second child Beatrice Ruth came along, but upon becoming a teenager, the girl was diagnosed with schizophrenia.

Ani’s third child and youngest child Maxwell Aiman Ani, now aged 14, was born with Down’s syndrome.

Several years after Maxwell’s arrival, Ani’s marriage hit the rocks.

Last April, she had an accident where she slipped inside the restroom of her workplace.

The fall resulted in some broken bones. Medical examination found that she sustained neck of femur fracture, which necessitated her to undergo a major surgery – one that she definitely could not afford.

Even with it being done at Sarawak General Hospital (SGH) in Kuching, the procedure called ‘Achilles Tendon with Bone Block’ would still cost RM12,800.

Not being able to work because of the injury, Ani said she had appealed to Social Security Organisation (Socso) for help, and is still waiting for a feedback.

For now, Mabellyn is the sole breadwinner of the family. She works as a helper at a special school for children with special needs.

‘Dire situation’

Ani said many times, she would feel really down as she would never imagine that she and her family could end up in such a dire situation.

“I wonder what I have done to deserve all these?” she lamented.

“You see, although I am handicapped, I have done my part in contributing to society.

“I had worked as a lift operator for 32 years, and had received a ‘Long Service Award’ for that.

“I had also brought glory to the country by winning multiple medals during my time as a paralympic swimmer.”

Ani reminisces about her past achievements as a competitive paralympic swimmer, calling it as ‘the best years of my life’.

When asked further about her days as an athlete, Ani said her swimming career began in 1995 and following that year, she had competed in various swimming events including those held in the Asean Para Games, bagging many medals and creating new records.

In 1996, she represented Malaysia in the Atlanta Paralympic Games, where the swimmer clinched a gold medal from the 100m backstroke event after clocking a time of 56.50sec.

In 1998, she competed in the Commonwealth Games, where she also contributed to the nation’s medal tally.

“Almost every two years, I would take part in international-level competitions including the Asean Para Games, the Commonwealth, and the Olympics.

“I had been trotting around the world. Those were the best years of my life; lots of fond memories,” she said.

However, Ani barely had any physical token to show for all those achievements as nearly all the relevant certificates and medals had gone missing during the period when her house was under renovation.

She said Beatrice had misplaced them and could not recall where she had left them.

Dealing with schizophrenia

Ani watches her daughter Beatrice playing with their cat.

Talking about Beatrice, now aged 28, Ani said her daughter was diagnosed with schizophrenia in 2009.

“This daughter of mine is very unpredictable. She can suddenly turn violent at any time. At times, I have to call the police for help in ‘catching’ her, and bringing her to the hospital.

“She would often hear voices telling her to kill us. Out of the blue, she would scream and throw things around. This has been going on since her schooling years,” she said.

Beatrice had already displayed early signs of mental disorder upon turning 16, and her condition had been getting worse and worse.

Ani said there was one time when Beatrice bit her teacher, and several times the girl had climbed up and walked on the school fence.

During the interview, thesundaypost had a chat with Beatrice herself, one that had to be conducted delicately.

“I always hear voices, telling me to hurt myself and hurt my family. Sometimes, the voices even tell me to kill my family.

“I am always very fearful of hearing these voices. It doesn’t matter what time of the day it is – the voices just talk to me and they sound very real to the extent that I am very confused about which voices are real, and which are not,” said Beatrice, adding that she would feel sad and angry whenever she heard those voices.

“I want to be happy, yet I don’t feel happy.

“I don’t like this kind of life; it leaves me feeling angry and frustrated.

“I love my mother. I love my sister and my brother. I don’t want to hurt them and yet, I feel like wanting to hurt them.

“I don’t know why. You see, I have to take medicines to control myself,” she said, lamenting that she had no friend at all.

“I depend solely on my family’s support.”

However, Beatrice said music could somewhat soothe her a little bit – it could calm her down, make her more relaxed and happier.

She would also feel ‘normal’ whenever she played with her cats.

“When my cats are playful, I also feel playful. Playing with them makes me happy and relaxed,” she said.

It is informed that Beatrice and her brother are receiving monthly aid from the Welfare Department.

Hope for recovery

Ani watches her daughter Beatrice playing with their cat.

On her current situation, Ani said the hospital had been doing its best in raising some funds to facilitate her ‘Achilles Tendon with Bone Block’ operation.

She admitted that if only she could obtain donations from any Good Samaritan, she would surely be able to get the surgery done immediately.

Ani and her children, Beatrice and Maxwell.

Then tears welling up in her eyes, Ani said: “I am not the type of person who wants to beg for charity, but what’s there left for me rely on to get help?

“I don’t want to be seen as useless, and neither do I want to be a burden to anyone or to society.

“If I could get well again, I’d want to work to support myself and my family.”