Mom's journey with her son

"I NEVER heard the sounds of my son’s first cry, his first words or his first speech at school.

- YOSHINI PERUMAL

He can never hear me saying I love him, or that I am proud of him. But I taught him sign language from the time he was a toddler, and he became my ears and my voice...

This has been a painful reality for Kogie Govender, 45, who was born deaf. She has been married to Thenagran Govender, for 25 years. Their son, Joshua, is 21 years old.

She said ever since she could remember, her disability was a challenge, and 45 years later, nothing had changed.

“I wake up in silence. I have never heard the voices of my parents, but I felt their love and that got me through. Growing up, I faced stigma due to being deaf. But I realised that to overcome stigma, one had to try to educate people. I do everything for myself. The only thing I cannot do is hold a voice conversation with someone. Because of my inability to hear, I cannot speak.

“Coping as a human without ears that work has not been very challenging. But coping in a world without inclusion for deaf people and communities where there is a stigma, has been intolerable,” Govender added.

She said the biggest challenge she faced was when she needed medical care for her son.