ENJOYMENT AND FULFILLMENT

For children, playing isn't just a way to pass time. It also helps them develop physical strength and coordination, sharpen their minds, express themselves, make friends, learn cooperation and competition, develop control and mastery, relieve frustration and enjoy themselves. Parents of children with disabilities have to be on guard against getting so caught up with medical demands and special accommodations that they forget to let their kids play and have fun.

Playing in groups is a vital part of your child's social development. Encourage him to play with other kids and help him find activities to share. Collections, videos, indoor games and pets are some things your child can enjoy with others in the neighborhood. Even in sports and outdoor games, young children are often willing to make exceptions to the rules for a child with a disability: For instance, in softball or T-ball, they may agree that he can run the bases in his wheelchair or designate a runner for him.

There's a full range of adaptive sports and play equipment for kids with disabilities. Children with DMD can enjoy basketball, swimming, horseback riding, soccer, square dancing, touch football and bowling, just to name a few. Many of these activities are offered at MDA summer camp, designed specifically for kids with neuromuscular disorders.

You may be pleasantly surprised to find that toy makers have developed and adapted a huge array of playthings that require little physical strength or motor skill. Special scooters and wheelchairs are designed with a fun look for kids.

Kids with disabilities can also fully participate in plays, pageants and parties. Creative teachers and parents can come up with costume designs that incorporate the wheelchair. For example, one boy played the innkeeper in a Christmas pageant, with a cardboard "inn" fitted around his wheelchair to make him look as if he were sitting in the doorway. At Halloween, his mom transformed him and his chair into a clownmobile, and another year they became a giant nose. Not only does this kind of effort keep your child involved in group activities; it often makes the other kids jealous of his neat costumes!

Experts say that free creative play is an important way to help a child develop inner resources such as imagination and problem-solving skills. You can introduce your child to all kinds of imaginative, physically undemanding activities that he can begin to enjoy when very young and continue to explore throughout his life: Writing, reading, art, crafts, model building, listening to music, photography, gardening, collecting and computer games are all adaptable for various age and skill levels.

Even as your son's physical capacities diminish, there's no need for him to spend all his time in the house watching TV, reading or working on the computer alone. You can encourage him to develop new interests and skills, many of which he can share with others through groups, classes and contests, and on the Internet.

Older boys with DMD who like sports often collect cards, watch televised games or coach younger kids. There's no need to feel these are poor substitutes for playing. After all, only a small percentage of sports fans ever play on a varsity or professional team. Many high schoolers with DMD work as team statisticians and managers or sports reporters, and enjoy all the camaraderie that sports provide.

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