Page 38 - Stories_of_Older_Adults

I N S P I R I N G S T O R I E S O F T H E O L D E R G E N E R A T I O N

DR ARULSELVAN RAJU

"Your illness does not define you. Your strength and courage do."
by Syamim Amirah binti Amiruddin & Lee Yi Mao

Dr Arulselvan Raju giving a speech talk
in Ipoh Perak

“But you can’t see the difference right?” said Dr Arul with a jaunty smile, somewhat similar to how a little
child is proud of having successfully bluffed his friends. Nobody knew about his "secret", until he went
for surgery. Dr Arul had been a teacher of secondary school kids as well as a mentor of future teachers.
Having served in Teacher Training College for 14 years, he decided to have a change by moving to
Sabah with his family in 2003 and got a job as a lecturer in Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS). He was
delighted with his decision as he enjoyed the quiet and quality lifestyle in Sabah. Yet, Dr Arul wouldn’t
settle down. He enrolled into a PhD programme in Tamil Classical Literature (UM) in August 2008
while juggling with work. However, never a moment Dr Arul thought of quitting, until something
happened to him.

While playing badminton with his friends, he noticed that he was
unable to deliver a strike with his right hand with the usual rigour.
When his condition did not improve after three injections, he
suspected it to be more severe than just shoulder impingement swell. A
medical diagnosis revealed he was suffering from cervical spondylosis.
Dr Arul opted for Ayurvedic treatment in India rather than undergoing
spine surgery. After ten days of massage treatment in the hospital, he
was shocked to be informed that he may be experiencing early
symptoms of Parkinson’s Disease.

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