Obstacles only make our resolve harder – story of Neetu Raheja

When I was 16 years old, my mother suffered a stroke. It shook our family to the core, especially me. Being the eldest, the entire responsibility of my family fell on my shoulders. It was not like walking on a red carpet despite the fact that I was born in a filthy rich family. The journey from a teenage adolescent girl to a woman in itself was walking on the road with cactus on both sides. When I got married, we were having problems conceiving. But the treatment worked and I was blessed with a son and daughter in quick succession. Those years went by in a flash, but now the memories are almost a blur.

A devastating tragedy for me and an opportunity

They say that God Almighty plans everything. I am a strong believer of that. When my mother expired, my father saw me slide into depression. He suggested that I take up studies again from where I left off. There was of course the caveat that I will not be doing a job. A typical pre condition set by business families in India.

First I began with a course “Beginning with Diploma in Early Childhood Education” from IGNOU. It was a tentative step and I thought it should best suit my growing up children. My daughter was not able to write properly or socialise with the teachers and peers. To understand that I did a :Montessori Teacher Training Course from Amity International School, Pushp Vihar. Soon the realisation dawned upon me that all these courses will help the most only if I take up a job. 

It was not easy to convince my families, both of them that I need to take up a job. It was a straight NO from both sides. But as a woman, I prevailed in the end. So with just my course and studies under my belt, I headed out for my first job with a salary of just Rs 8000. That was 2010 and I had graduated in 1998. If there is such a long gap between studies and job, you get out of sync. I was zero in conversational English. But it made my resolve even harder to make this work.  

Then a turn came in 2013 where my capabilities as a teacher were questioned by a parent whom I said that your child doesn’t respond even to a Good morning. I feel he is facing some issues in hearing. However, the fact is ACCEPTANCE word is hard to take when you are being told about your child being tagged as special. But after a long blame game by them they finally got him diagnosed and the child found to be deaf mute.

Thereafter, I took an opportunity to do studies in context to children who are differently abled. So, I enrolled into the course “Learning Disabilities” from Amity International School, Pushp Vihar. However, that was not ample. After pursuing this to have hands-on experience I took a job in Step-by-Step School, Panchsheel Park as a special Educator. This job brought emotional nightmares for me but I didn’t stop! I enrolled into a course Diploma in Early Childhood Special Education in Intellectual Disability from NIPMED  to learn in depth more about them.

Life as a Special Educator

Getting a Diploma in Early Childhood Special Education in Intellectual Disability from NIPMED was the turning point in my life. Later,  It helped me get a job with GD Goenka School. Mostly hard work and a bit of luck help me rise up to become HOD for Special Education. I was incharge of students right from Nursery to 11th Class. Many people helped and supported me along, a few did not and created hurdles in my path. But I always believed that I was getting ready for something big.

My next opportunity was my move to Mom’s Belief as Zonal Manager. It was great working with the team of Occupational therapists, Speech therapists, Psychologists and Special educators. But working with children with needs was taking a toll on me. It was affecting me in a way that my father realised it is time for me to take a break.

It was not an easy decision but as always I trusted his instinct.

SWINE wave affected a lot of people

I lost my father to the Swine wave. My life came to a grinding halt. I had lost my support system and did not know what to do next. It is then I decided to take the big leap of faith. I am both a spiritual and religious person. Festivals are an important part of life and we celebrate each and every one of them. I have taught my children to respect all religions and faith. My decision was to open my own preschool. Today I am the Director of Makoons Preschool and will soon be opening an NGO by the name of NEEDER. It is a combination of the names of my father and mother (Late Mrs Neelam and Late Mr. Inder)

I am 44 years old now, but between education and learning with the jobs and breaks, I am now on the right path. People have come into my life and gone. They have shaped me into what I am today. It is today that I know what my purpose in life is. To work for children with special needs and neuro typical too. All my experience and knowledge will be put to use to create an ecosystem for helping children and their parents. The journey has just begun.

Award by Business Mates Delhi

Neetu Raheja has been recently selected for recognition by Business Mates Delhi.