Our First Doctor's Visit

On Friday evening, we took Meher to see Dr. K, a plastic surgeon (and our new best friend!). He very kindly invited us into his home as he had been called away from his office and had canceled his normal consulting hours for the day. Meher came from her home in an auto-rickshaw accompanied by her mother, the head of the Women's Centre, and a teacher from the centre. I met the group at Dr. K's house and was amazed to see Meher looking nervous. The long ride and journey to an unfamiliar place was frightening for her as she is only three years old. Inside the doctor's house, she bravely tried not to cry when confronted with an unknown adult who wanted to touch and examine her face and hands. It was the first time I had ever seen Meher even slightly out of her element, and we assured the doctor that this would not last long. And we were right- she adjusted and brightened up before we left and wanted to explore her new surroundings.
Dr. K examined Meher and told us that a lot can be done. He wants to start by opening and re-structuring her hands (her left hand is badly deformed and two fingers on her right hand do not stretch out completely) and repairing her scalp and hairline. We hope to start making arrangements for the first operation next month. After that, Meher might still need as many as ten operations to fully repair her face, which is a lot for anyone, but especially too many for a three year old! But we will begin with fixing her hands and hairline, which will make an immediate and huge difference for her, and then go from there.