THE family of a 26-year-old who suffers from a rare seizure disorder has broken an international World Record after creating a podcast on what it’s like to raise children with a severe disability.
Srilekhini Kadari, along with her mother, Dhanalakshmi Kadari, created a podcast called Loving Akhilesh – Reflections of Parenting a Child with Severe Learning Disabilities, which was played 168 times across various podcast platforms.
It is the record is for the most views/plays of a parental podcast on learning disabilities, according to the International Book of Records.
Based on a book with the same name written by Akhilesh’s mother, the podcast explores the challenge of raising a child with a lissencephaly, and also looks into how NHS care systems have evolved over the past 20 years.
Akhilesh currently lives in Ipswich but he was often taken to Mencap centres in Colchester during his early years as his family, who moved to the UK from India in the 1990s, tried to support him as much as possible.
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Discussing the podcast, Akhilesh’s sister, Srilekhini Kadari, said having a disabled brother inspired her to study medicine, as she later qualified from Hull York Medical School before becoming a doctor in Colchester.
She said: “The podcast is based on the book my mother published, because sometimes people don’t have time to sit down and read.
“My mother put together the information she wrote in the book, and we put it together as a sort of interview where I would write down the questions and she would give answers on Akhilesh – how she noticed something was wrong with him, what kind of care he received in India, and how his care developed here in the UK.”
Mrs Kadari added the podcast gave an insight into how different sections of the NHS worked together to support Akhilesh’s complex disability.
She added: “My mother is really grateful for the amount of support she has received – she can’t manage it all on her own.
“The way the standard of care has improved over the years is incredible – it’s so complex, so all the healthcare professionals have to work together very closely.”
Loving Akhilesh – Reflections of Parenting a Child with Severe Learning Disabilities, is available on Spotfiy, iTunes, Youtube, and Apple podcasts.
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