Senses of Malaysia – July 18, 2019

impairment, to superior non-verbal
cognitive skills as reported inThe Star
Online.

National Autism Society of Malaysia
(Nasom) chairman Feilina Feisol, has said
that the estimated number of autistic
individuals in Malaysia stands at 300,000,
with many more cases still undiagnosed
and unreported which is indeed troubling.
Even with these numbers, there is no
definitive epidemiological data that’s
available on the prevalence of autism in
Malaysia which is probably why we lack
the knowledge and awareness about it.

Senses of Malaysia is extremely proud to
feature one such individual who has been
taking the art world by storm in her own
inexplicable way. It should be said though
that this Marvelous Malaysian is reaching
astonishing heights under the loving,
dedicated tutelage and guidance of her
Supermum, Noorhashimah Noordin.
Jamila was diagnosed with ASD at the
age of four. Born in 2002, she is the fourth
child of five children, and her condition
became apparent during her toddler years
when she suffered difficulties with verbal
communication and social interaction.
Noorhashimah very willingly shared
with us her experiences as a mother who

struggled at first to understand her child,

and the tireless efforts she has made since

to not only learn about the spectrum,

but to also bond with Jamila and help

her understand that she could do and be

anything that made her happy.

This is a tale of the striking possibilities

that can come from good parenting.

People with autism, do not subscribe to

basic verbal communication skills; rather,

they have their own unique ways of

“speaking.” It was after Jamila’s diagnose

when Noorhashimah discovered her

daughter would attempt to draw her

thoughts and feelings. Childlike sketches

of self-portraits soon turned into full

drawings of how Jamila remembers

the events of her day. Using art as a

communication tool gave Noorhashimah

a tangible hope of understanding her

daughter, and it also paved new ways of

creating a specially designed learning

program for Jamila that centred on art.

From left to right - Jemima, Jamila, Noorhashimah

Jamila working in her studio