An Edinburgh mum
has written a play as a tribute to her late son, after spending 29
years as his full-time carer, Rhona McAdam, 62, will debut her work
for the first time next month, with the play, 'Caring', based around
her own experiences caring for her disabled son, Ruairidh.
Born with Duchenne
Muscular Dystrophy, Ruairidh sadly passed away earlier this year
aged 29, with Rhona's play depicting some of the struggles they had
overcome during his life. Giving an insight into the daily life
living with a disabled teenager, the play will be performed by the
Citadel Arts Group on November 3 and 4, with support from the
Lottery, will be free, with a special invitation extended to carers’
groups in the city.
Rhona McAdam, who
lives in Colinton, says: “It’s a realistic view of a mother caring
for her teenage son. “She is finding it tougher to care for him
because he has a lot of physical care needs. Now he’s getting older
she is maybe mothering him too much. In the play it’s his fifteenth
birthday and she’s telling him he can’t have another beer.”
According to charity
Care for Carers there are now more than 800,000 adult carers in
Scotland, and 82 per cent have no time for respite or breaks. Basing
the character of Joey on her own son Ruairidh, boys and young men
with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy lack a protein which causes
progressive muscle weakness, leading to respiratory problems and
difficulty swallowing.
As well as losing
her son this year Rhona also lost her husband Iain, who died during
lockdown in December 2021. Sharing that the play has given her a
welcome focus, Rhona added: “These are characters and these are
their struggles - but it could be any teenager or any mother. All
Joey wants to do is play on his X Box For Joey it’s a world where he
can do things, run, and fight. I tried to make it realistic. Mum is
no saint - in fact neither Mum or Joey is angelic.
“They are both a bit
grumpy with each other. Mum is tired and a bit frustrated and Joey
resents his mum for being annoyed. I wanted to show the reality of
caring - but also that normal life goes on - whatever difficulties
you face.”
Caring, which will
be directed by Mark Kydd, will be staged at the Storytelling Centre
on November 3 and 4. Erica Whitaker Wallis, of Care for Carers
said: “Across Scotland, there were an estimated 700,000 to 800,000
unpaid carers before the COVID-19 pandemic. Survey work from
Scottish Government in September 2020 suggests the number of adult
carers had grown to around 839,000. As a result of the pandemic 90
per cent of carers are spending more time caring, with 82 per cent
having had no access to respite or breaks from caring.
“It is therefore more important than ever that we continue to shine
a light on the vital contribution that unpaid carers make to our
society. As an organisation we work alongside community partners to
provide carers with access to short break opportunities which this
year has involved providing drama workshops with Citadel Arts.
"For a carer, just a few hours break away from
their caring role can make a big difference to their wellbeing which
is why we view these partnerships as so important.”