The first thing I would say about being a general volunteer at CRP is that it has the potential to be both the hardest type of volunteer work and the easiest. The laid back, easy going approach to daily life in Bangladesh lends itself to the phrase "have a look around, then do what you like the look of" which you will undoubtedly be greeted with on arrival at CRP. At first glance, the campus is totally overwhelming, with so many different areas of which I was previously unaware. The Income Generating Activities such as the nursery, toy making and wheelchair construction, all of which are performed by the patients themselves, contribute to the running costs of CRP and make it possible to find masses to do as a general volunteer, even if you are not medically orientated in any way.

Settling in to the way of life here (i.e. learning that time is not an issue, so when they say eight they really mean ten), was probably the hardest bit for me. However, with a little encouragement to "chill" it soon became normality and allowed me to focus on what was on offer at CRP. Initially I set my sights on the Special Needs School, as it was an area I felt I could actually be of some help as well as learning some things for myself. This first month of spending mornings in the school proved invaluable to my feeling of achievement during my time at CRP. I decided to undertake a small project within the Special Needs School. The bland appearance of the building itself had immediately struck me as something that could be changed to enhance the children's outlook of being at school. So…I eventually got hold of some paint in Dhaka and proceeded to inject some colour into the three classrooms. Although mainly meant as a bit of fun on the walls, the addition of the alphabet and days of the week proved to be useful teaching aids.
For the first three weeks of my stay I remained reasonably unconfident about just walking into any department and seeing what I could do. This was because there was no-one there to say "come and help us with this" as people are always busy. It is totally a question of jumping in and forgetting any self doubt. For this period, I decided to try and gain a bit of knowledge for my pending degree course in Physiotherapy. I shadowed recent interns who could explain to me what they were doing in good English, which as well as getting me a head start in Physiotherapy also gave me some very valuable patient contact. This as well as the amusement of watching two foreign girls (otherwise known as B'deshis) playing basketball in wheelchairs, got some really important patient recognition and helped with the "feeling wanted" satisfaction.

Having established a few names and relationships with a patient or two, I found it increasingly easy to wander around CRP joining in with activities or therapies that I liked the look of. I ended up getting involved with the Occupational Therapy department, helping a third year student called Mostak in the half way hostel.. All I was there to do was to stand in specific places and catch patients if they were likely to fall while executing an activity of some kind. However it proved to be one of the most exciting and memorable times for me at CRP. With my ever increasing understanding of Bangla I began to feel more confident spending time with patients and just making them smile, usually as a result of my pronunciation. After about two weeks I planned to take a trip to the National Monument for six patients each week. With lots of help from Mostak in translating and the physicality of transferring patients from wheelchairs to seats and back, it became a successful trip.

The first week saw a patient who was previously wheelchair bound due to a rabies inoculation, who we had been working with for the past two weeks, climb the steps to the National Monument with a pair of crutches but otherwise unaided. It was a totally exhilarating experience and I was still buzzing from it two days later!

CRP has definitely been one of the most life changing experiences so far in my life (not in the "I've found myself" way, but just in what I have had the privilege of being involved in here). From teaching the English to the children of staff members with Verity (most of which consisted of us making fools of ourselves much to their amusement) to celebrating my birthday at "Little Italy" (a Bangladeshi pizza parlour), not to mention the odd evening at the BHAGA club are but a few amazing times which I will never forget. To see the smiles of the children in the Special Needs School when they first saw it painted and the grin of Masud, who climbed the steps almost unaided, have been the highlights but also just two of many incredible memories.

Being a general volunteer has allowed me to grow in confidence almost unrecognisably to myself and has also given me experiences that I can't imagine getting anywhere else.