Mom struggles with autistic child post-Melissa

Having no electricity for more than a month due to Hurricane Melissa, Shantal Wynter has been getting little sleep as she cares for her autistic son.

"I have to keep candles and stay up until six in the morning until the place light up," she said. "If the candles are out, he wakes up because he does not like the dark."

Wynter's 15-year-old son Zavani depends heavily on routine, light and controlled noise. Sudden darkness or changes in structure can trigger panic and sensory overload, all of which have intensified since the hurricane Melissa hit the island on October 28.

"He doesn't like loud noises, so the hurricane was rough. And he doesn't like darkness, so it has been a lot for him," she told THE STAR.

Zavani was officially diagnosed at age 12 after an asessment at The Mico University College. Before that, Wynter depended on Google searches and foreign support groups to understand his meltdowns, speech delays and sensory struggles. Before the hurricane, Wynter was already fighting to secure stable schooling for her son. She has spent years trying to find an institution equipped to teach autistic teenagers but said she has faced long waiting lists and limited placement options. Since the storm, she has received no clear timeline on when he will be able to return to the classroom or resume any structured programme.

Wynter said her son's routine has "mash up completely", as even the flicker of a candle' silhouette can send him into panic.

"I deal with it, but it affects me," she said.

Wynter's struggle reflects a wider reality for many special-needs families across Jamaica. The island has very few specialised autism schools or publicly funded therapy services, especially outside the Corporate Area, leaving rural parents with long waits and limited support. In rural parishes like St Ann, disaster recovery is often slower, with longer outages and fewer nearby resources, conditions that hit vulnerable households hardest.

But Wynter's struggle is doubled by her own health. She is battling a thyroid-related autoimmune illness that causes extreme fatigue, throat pain and intermittent voice loss.

"I'm still trying to find a job, even part-time, but with no one to stay with him, it's hard," she lamented.

What troubles her most is that surrounding areas received power weeks ago while her home remains in darkness. She relies on tank water and pays neighbours with generators, or taxi men, just to charge a phone.

"It's depressing," she said. "People who don't live this won't understand."

Her son's needs have grown, as he needs items such as specific safe foods, noise-cancelling headphones, and a tablet or phone to keep him entertained.

"I'm just trying to make him comfortable," she said. "Melissa didn't damage my house, but it mash up his whole routine. And that's harder to fix."