Living beyond TB

Sunita (name changed) is a 51-year-old housewife living in a remote village Simalghari in Chitwan district. She belongs to a poor family. Although suffering from poverty, she has lived a happy life. One day after returning from her father’s house, Sunita started feeling weak. She thought it must be some minor weakness from travelling. But many days gone by, her health was only deteriorating. She hoped that this all would subside in few days but it got worse. One morning she coughed blood. Continuous coughing and weakness crippled her strength to do daily work and confined her to bed.

After weeks without treatment and no signs of improvement, she went to a nearby health post but the health worker couldn’t diagnose any disease. With disappointment, she returned home. Disease persisted leaving her debilitated. Poor economic condition was another factor that was augmenting her misery. Sunita was starting to become anxious and feared she might die soon.

One day, BNMT volunteer, Matrika Budathoki went her home for door-to-door screening of Tuberculosis. Her cough was taken and sent for TB examination. The result came out positive. At first she was not comfortable to know about her result, but when the health worker counseled her about the disease and its cure, she was calmed and got courage to fight against it.

She started taking medicine regularly. Her family and neighbor supported her which further strengthened her spirit. With regular medicine and nutritious food, she started feeling well and slowly gained hope. With continuous intake of TB medicine and the support from family and friends she fully recovered.

After recovery, she realized how important it is to be aware about this disease and that it can be cured. She has started to share her experiences in the community regarding her sickness and recovery. She reaches out to people and help raise awareness on Tuberculosis and advises presumptive people to get diagnosed early for the disease. Sunita also encourages TB patients to take medicine regularly. She emphasizes the role of family and friends in taking care of patient and providing emotional support to accelerate the recovery process.

Sunita is very thankful towards BNMT and its screening program. She also expresses gratitude for the Government of Nepal for providing free TB medicine.