 |
The day starts at 6:15 am. Time to get the children ready and take them to school. 7:30 am: task successfully completed. 9:00 am: back home, shower, breakfast. 9:45 am: pick up Wendy and Vivien, our interns. They want to accompany me. At 10:00 am I arrive at the "Rau" daycare centre. All 25 children of the "Rau" daycare shout: „Good morning mother!“ (which bothers me a lot). How often have I tried to explain that the Kiswahili word Mama |
does not mean mother ... never mind ... pointless. Everyone calls Jeremy without problem Daktari (doctor), but I am always the woman or the mother. There are no more patients on the veranda. Perfect. Because I have many little patients from the daycare that I want to treat. Here comes Upendo, the teacher, with a whole crowd of children. The first is Johnson. He is 3 years old and HIV-positive. His mother knew she was positive, but because she didn't want to be stigmatised, she breastfed Johnson. That's why he is HIV-positive... Johnson is a very serious little boy. His first remedy was Ozon C 12, which I gave him in June 2010. He had dark spots on his skin, a rash and itching. His eyes were itchy and he squinted. |
|
|
He had dreamed that his mother was walking across a narrow bridge on foot, which dropped steeply on both sides. He is a naughty boy who climbs around a lot, touches everything and is quite loud, says Upendo. He loves spicy food. He is the youngest of 3 children. He is not on HIV medication. He came back in December with itchy skin and watery eyes covered by a milky film. He looked miserable. Upendo says he cries all the time. He can wail nonstop for 3 hours. He can also get very angry. |
Upendo says that the remedy he received in June did him a lot of good and that he had been symptom-free until now. So I repeated Ozon C 12. His mood immediately improved and he stopped crying. He is now less aggressive. The skin has improved considerably, the itching is stopping and the dark spots are fading. The eyes are normalising and no longer water. He smiles and looks happy. His squint has since become less pronounced. Today he comes because of his cough. He has been coughing for a few days. The cough is very painful. He is very thirsty and drinks a large cup of water in one go. That is enough for my remedy choice and I give him Bryonia C 12, to take daily. He should come back next week if it doesn't improve. Next please! Joseph, 4 years old. He is very small and thin for his age. His HIV status is unclear, but Upendo says his condition improved after his mother weaned him. He first came |
|
 Joseph |
in November 2010. Upendo brought him because he was always tired and slept a lot, had very little appetite and a bloated stomach. He frequently frowned and sweated a lot in his sleep, especially on his head. He is very afraid of injections. I gave him Silica C 12, which helped him a lot. His appetite returned, he gained weight, his stomach settled and the sweating stopped. Today he comes because of a nasty rash on his right ear. He has a rash all over his body, on his back, bottom and belly. |
The ear is weeping and discharging a clear fluid, blisters and cracks are forming. He also has a boil on his head, under the skin. I repeat Silica C 12, with a question mark for Graphites. Next please! Ida, 5 years old. I love this child, she is totally unruly. A tomboy, only plays with boys. She has attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), cannot sit still for a second and is constantly on the move. Severe concentration difficulties. She is always ready to fight, very aggressive. She pinches other children, kicks them or hits them while playing. She bangs her head against the wall in anger or slams her head into it. Her mother is in a psychiatric clinic and Ida lives with her grandmother. She misses her mother a lot. As far as we know, she is not HIV-positive. Headaches at the crown and pain in the right side of the face at the level of the cheekbone. |
|
 Ida |
I had given her Tarantula C 12 to take daily. Now she is back. She has sores on her chin and thumb. They look like warts when they dry out. She has had this before. Her mood has improved a lot. She has started playing with girls and enjoys playing or cooking at home. She is no longer so aggressive and can sit still for much longer. She no longer pinches or fights. The head-banging has stopped. She no longer has headaches. I repeat Tarantula C 12. Next please! |
Another new child, Zufra. She is 3 years old and has sores on her knee. She has had these for a week. She suffers from a chronic whitish-yellow, thick runny nasal discharge. She likes to sit on laps and cuddle. She is very thirsty. She is afraid of being shouted at and gives in immediately: „Please don't hit me!“ I give her Pulsatilla C 12. 1:20 pm: Now it's lunchtime: rice and beans with a banana. Just in time! I was already feeling faint. I look at the clock; today I will, exceptionally, be able to pick up my children from school on time. Last week we dismissed all our staff for theft, including the nanny. Another whole hour and no more patients! I take care of the medicines. Here comes one more latecomer. Well then! It is Nestor, the new organiser of the new clinic where Wendy and Mel work. He is beaming, he feels much better. I had given him China. He says he has no problems anymore, and for the first time he has hope again. The rest of the day consists of children, homework, cooking, emails and paperwork. At 11:45 pm I finally fall into bed exhausted. Far too late for a very busy mum! But it was another wonderful day! You just have to love Africa! |
|
Photos: Camilla Sherr |
