This podcast contains stories of people we've met during our work with The Leprosy Mission. The Leprosy Mission Australia works with people with leprosy, other neglected tropical diseases and disabilities. They are often the most marginalised, vulnerable and hidden from the rest of society. We run health improvement projects, often in rural and remote villages where we get to meet many people who have amazing life experiences to share. Yes, leprosy is still a thing but it doesn't have to be. ...
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PLeprosy Mission Australia Podcasts
Send us a text When 11 year old Satendra found light coloured patches on his skin, it kickstarted a long journey of treatment that disrupted every part of his life. Through it all, the question on Satendra's mind was, why me? Why am I sick when no one else is?By Leprosy Mission Australia
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Send us a text 12 year old Disha loves her home in the rolling green hills, full of colourful flowers in spring and hearing the birds chirp outside her bedroom window. But other people may see her home as a busy sterile place, where sick people come for treatment. A place smelling of disinfectant, different medications and full of medical equipment…
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Send us a text Even before Amar knew what his diagnosis was, the symptoms had already isolated him from his family and friends, leaving him homeless and living under a bridge. When an opportunity to get free treatment and free accommodation appeared, Amar didn't want it, too afraid as to what people might say or do when they saw him.…
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Send us a text When small patches started to appear on his face, 8 year old Kamal was told he was cursed by a snake god. 4 months of animal sacrifices and rituals didn't take the curse away. By the time Kamal arrived at the hospital, his face was covered in red patches, so swollen, he could barely open his eyes.…
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27. No money, no honey, thus innovation was born
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Send us a text Prem discovered a hidden talent when he attended bee keeping training. Buzzing with ideas and excitement from his training, Prem ventured into the jungle to catch his first wild bee hive and he hasn't looked back since.By Leprosy Mission Australia
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Send us a text Mina was studying at university when she first started losing strength in her hands. It got so bad, Mina ended up in a wheelchair, with no strength left to walk. Having to go through treatment whilst studying for university exams is hard, but it's even harder when your friends no longer speak to you after you tell them about your dia…
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Send us a text For the last 35 years, Pratima has been working as a community health volunteer, educating her community on good health practices, delivering vaccinations and health checks. She views her job with pride and she is well respected in her community but it was not always like this. When Pratima first started, people did not welcome her, …
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Send us a text When we first visited Ritu at home her, she peered at us through a hole in the wall of her house, too shy to come out to meet the strangers who had turned up in her village. Ritu grew up in a community where men and women have set roles, where reputation is linked to how well each performances their roles. When disease strikes, it th…
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Send us a text At 12 years old, Rina had never heard of leprosy when she was diagnosed with it. Diagnosis is a complicated process and the medical journey to a cure takes a long time. Rina was simply happy to take the medication without really knowing what the disease was about. Is it better to know or not know about the disease you have?…
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Send us a text 13 year old Rhitik found a small cut on his big toe. He thought nothing of this, expecting it will heal soon. But 6 months later, the wound hadn't healed. Instead it had gotten bigger, an infection had set in and soon the infection had gone right down to the bone. His doctors had no idea what was happening.…
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Send us a text When her father passed away, Aarati's mum worked hard to keep Aarati and her brother at school but financial pressures mean that Aarati had to drop out of school to support the family. Now at 16 years old, Aarati has a chance to go back to school. She wants to pick up where she left off in Year 6 and even though she's older now, her …
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Send us a text Born into a farming family, 40 year old Durga learnt how to farm the land and grow her own food. However, when she was 7 years old, she started to lose strength in her legs and small tumors started to grow all over her body.By Leprosy Mission Australia
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Send us a text Down many bumpy dirt roads and fields of wheat, a long way from the nearest town, at just 20 years old, Rupa has started a successful small business, but life has never been easy. As a child, Rupa developed a condition that made her look different to other people. Her relatives told her that nobody would ever want to marry her.…
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15 - It takes a village to deliver a cure
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Send us a text 17 year old Noor is from a close knit community. Several years ago, she stepped on a nail whilst playing at school. The wound never healed, growing increasingly deep and infected, causing Noor to drop out of school when the smell became too much. This wound turned out to be the catalyst for a long, confusing journey for Noor and her …
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Send us a text Ubed strongly believed in the power of traditional healings. When he started to see patches on his skin and felt tingling sensations over his body, naturally, he went to see a traditional healer to ask for help to remove the evil spirit plaguing his body. When this failed, Ubed didn't know who to turn to next. But one time, on a nigh…
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Send us a text 20 year old Rubina worked on a tea plantation plucking tea leaves to earn money to contribute to her large family consisting of her mother, father and 7 siblings. When a side of her face started to swell, droop, become paralysed and her eye couldn't close properly, Rubina was terrified. She didn't understand why this was happening to…
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Send us a text When Saru received a late diagnosis of leprosy, her fingers had already started to become deformed. She became very self conscious about her looks, unsure about herself and isolated herself in her home. She needed encouragement and work to regain her confidence. But a self-help group and the gift of a little piglet turned that all ar…
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Send us a text Following a series of misdiagnoses that nearly bankrupted the family, Anju was finally diagnosed with leprosy. After treatment, Anju looked to be getting better, but her symptoms resurfaced and worsened. With a growing family, Anju could not afford to seek medical treatment. For the next 20 years, Anju learnt to live with her worseni…
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Send us a text As a teenager, Bibek's diagnosis of leprosy left him rejected by his classmates and frequent hospital visits meant he was never able to finish year 12. 20 years later, Bibek now has a family and a successful business, but these scars continue to hurt deep.By The Leprosy Mission Australia
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Send us a text Ayush was born through a homebirth in the comfort of his own home. At first everything was perfect, but when Ayush started crying a lot and didn't feed properly, his mother knew something was wrong. Taking him to the hospital, the family was told to abandon his treatment as he would not live for much longer. However, his mother went …
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13 - Painting to heal the hurt of leprosy
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Send us a text Kumar was diagnosed with leprosy when he was 5 years old. Being so young, the doctors keep him in hospital for the 2 years of his treatment. After the 2 years, unable to find his family, Kumar continued to live at the hospital. Growing up in hospitals surrounded by sick patients, doctors and nurses, drawing and painting became Kumar'…
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Send us a text 'I heard that they give free food and let you stay for free at Anandaban Hospital. You should just stay there. Don’t come back home, it bothers all of us and you no longer have a place here.' This was a conversation Leprosy Mission staff overheard between Sultan and his family. Home is often where your family and loved ones are, but …
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Send us a text 53 yr old Felix has a cool hobby and he's convinced it caused him to get leprosy. What is the link between his hobby and catching leprosy?By The Leprosy Mission Australia
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Send us a text Growing up, Mario watched his grandparents decline and eventually die from complications of leprosy. He watched when his mother and sister were also diagnosed with leprosy. Mario became convinced that the disease was passed on through generations even though scientific research tells us otherwise. Now it's his turn. He's not afraid, …
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Send us a text Ermelinda felt she had nothing to offer her neighbours and friends. Her physical deformities had left her unsure of herself and afraid that she will infect others. Hence Ermelinda stayed home and built herself a life isolated from the rest of her community. But this all changed with a few strategic investments into her life.…
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Send us a text 23 year old Augustino was in so much pain from swelling all over his body, but there was no available medication and the nearest hospital was a few hours away. Augustino was on medication to treat leprosy and everything was good for awhile, but one day the pain started. It was so severe he couldn't get out of bed. The medication shou…
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Send us a text At 25 years old Urmila has 3 children. When her husband passed away she was left with no money and no income. Restricted by traditional beliefs that told her it was not appropriate for women to work and that she needed the support of a husband to make decisions and earn money, when asked to join a self-help group to help her learn ho…
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Send us a text Bahadur was a confident budding engineering student who loved football and was the pride of his parents. Unfortunately a diagnosis of leprosy shattered his dreams and his confidence. Now, years later, Bahadur might finally get a second chance at life.By Eva
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Send us a text Niraj felt that life was going perfect. He had happily married and had a stable job. But a tragic road accident changed all this. Spiraling into depression Niraj felt that life had completed shattered. Knowledge about mental health is still poor in rural Nepal. How does little community knowledge about mental health affect Niraj and …
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Send us a text 19 year old Asa has lived in a leprosy colony all her life. Whilst she does not have leprosy, both Asa's parents had leprosy, which has impacted their ability to earn money. Now, fresh out of high school, Asa's family is unable to afford the fees to help her attend university. What will attending university mean for Asa?…
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Send us a text 15 year old Karuna turned up alone to a health clinic with a small discoloured patch on her arm. She has beautiful long black hair, large eyes with long lashes and looked stylish in her long black baggy pants and oversized purple shirt sporting the word PARIS in large letters. She looks just like every other 15 year old, but was she?…
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