It was just another day, I woke up still isolated inside the four corners of this very room that I tend to consider my home. I stood up hoping to get some breakfast to start my day. I grabbed a bowl, a mug and a spoon of my own, separated from the ones that my family uses. As far as I can remember, being alone felt like forever. It felt like I had no connections whatsoever to my own family. I couldn't even hug my sisters and brothers, for they see me as someone as if I'm just a person in the slums. As if I'm just a useless filthy creature that has no purpose in life. People make me feel that it's better for me and for everyone if I just stay inside my room until I get cured. It hurts, it really hurts whenever people say that they don't want to talk to me and stays away as much as possible. I miss my family and myself so bad.
It's been 2 months since I have been diagnosed with tuberculosis, and I have been struggling for so long. This is the struggle of the isolated.
Tuberculosis is a disease caused by a bacteria called "Mycobacterium tuberculosis." Thus bacteria usually attacks the lungs, but can also damage other parts in the body. The common symptoms of this disease are a bad cough that lasts 3 weeks or longer, weight loss, loss of appetite, coughing up blood or mucus, weakness or fatigue, fever and night sweats.
TB spreads through the air when a person with the disease coughs, sneeze, or talks. If you have been exposed, you should go to your doctor for tests. You are more likely to get TB if you have a weak immune system.
Skin tests, blood tests, x-rays and other tests can tell if you have TB. If not treated properly, TB can be deadly. You can usually cure active TB by taking several medicines for a long period of time.
If a person is diagnosed with TB disease, regular checkups is a must to make sure the treatment is working. You must finish your medicine and take drugs exactly as prescribed. If you stop taking the drugs too soon, you can become sick again and potentially spread the disease to others around you. If you do not take the drugs correctly, the TB germs that are still alive can become resistant to the drugs.
Sometimes the drugs used to treat TB has side effects, it depends upon how your body reacts to the medication. Common side effects include upset stomach, nausea and vomiting or loss of appetite, tingling or numbness in the hands or feet, itchy skin, rashes or bruising, changes in your eyesight or blurred vision, yellowish skin or eyes, dark-colored urine, weakness, fatigue or fever that lasts for 3 or more days.
No one is capable of knowing the pain and the struggle that a person with TB is going through. Words can hurt, and sometimes the words that people with TB are hearing from those who judge them hurt more than the actual illness they are suffering from. Next time you meet a person with TB, tell them how special they are despite of having such deadly disease. They are warriors and fighters, and in time they will heal and be cured.
Hate the illness, not the person.
The Crest | GHS
2019-2020