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“Everyone criticises me. My own elder brother has hurled abuse at me. Be it someone I know or just a random stranger, people pass snide remarks about my appearance." - Ramni
45-year-old Ramni is subjected to mocking and trolls everyday due to a disease that has left her face swollen and distorted. This mother of two is suffering from a bony tumour that has affected her upper jaw. She has difficulty talking and eating, but what hurts her the most is how her face has become disfigured, as she has become a social outcast in a sense – she is not invited to any gathering and cannot call people home either, due to her condition.
The hurtful words aren’t limited to her
“My son goes to school and people there say bad things about me to him. They compare their mothers’ looks with mine. One day my son came back from school and asked me whether I was like this before or not. He goes through the old pictures and says I don’t look like them anymore." - Ramni
Ramni’s condition has also had a direct impact on her elderly mother, who has fallen ill while worrying about her. Ramni says that her mother feels terrible seeing her like this, but what breaks the 45-year-old’s heart is the fact that she’s now dependent on her mother’s help.
“I should be the one to look after my mother at this age; instead, it is she who is taking care of me. Just imagine my fate! Any mother would feel bad to see their child in such a state and she is no exception.” - Ramni
On a family income of INR 3,000, her treatment is simply a distant dream
Ramni’s husband, Surendra Nayak, works as a labourer. The family earns a modest INR 3,000 every month, which is not nearly enough to make ends meet, let alone afford treatment for such a disease. Ramni says that she cannot ask for help from any of her siblings, as they too are not well off.“I cannot ask either my sister or my two brothers for monetary help. We are all poor. They barely manage to put food on the table. How can they help me? I want to get cured and face my trolls.” - Ramni.
Ramni requires urgent surgical intervention or the tumour will only continue to grow and cause more dire consequences. The tumour would need to be completely removed and she might require bilateral maxillectomy, a procedure for the removal of the entire upper jaw on both sides. Additionally, she would require reconstructive treatment, all of which would cost an approximate INR 25 lakhs.
With your kind help, this poor housewife can get her life back
