Challenge TB Project: I share my experiences with other TB patients-Bernard

By Habiba Bello

When Bernard qualified as a mason, what most excited him was the prospect of starting a new chapter in his life. He had left his family behind in Lagos, Nigeria, and moved 750 kilometers east to the city of Makurdi to realize his dream of starting a brickmaking business. What he didn’t know was that soon after finishing school something would happen that would make him have to put his dreams on hold.

“Initially, I thought I had some kind of respiratory illness,” says Bernard, “but then I started suffering from a high fever, and as if that wasn’t bad enough, I began coughing up blood. Foolishly, I spent all my money on drugs at a local pharmacy none of which helped. One day it suddenly on hit me, I might not live to achieve what I had worked so hard for.”

By chance, he saw an announcement on Facebook, which described the same symptoms that he had been experiencing. He called the free number in the advert, and he got through he was asked what symptoms he was suffering from. When the operator heard, they referred him to a hospital which provided TB free testing and treatment through the Challenge TB project.

Bernard was diagnosed with multidrug-resistant TB, which meant that he would have to start a 20-month treatment program consisting of an 8-months of daily injections and many different pills.

“The early days were so difficult I almost gave up. The injections were bearable, but the pills made me nauseous. I found a handy trick that helped me a lot. I would take the injections in the morning, and the pills just before going to bed. This meant I avoided the feelings of nausea, and it allowed me to complete my treatment successfully.”

Now that he has completed his treatment, Bernard has finally been able to start his own business. He is now the proud owner of a brickmaking machine, and his business is starting to grow.

Living far from his family, Bernard had felt very lonely during his treatment, apart from the project staff, there was had been none to support him during this tough period in his life.

“I wish there had been someone to encourage me. One of the most important parts of TB treatment is the support from family and friends,” he says.

To show his gratitude for the help and support he received during his illness and to help others with TB, he now speaks to other patients about his fight with TB and when he has the time he also works as a TB advocate for the Challenge TB project in Benue State.

“I am very grateful to the Challenge TB project and to show my gratitude I share my experiences with other TB patients. I strongly believe that people will stick to their treatment if they are encouraged by others who have experienced something similar and lived to tell the tale. One of the main reasons patients stop treatment is because of the side effects of the drugs. My tip is to take the pills just before you go to sleep. I tell everyone I meet who is suffering from drug-resistant TB to keep fighting. Yes, 20 months is a long time, but you can make it through.”

Every year around 20,000 people in Nigeria get sick with drug-resistant TB. The USAID-funded Challenge TB project provides a telephone helpline as well as diagnosis, treatment, and support to TB patients across the country. Between October 2017 and June 2018, a total of 777 drug-resistant TB patients were diagnosed, and 79 percent started on treatment.