{"id":1110,"date":"2016-12-06T12:14:27","date_gmt":"2016-12-06T12:14:27","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/nlt.ie\/?page_id=1110"},"modified":"2020-09-06T19:33:12","modified_gmt":"2020-09-06T19:33:12","slug":"punam-and-neelam","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.nlt.ie\/?page_id=1110","title":{"rendered":"Punam and Neelam"},"content":{"rendered":"

Punam and her\u00a0 Neelam<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Punam and Neelam with visitors from NLT Ireland, October 2019.\u00a0 Photo: R Thomas \u00a9 NLT Ireland.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Mary (2nd<\/sup> from right) first noticed Punam at a self-help group meeting. Then aged 10, Punam was crying as she soaked her leprosy-damaged feet to soften and clean the skin.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne of Punam\u2019s toes had fallen to the left and there was a huge ulcer on that foot. The lady with her said she had to work so hard in her home and mind 2 younger children. So she wasn\u2019t getting any rest for the foot. Punam\u2019s mother had told her if she couldn\u2019t work she wasn\u2019t wanted. The doctors said she might be dead by 20. I thought of my own girls having to go through that. Mary is paying study fees and medical costs for Punam, now aged 23, and her younger sister Neelam aged 17.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Punam<\/a>
Punam in 2014. Photo: Vera \u00a9 NLT Ireland 2014<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

These girls require regular medical attention for their leprosy-affected limbs. Like many people cured of leprosy, they may have permanent nerve damage. Where this occurs they feel no pain and are therefore at constant risk of wounding and ulceration, which can lead to further damage. Hands, feet, eyes and the lining of the nose are particularly vulnerable.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Nilam,<\/a>
Neelam, aged 11, receiving treatment for ulcers at Lalgadh Leprosy and Service Centre, 2014. Photo: Vera\u00a0 \u00a9 NLT<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

2020 update: Punam is currently studying to be an Auxiliary Nurse Midwife. Neelam is studying well in secondary school.\u00a0 She was treated at Lalgadh Leprosy Hospital and Services Centre this year for ulcers on her leg and is now doing well.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Punam and Neelam, looking radiant in early 2020, \u00a9 NLT<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Punam and her\u00a0 Neelam Mary (2nd from right) first noticed Punam at a self-help group meeting. Then aged 10, Punam was crying as she soaked her leprosy-damaged feet to soften and clean the skin. \u201cOne of Punam\u2019s toes had fallen to the left and there was a huge ulcer on that foot. The lady with … <\/p>\n

Continue reading “Punam and Neelam”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":22,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-1110","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nlt.ie\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1110","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nlt.ie\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nlt.ie\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nlt.ie\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nlt.ie\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1110"}],"version-history":[{"count":19,"href":"https:\/\/www.nlt.ie\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1110\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2527,"href":"https:\/\/www.nlt.ie\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/1110\/revisions\/2527"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nlt.ie\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/22"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nlt.ie\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1110"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}