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The Bishop of West Buganda Diocese, Gaster Nsereko, has urged priests to seek more knowledge and qualifications so that they are far ahead of their flocks.

Bishop Nsereko said many priests still rely on what they studied many years ago in theological schools, yet the Christians who attend church services have taken advantage of advancements in technology to learn many things.

“A priest is always expected to be ahead of the Christians in terms of knowledge acquisition. When you stand on the pulpit and preach to an audience that is more knowledgeable than you, you become an embarrassment to yourself and the Church. Let’s add value to ourselves by acquiring more knowledge and qualifications,” the bishop said in a message delivered by Ven. Canon Cranima Ssempebwa, the Provost of St. Paul Cathedral, Kako, on Sunday.

This was during a thanksgiving service for Rev. Samuel Matovu Mbogo and Ms Ruth Namuganga, who graduated in different disciplines from Uganda Martyrs University, Nkozi, on Saturday.

Rev. Mbogo, the head teacher of Sembabule Church of Uganda Secondary School, graduated with a Master’s in Education Management and Administration, while Ms Ruth Namuganga, a nurse at Masaka Regional Referral Hospital, obtained a Bachelor’s Degree in Nursing Science.

Eight years ago, the West Buganda Diocese unveiled a program where it started admitting and training people who possess diplomas or degrees into priesthood. Under this arrangement, Grace Bible College, a theological school at Kako Hill in Masaka City, phased out training priests on a certificate level and focused on training lay leaders.

All priests who want diplomas and degrees started enrolling at Namugongo Theological College or Uganda Christian University in Mukono.

To join the Anglican priesthood, one gets a calling, informs the parish priest and the Christians or the head of laity at the parish, who writes a recommendation to the diocesan leaders. The candidate then sits for oral and written interviews and is tasked to explain how they received the call to join the priesthood. When the panel is convinced, the candidate is sent to either Namugongo Theological College to start studies, especially for those on diploma or degree levels. Those at the certificate level are taken to the diocesan college, where they spend three years of study and are later ordained as priests.

Kenya has previously witnessed the end of several political eras. The notable ones being the death of the country’s founding president, Jomo Kenyatta, who died in 1978 aged 81. This was followed by the death of the country’s founding Vice President Jaramogi Oginga Odinga in 1994.

On February 4, 2020, just before the Covid-19 was declared a global pandemic, Kenya’s second independence president, Daniel Toroitich Arap Moi, died at 95 years, his death signalling the end of an era for a man nicknamed as the professor of Kenyan politics.

But the death of Raila Odinga, the son of Jaramogi, on October 15, aged 80, shook the political landscape of the country that was accustomed to a man who went with so many political names- Enigma, Agwambo, Arap Mibei, Njamba, Tinga, Nyundo, Jakom and Baba.

Raila, the country’s undisputed second liberation struggle champion, was a man that Kenya never had as her president notwithstanding the five attempts– 1997, 2007, 2013, 2017 and 2022. His defeat in some occasions was blamed on electoral manipulation despite his unmatched popularity across the country.

However, in death, Raila got military honours complete with a 17-gun salute to honour the departed hero unlike his late father Jaramogi, who was not even accorded a State funeral despite having served as the country’s first Vice President.

And President Ruto yesterday acknowledged that there was resistance within government circles to accord Raila a state funeral with military honours since he never became president.

But a towering figure in Kenya’s political scene, Raila, who although never rising to power, struck deals with then presidents Moi, Kibaki, Uhuru Kenyatta and Ruto, which saw him get into the inner sanctums of power, the former prime minister’s influence in shaping the Kenyan state saw his accorded the honours.

From a political detainee, Raila went on to build a fanatical movement around him, forging what is arguably among the longest popular party, ODM, which coincidently marks its 20th anniversary next month, a party through which many have built their political careers. The Lang’ata MP went on to serve as prime minister in a grand coalition government with President Kibaki between 2008 and 2013–the highest post in government that he ever held until his death.

The son of Jaramogi rose to the public limelight and the political scene as a political detainee after he was linked to the failed 1982 coup by the disgruntled Kenya Air Force officers, becoming Kenya’s most consequential political figure after the late Moi.

The coup attempt was designed to depose then President Moi. Raila, being at the centre of power even though he never became president, was a highly influential figure in Kenyan politics, known for his decades-long fight for democracy, human rights and constitutional reform that led to him brushing the government figures the wrong way.

An Opposition leader in Kenyan politics, Raila played a significant role in shaping the country’s politics, specifically pushing for the rights of the common people as well as the political reforms.

As the country paid its last respects to Raila before his interment yesterday, President William Ruto, immediate former President Uhuru Kenyatta, former President of Nigeria Olusegun Obasanjo and former Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka said Raila was a great leader.

Describing Raila as a mentor, President Ruto said the country had lost a great hero, ‘a man made through the fabric of struggle.’

‘Raila is fondly referred to as the people’s president. We honour him with a lot of respect because of his contribution to the nation. I can confidently say that Raila was not just an engineer but a political engineer,’ said President Ruto. ‘Yours truly William Ruto was one of his students of political engineering. He mentored me,’ President Ruto added.

It is not disputed that Raila was a highly influential figure in Kenyan politics, known for his decades-long fight for democracy, human rights and constitutional reforms that ultimately yielded into a new constitution that was promulgated on August 27, 2010.

Born on January 7, 1945, Raila spent years in detention and exile for his activism against former President Moi’s regime.

Former Speaker of the National Assembly Justin Muturi writes that ‘While we may have differed with Raila politically at various points, I have always respected his tenacity and deep love for the country.’

‘For decades, Raila Odinga stood at the heart of Kenya’s struggle for freedom, reform, and inclusion. His journey marked by sacrifice, resilience, and an unrelenting belief in the promise of this nation inspired millions across generations,’ said Mr Muturi.

Acknowledging that few men, he said: ‘Have so profoundly shaped Kenya’s democratic space or borne its burdens with such resolve, Raila’s passing leaves a void not just in politics, but in the conscience of our nation.’ ‘Raila’s legacy will endure in our institutions, in our freedoms, and in the hearts of all who believe in the dream of a just and united Kenya,’ Mr Muturi added.

Retired President Obasanjo noted that ‘one thing you could not take away from Raila was his passionate love for his country and Africa.’ ‘It is what made him grow from strength to strength in his political career,’ said Obasanjo. Obasanjo was among those who attended the meeting in Mombasa, Kenya that brought President Ruto and Raila together after the closely contested August 2022 presidential election, which led to the formation of the broad-based government in 2024.

President Ruto and Raila were rivals in the 2022 General Election.

‘Tolerance is a lesson of love. Raila tolerated accommodation. It’s a lesson we must learn from him. I have lost a brother, a friend and a confidant,’ added Obasanjo.

Raila was a towering figure, a veteran politician, and a champion of democracy who left an indelible mark on Kenya’s history. As a key figure in the country’s Opposition movement, Raila played a significant role in shaping Kenya’s democratic journey, advocating for human rights and pushing for electoral reforms Retired President Uhuru, referring to Raila as a close friend, said his loss presents the country a huge challenge.

‘We will miss Raila as a leader of this nation. His thoughtfulness, his freedom and those good virtues will always be remembered,’ said immediate former President Uhuru. Former Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka remembered the late Raila as the father of democracy.

‘Raila was the epitome of the struggle for justice and the fight against corruption,’ said Mr Musyoka adding that ‘despite the pain of a stolen election, he was very accommodative.’

But as the country and the continent of Africa bided Raila goodbye, in his 43 years after the failed coup, he never revealed his role in the failed 1982 coup even in his Biography; Raila Odinga, an Enigma in Kenya Politics by Nigerian author and lawyer Dr Babafemi Badejo launched in 2006.

The matter, which landed Raila in detention thrice, has been mentioned as a passing cloud. Raila had promised to give more details of the failed coup in a book he promised to write but never did so until his death. However, in his autobiography, The Flame of Freedom, released in 2013, he revealed that his role was merely ‘peripheral.’ Interestingly, despite the detentions, Raila was never charged for the failed coup attempt.

The question that remains unanswered and which follows Raila to the grave was whether the late Moi’s government’s decision not to prosecute him was because he made a political deal with Moi. Unlike his former colleague in detention-, former Subukia MP Koigi Wamwere, Raila also never produced his detention diary.

In the book Raila Odinga, an enigma in Kenya Politics, Raila reveals that the coup plotters sought and got the blessings of Jaramogi and that he set up a communication centre at an apartment on Ngong road, Nairobi City, from where he and the plotters monitored events.

When the Raila biography was released, figures such as former Internal Cabinet minister Chris Murungaru were quick to call for Raila to be tried for treason and that if convicted, hanged as provided for in the law.

‘Raila is a dangerous person and he has declared himself to be so,’ Murangaru said immediately the book was launched as he asked legal experts to scrutinise the book for action, telling Raila not to disown the contents ‘since he must have sanctioned every word and was present at the launch.’ Other than Mr Murungaru, then retired President, the late Moi told his Kalenjin community to ‘be wary’ of Mr Raila’s antics because his biography had exposed his true character.

Speaking in the Kalenjin dialect, Moi said: ‘You can now read the kind of person the man of the lake is [in reference to the lakeside Kisumu City from where Raila hailed].’

But Raila immediately hit back at those calling for his arrest saying that what he expected was an intellectual debate by people who had read the book and not wild allegations that could not be substantiated. What I want is intellectual discourse from people who have read this book and not unfounded allegations. I will only respond to reasoned critique over the issues in the book,’ Raila said then.

Then Nyakach MP Peter Odoyo, was among the MPs who defended Raila, saying the book was not an autobiography and that ‘the views expressed in it represented the assessment of the author and did not come directly from Raila.’

In page 94 of Raila’s biography, Raila comes out vaguely as neither denying nor confirming having actively participated in the 1982 failed coup.

However, in his autobiography The Flame of Freedom, released in 2013, Raila says that he played only a ‘peripheral role’ in the attempted coup.

‘The publication of a biography of me in 2006, where the writer intimated a peripheral role for me in the coup attempt, caused a vindictive outcry–indicating that freedom of speech is, at the time I tell this, my story, as shackled as ever in our country,’ he said in 2013.

As the country bids Raila, the enigma of Kenya politics goodbye, his friend in the liberation struggle Senior Counsel (SC) Paul Muite said that ‘the fallen hero’ will always be remembered for the democratic space that the country continues to enjoy.

‘Raila will always be remembered for his immense contribution for justice in our motherland– detentions, torture and exile,’ said SC Muite adding, ‘We have now handed the baton for the unfinished business to the current generation.’ SC Muite was lose to the Odingas. SC Muite and the Odingas have had a long history of collaboration in politics and beyond. SC Muite served with Raila and his father in the National Assembly on the Opposition benches. He was also Jaramogi’s close ally and was his vice chairman in the Ford-Kenya party and during the 2022 presidential election petition at the Supreme Court, he represented then Raila’s Azimio coalition to challenge the declaration of President William Ruto as the winner of the presidential election.

Former Imenti Central MP Gitobu Imanyara who served with Raila and Jaramogi in the National Assembly, notes that ‘some lives speak for themselves.’

‘They do not want to be celebrated. They are lived out loud, with conviction and cost, shaped by purpose and defined by endurance. The life of Raila Odinga is one of these,’ Mr Imanyara, Raila’s comrade in the struggle movement, said. ‘For those of us who have walked beside him, not in ceremony but in resistance, his journey is one we carry not only in memory but in bone,’ added the former Imenti Central MP.

As Kalangala District gears up for the 2026 parliamentary elections, voters are bracing for a familiar showdown. Most of the politicians who battled in the 2021 polls are returning, eager to reclaim or retain their seats in what is shaping up to be a rematch across the islands.

In Kyamuswa County, incumbent Moses Kabuusu of the People’s Front for Freedom (PFF) seeks re-election. His main challenger is once again Ms Carolyn Nanyondo Birungi of the NRM, who narrowly lost in 2021 when Mr Kabuusu polled 3,863 votes against her 3,471.

Two former contenders – Dr Cyrus Kambugu (NUP), who garnered 1,099 votes, and Mr John Mwesigwa (Independent) with 549 – have not declared interest this time. Instead, the National Unity Platform (NUP) has fronted a new flagbearer, Daudi Nkambo Ssenungi, to take on the old rivals.

The Kalangala Woman MP race also features familiar opponents. Ms Hellen Nakimuli (NUP) will again face Ms Aidah Nabayiga (NRM), whom she defeated in 2021 with 9,791 votes to 8,519. Ms Lydia Nakimera, who came third with 932 votes, has not announced a fresh bid. Notably, all four main contenders – Mr Kabuusu, Ms Nanyondo, Ms Nakimuli, and Ms Nabayiga – went through their party primaries unopposed, underscoring their dominance within respective political camps.

Speaking to Monitor, Mr Kabuusu said he still has the energy and vision to address Kyamuswa’s pressing challenges, particularly in infrastructure.

‘When I constructed the wooden cargo boat MV Seddume to transport vehicles to Kyamuswa, it proved my commitment to improving water transport. We need vehicles on the islands, yet before 2021, there was no reliable way to bring them,’ he said.

He cited his lobbying for improved road networks and modern water transport, which has led to more vehicles and boda bodas now operating on the islands. He acknowledged government efforts but said the district still faced serious sanitation and healthcare challenges.

‘Most of our diseases come from drinking dirty water; that’s why I’ve been extending clean water and toilets to villages and landing sites,’ he said. Mr Kabuusu also urged fishermen to diversify their livelihoods.

‘If fishermen abandon illegal gear and embrace agriculture, pressure on the lake will ease. My goal is for residents to own land, grow oil palm and food crops, access clean water, and enjoy better health,’ he said.

However, NRM’s Nanyondo argueD that Kyamuswa has lagged behind due to lack of representation within the ruling party. ‘The NRM is in power, but we have no MP from here.

We must rely on MPs from other districts to reach government. Why go through Kyotera or Lwengo when we can have our own?’ she asked.

She said the depletion of Lake Victoria’s fish stocks has crippled the local economy.

‘Those who once sold tonnes of fish now manage barely 100 kilogrammes. Some have parked their boats. Kyamuswa lives on fishing – and only the NRM government can fix this,’ she said. Ms Nanyondo further called for renewed focus on transport and healthcare. Former Woman MP Aidah Nabayiga said Kalangala lost its lobbying power after she left Parliament.

‘Kalangala has benefited from the oil palm project, which has improved livelihoods – parents can now pay school fees. But when I was in Parliament, I constantly lobbied for Kalangala. That isn’t happening now,’ she said.

She cited borehole projects she initiated and urged revival of key infrastructure such as the Bugoma-Mulabana road and a public transport vessel for Kyamuswa. But incumbent Hellen Nakimuli insisted that Kalangala’s voice is now stronger in Parliament. ‘We used to think we didn’t have MPs – no Kalangala issue was ever raised on the floor. Now, fisheries and health matters are discussed. Kalangala has a voice the government listens to,’ she said.

Ms Nakimuli said her focus remains on empowering women and youth through skills training. ‘We have young mothers and women making brooms from oil palm trees. They need better skills and markets. The men too must learn new trades and stop seeing the lake as the only solution,’ she said.

According to Mr Bambalazaabwe Semakula, a Kalangala political analyst, the return of the same contenders reflects not just popularity but also the logistical hardships of campaigning across the islands.

‘Kalangala isn’t like other places. A politician might walk more than 10 kilometres before meeting voters and must spend heavily on fuel to reach even a handful of people,’ he said, noting that such conditions deter new entrants. Mr David Zanic Javiira, a voter in Bujjumba Constituency, agreed that incumbents enjoy an advantage.

‘They attend local meetings, contribute to community events, even buy alcohol at gatherings, that keeps them popular,’ he said. He added that parties also prefer tried-and-tested politicians.

Nowadays, strokes can happen at any age, even among young adults. According to the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), stroke prevalence has increased for young adults (18 to 44) and middle-aged adults (45 to 64) by up to 15.7 percent. While the causes are known, such as high blood pressure, diabetes, obesity, and a sedentary lifestyle, for some people, such as Josephine Nakanwagi, deep emotional stress and heartbreak can be a risk factor, as Gillian Nantume writes.

Today’s society expects a 30-year-old woman to be settled in her job, probably with a husband and children. But the expectations sometimes do not meet the reality. Instead of sitting in an office somewhere, Josephine Nakanwagi sits on the verandah of her parents’ home in Namukozi Village, Mityana Town Council, Mityana District.

Her eyes are on a small stall near the dusty road, where she has placed Irish potatoes in small baskets, onions, and tomatoes, hoping that villagers will stop by to purchase them.

Although her speech is a bit slow, she is coherent. She takes tentative steps in the black high stilettos that were once her pride, bought for Christmas Day in 2023. She can only walk so far. However, she is comfortable in flat shoes.

Nakanwagi suffered a stroke on March 16, 2024, three months after she had given birth to a baby boy. Before her maternity leave, she had been working as a procurement officer for Sipro Educational Services Limited.

‘There was no sign that showed that I was heading towards a stroke. I was not stressed. However, two weeks before, I had experienced shortness of breath to the extent that I would step out of the house at night to try and get enough oxygen,’ she narrates.

When she visited a hospital, after carrying out some tests, the health workers informed her that her pulse rate was very high. Her blood pressure was also high. They gave her an appointment to see a specialist on Saturday, March 16, at 3pm. Unfortunately, she had a stroke at noon, three hours before her appointment.

‘I decided to wash my clothes before going to the hospital. Before I hung them, I went to check on my baby, who was sleeping. As I lifted him, I felt something hit me hard on the forehead. I put the baby down and walked to the bedroom. That thing hit me again on the forehead,’ she says.

Extremely dizzy, Nakanwagi went outside the house and called to her neighbours. As they came towards her, she fell forward into their arms. She was still conscious and told them to take her to a nearby clinic.

‘I was put on a drip. The nurse called my sister, but by the time she arrived, my tongue was becoming heavy. I was losing the ability to speak. At 6pm, I was driven to Mengo Hospital in Kampala. My sister had come with the baby and asked me to breastfeed him. I put him on the breast and then, I blacked out,’ she says.

Nakanwagi regained consciousness as she was being wheeled into the ward. She was placed on several drips, and a catheter was inserted into her after she failed to urinate.

‘I was admitted for three days, but there was no change in my situation. I could not lift my arms. My mouth was tightly shut. I could see and know the people who visited me, but I could not talk. I was given medication that dried up the milk in my breasts,’ she adds.

An MRI scan showed that Nakanwagi had a tear in one of the nerves in her brain. She was referred to Mulago National Referral Hospital.

‘Every time the ambulance hit a pothole, my teeth would bite my tongue. It was painful. At Mulago, part of the procedures included hitting my legs with a small hammer, but I could not feel them. After two weeks and three days in the ward, without any change, I was discharged,’ she notes.

Attending a rehabilitation centre

Justina Nankumbi, Nakanwagi’s mother, decided not to take her daughter back to her rented home in Kampala City. Instead, she took her to the family home in Namukozi, with the knowledge that she was going to spend the rest of her life caring for her.

However, among the several visitors who came to commiserate with the family were a group of girls whom Nakanwagi had studied with at Mityana Secondary School. One of them, Faith Nakigudde, proved to be a lifesaver.

‘I thank her because if it were not for her, my life would be a mess now. She advised my mother to take me to the Stroke Rehabilitation Centre in Wampewo (on Gayaza Road) and offered to pay for all the expenses I would incur during my stay there. I spent two months at the Centre,’ Nakanwagi recalls.

She underwent physiotherapy every day. On Fridays, the patients would be taken for a gym session, and in the afternoon, they would have outdoor activities.

‘I felt dizzy the first time I was put in a wheelchair because I had spent months lying down. But after a week, I could sit with support, and my neck could remain in one position. When the doctor told me I would walk again, I did not believe him. However, after two weeks at the centre, I could sit on my own in a chair, and I could move my arms slightly. I could also crawl,’ she says.

Within a month, Nakanwagi could stand and walk short distances. She had also started talking, and the nurses could understand her. Part of the exercises that enabled her to use her arms and hands again was sorting beans.

‘I had to sort small beans, pick them one by one, and drop them into a bucket. At first, it was so difficult because my fingers could not move even when my brain commanded them to move. The doctors kept telling me to relax and not force myself. But by the time I left, I could easily pick up the beans,’ she explains.

Nakanwagi was also taught how to speak again using words from the alphabet.

‘Words with the letters s, p, and x were so difficult to pronounce. Even today, I still have difficulty writing. However, I am improving,’ she says.

Nankumbi praises her daughter’s strength and resilience in the face of an almost impossible situation.

‘We saw a change in her condition after three days. When she urinated on the bed, we were so happy. Previously, she had been urinating through a tube. Later, she could point to the toilet instead of doing everything on the bed. She did not pity herself, pushing herself to do the physiotherapy as guided by the doctors. Instead, I was the one who would cry. I tried to hide my tears from her,’ she explains.

Several people had told me that Josephine had become a vegetable and would grow old like that. But the doctors at the centre consoled and counselled us. They even brought pastors to pray for us,’ she says.

What caused the stroke?

It is now one year and a month since Nakanwagi was discharged from the Stroke Rehabilitation Centre. Although she insists that nothing prepared her for the stroke she suffered, her mother, Justina Nankumbi, tells a different story.

Nankumbi says her daughter was too young to suffer a stroke. She was in love and had just had a baby – every young woman’s dream.

‘She came to live with me after giving birth so that I could take care of her and the baby. During that time, my other daughter called me and told me she was going to reveal the secrets of Josephine’s boyfriend. I begged her not to,’ she says.

Nankumbi adds that her daughter’s dream had always been to complete her studies, get married, and have children. Nakanwagi’s boyfriend had promised to marry her if she gave him a child. Unknown to her, her ‘boyfriend’ was a married man.

‘That man had informed my other daughter that he could not marry Josephine as he had promised, since he was already married. But he would take care of the child. My daughter decided to keep the information to herself until Josephine gave birth,’ Nankumbi notes.

She adds that her daughter’s boyfriend had even suggested to her sister that Nakanwagi should abort the child because he had enough children.

‘When I returned from an errand in town, I found Josephine crying desolately. I asked why she was crying, but she told me there was no problem. I called my other daughter, and she told me she had let out the secret. I blamed her. How can you tell a new mother that the father of her child does not want the child?’ Nankumbi asks.

Two days after the episode, Nakanwagi returned to Kampala, but after a few days, she called her mother, telling her that she was feeling a lot of heat in her chest. The next call Nankumbi received was to inform her that her daughter was admitted to Mengo Hospital.

Nankumbi believes the heartbreak that resulted from getting to know her boyfriend’s true colours is what caused Nakanwagi’s stroke.

‘I think the stroke came from her depression. I had always advised my daughters not to go for married men because they are not responsible towards the children they have outside marriage. Married men are always compelled to lie. Josephine did not know that the man had a wife,’ she says.

Her life today

An enterprising young woman, when she was discharged from the Stroke Rehabilitation Centre, Nakanwagi knew that she had to continue with her physiotherapy at home, if she was to get better in record time.

‘The stroke changed my outlook on life. Many people know about stroke, but those who are victims do not know how to go about it. They think their life is over. They admire those who can talk and walk. At some point, I feared talking with people I did not know. I could not sit with them or look at them. I thought they would be judging me,’ she says.

As a procurement officer, the mother of one used to be a confident young woman. However, the incapacitating stroke took her confidence and self-esteem. However, she is trying to regain her confidence.

‘When I am at home, I walk confidently. But when I am in a strange place, I have difficulty walking because I have a feeling that people are looking at me and judging me. This makes me fail to walk. Sometimes, I wait for people to walk away before I can slowly cross the road,’ she explains.

To keep herself busy, Nakanwagi opened a stall in front of her parents’ home, which allows her to interact with people she is not familiar with.

‘Besides selling Irish potatoes, tomatoes, and onions, in the evenings, I fry emamba (marbled lungfish) and cook porridge. People, especially those who do not cook at home, flock to the stall. I buy a big fish at Shs50,000 and sell it in small pieces of Shs1,000. My neighbour boils cassava, which people eat with the fish. I find myself talking to people every evening,’ she says.

The stall is by the roadside, and several people pass by it on their way home after work. Nakanwagi hopes to look for a formal job next year.

‘Most employers require experience before they can hire you. Unfortunately, I do not have that, but I still remember how I used to do my procurement job. I spent 10 years working in procurement. I also have a certificate in software engineering. I can now focus on a computer and even code a website,’ she says.

Advise to caregivers

From experience, Nakanwagi has advice for caregivers of stroke patients. She calls on them to be encouraging to their charges, who in most cases, are also suffering from depression.

‘It is not easy to look after a stroke patient. Besides doing everything for them, they also need to be counseled that they are still useful in life. Encourage them to adhere to their physiotherapy to get better, and keep telling them that they are improving. If not, you will kill their self-esteem,’ she explains.

In most cases, immediately after the stroke, patients regress, and it takes time, hard work, and determination to get back to where they were before they fell ill.

‘I used to be a hands-on person, doing my own house chores. Nowadays, I make sure to follow the physiotherapist’s advice because I do not want to be a burden to my family. I force myself to try out things until I perfect them. For instance, washing a handkerchief was a challenge, but I kept trying and within a week, I could wash it clean,’ Nakanwagi notes.

Before the stroke, as a firstborn, Nakanwagi used to pay her siblings’ school fees. They paid her back with love, caring for her unceasingly until she got back on her feet.

Nakanwagi’s need for a formal job is to go to a place where people do not know her. In such a situation, no one will feel sorry for her when she makes mistakes or when she is slow. They will not be concerned about what happened to her.

She believes this will give her the courage to take on tasks that her family would otherwise tell her not to perform, because they fear she will be straining herself.

Since she gave birth, Nakanwagi’s boyfriend abandoned her and their son.

Stats

According to the World Health Organisation, annually, 15 million people worldwide suffer a stroke. Of these, five million die and another five million are left permanently disabled, placing a burden on family and community. Stroke is uncommon in people under 40 years; when it does occur, the main cause is high blood pressure. However, stroke also occurs in about eight percent of children with sickle cell disease.

High blood pressure and tobacco use are the most significant modifiable risks. For every 10 people who die of stroke, four could have been saved if their blood pressure had been regulated. Among those aged under 65, two-fifths of deaths from stroke are linked to smoking. Atrial fibrillation, heart failure and heart attack are other important risk factors.

The incidence of stroke is declining in many developed countries, largely as a result of better control of high blood pressure and reduced levels of smoking.

I am 44 years old, but recently I started having a lot of bleeding and was told I have developed fibroids and need surgery. Are there other options since I do not want surgery? Sarah

Dear Sarah,

Fibroids are non-cancerous growths found in the muscle of the womb, mostly in women of childbearing age.

Apart from heavy or painful periods, a woman with fibroids may experience other symptoms such as anaemia (due to blood loss), lower back pain, or sometimes no symptoms at all.

Fibroid treatment depends on many factors, including your age, the size and location of the fibroids, whether you want to get pregnant, your symptoms, and possible complications of treatments, which can include surgery to remove the fibroids or the womb, among others.

Menopause usually causes fibroids to shrink or stop growing because the female hormones (estrogen and progesterone), which support their growth, decline.

At 44 years, you are approaching menopause (when fibroid growth usually stops).

If you do not want surgery, medications can be used to shrink fibroids, or treatments can help reduce bleeding, including progesterone-releasing intrauterine devices (IUDs) and hormonal birth control medications.

Please talk to your doctor about whether they can offer you alternatives to surgery.