When small patches started to appear on his face, 8 year old Kamal was told he was cursed by a snake god. 4 months of animal sacrifices and rituals didn't take the curse away. By the time Kamal arrived at the hospital, his face was covered in red patches, so swollen, he could barely open his eyes. Send us a text message to let us know how we're going!

Prem discovered a hidden talent when he attended bee keeping training. Buzzing with ideas and excitement from his training, Prem ventured into the jungle to catch his first wild bee hive and he hasn't looked back since. Send us a text message to let us know how we're going!

Mina was studying at university when she first started losing strength in her hands. It got so bad, Mina ended up in a wheelchair, with no strength left to walk. Having to go through treatment whilst studying for university exams is hard, but it's even harder when your friends no longer speak to you after you tell them about your diagnosis. Send us a text message to let us know how we're going!

For the last 35 years, Pratima has been working as a community health volunteer, educating her community on good health practices, delivering vaccinations and health checks. She views her job with pride and she is well respected in her community but it was not always like this. When Pratima first started, people did not welcome her, they would shut the door in her face or hide in their homes when she came to deliver health checks. Send us a text message to let us know how we're going!

When we first visited Ritu at home her, she peered at us through a hole in the wall of her house, too shy to come out to meet the strangers who had turned up in her village. Ritu grew up in a community where men and women have set roles, where reputation is linked to how well each performances their roles. When disease strikes, it threatens to destroy their reputations. Send us a text message to let us know how we're going!

At 12 years old, Rina had never heard of leprosy when she was diagnosed with it. Diagnosis is a complicated process and the medical journey to a cure takes a long time. Rina was simply happy to take the medication without really knowing what the disease was about. Is it better to know or not know about the disease you have? Send us a text message to let us know how we're going!

13 year old Rhitik found a small cut on his big toe. He thought nothing of this, expecting it will heal soon. But 6 months later, the wound hadn't healed. Instead it had gotten bigger, an infection had set in and soon the infection had gone right down to the bone. His doctors had no idea what was happening. Send us a text message to let us know how we're going!

When her father passed away, Aarati's mum worked hard to keep Aarati and her brother at school but financial pressures mean that Aarati had to drop out of school to support the family. Now at 16 years old, Aarati has a chance to go back to school. She wants to pick up where she left off in Year 6 and even though she's older now, her determination has not left her and she still has big dreams. Send us a text message to let us know how we're going!

Born into a farming family, 40 year old Durga learnt how to farm the land and grow her own food. However, when she was 7 years old, she started to lose strength in her legs and small tumors started to grow all over her body. Send us a text message to let us know how we're going!

Down many bumpy dirt roads and fields of wheat, a long way from the nearest town, at just 20 years old, Rupa has started a successful small business, but life has never been easy. As a child, Rupa developed a condition that made her look different to other people. Her relatives told her that nobody would ever want to marry her. Send us a text message to let us know how we're going!

Ubed strongly believed in the power of traditional healings. When he started to see patches on his skin and felt tingling sensations over his body, naturally, he went to see a traditional healer to ask for help to remove the evil spirit plaguing his body. When this failed, Ubed didn't know who to turn to next. But one time, on a night out, Ubed saw a movie that changed his whole life. Send us a text message to let us know how we're going!

17 year old Noor is from a close knit community. Several years ago, she stepped on a nail whilst playing at school. The wound never healed, growing increasingly deep and infected, causing Noor to drop out of school when the smell became too much. This wound turned out to be the catalyst for a long, confusing journey for Noor and her family, as they sought treatment from large medical centres, whilst trying to find enough money to pay for expensive treatments and juggling the...

When Saru received a late diagnosis of leprosy, her fingers had already started to become deformed. She became very self conscious about her looks, unsure about herself and isolated herself in her home. She needed encouragement and work to regain her confidence. But a self-help group and the gift of a little piglet turned that all around for her. How did a self-help group and a simple gift of a little piglet transform Saru into a busy business women, a confident disability advoc...

20 year old Rubina worked on a tea plantation plucking tea leaves to earn money to contribute to her large family consisting of her mother, father and 7 siblings. When a side of her face started to swell, droop, become paralysed and her eye couldn't close properly, Rubina was terrified. She didn't understand why this was happening to her and she was scared to let other people see her face like that. How can she go to work? But more importantly, who would want to marry her with h...

'I heard that they give free food and let you stay for free at Anandaban Hospital. You should just stay there. Don’t come back home, it bothers all of us and you no longer have a place here.' This was a conversation Leprosy Mission staff overheard between Sultan and his family. Home is often where your family and loved ones are, but what happens when they no longer want you because you have leprosy? Multiple misdiagnoses, a toe falling off from infections and a fearful com...

Ayush was born through a homebirth in the comfort of his own home. At first everything was perfect, but when Ayush started crying a lot and didn't feed properly, his mother knew something was wrong. Taking him to the hospital, the family was told to abandon his treatment as he would not live for much longer. However, his mother went against this advice and 12 years later, Ayush continues to be a thriving, curious boy. Send us a text message to let us know how we're going!

Kumar was diagnosed with leprosy when he was 5 years old. Being so young, the doctors keep him in hospital for the 2 years of his treatment. After the 2 years, unable to find his family, Kumar continued to live at the hospital. Growing up in hospitals surrounded by sick patients, doctors and nurses, drawing and painting became Kumar's outlet to finding peace and calm in his life. Send us a text message to let us know how we're going!

As a teenager, Bibek's diagnosis of leprosy left him rejected by his classmates and frequent hospital visits meant he was never able to finish year 12. 20 years later, Bibek now has a family and a successful business, but these scars continue to hurt deep. Send us a text message to let us know how we're going!

Following a series of misdiagnoses that nearly bankrupted the family, Anju was finally diagnosed with leprosy. After treatment, Anju looked to be getting better, but her symptoms resurfaced and worsened. With a growing family, Anju could not afford to seek medical treatment. For the next 20 years, Anju learnt to live with her worsening symptoms. When her condition reached a point that she could no longer ignore, Anju went to Anandaban Hospital. There she was face...

Ermelinda felt she had nothing to offer her neighbours and friends. Her physical deformities had left her unsure of herself and afraid that she will infect others. Hence Ermelinda stayed home and built herself a life isolated from the rest of her community. But this all changed with a few strategic investments into her life. Send us a text message to let us know how we're going!