My Body. My Enemy.
Huma Ismail, December 2019
The enemy is within
What should keep you is now killing you
No one will imagine
Their body will fight them
Attack them, destroy them
What should preserve
Turns into destroyer
What should support
Becomes a burden
Common story of autoimmune
You become your own enemy
Your own body is creating a war
Every cell turns wicked soldier
They start collecting armed forces
To bomb the life breath out of you
No one understands why this self attack
Self harm is destructive
Autoimmune is self harm
Body turns our own enemy
Huma is a young lady in her late 20s. She has a BSc and BEd degree and taught science and math in a school for 3 years. She had an attack of severe lupus in December 2016. She went through immense pain and suffering with muscle pains, joint pains, low blood pressure, anemia and skin rashes. Her world turned upside down or so she thought. She went through cycles of treatment with high doses of steroids and immunosuppressive drugs. She had to give up her teaching job which she really loved.
Finally Huma decided to come out of her grief and actively work on her health. She went on a gluten free, sugar free diet from August 2019 and is feeling much better. She is on a low dose of medication and plans to get off fully with diet and exercise.
Huma lives in Mahalakshmi layout, Bangalore. Her brother, sister-in-law and parents have supported her strongly. She and her sister-in-law Shagufta experimented with several gluten free recipes. They plan to run their first cookery course in gluten free, vegetarian cooking from February 2020. Interested persons can contact OPFORD for more details.