15 Apr 2021

Afro Jazz Artiste, Gaone Ditirafalo alias Gee, who is also a survivor of Lupus will host a workshop to raise awareness about the Lupus condition.

Lupus is a chronic health condition that affects joints and other parts of the body such as the heart, kidneys, liver and leaves one paralyzed.

May is the international Lupus awareness month and as such she felt the need to make an effort to reach out to those battling with the condition.

She said the workshop would help motivate people with the same condition to have a strong belief upon their capabilities and be courageous to tackle head on challenges that come along with the condition.

Gee said issues to be covered would include emotional and financial effects of the Lupus condition on those affected and their caregivers, suitable diet, exercise and minor activities that those who are recovering could engage in.

She further said relevant medical practitioners would facilitate the workshop while survivors would share their life experience and how they managed to live with the condition.

“We will only have a limited number of attendants, we had expected to have other survivors from South Africa to grace the workshop, but due to the COVID-19 travel restrictions, we will connect with them virtually,” she said.

Gee said she was diagnosed with the Lupus condition in 2018 and this forced her to lie dormant for a while from the music circles. She noted that during her absence most of her fans kept asking of her whereabouts and when they learnt that she was suffering from Lupus they could not relate to what it was all about.

She explained that upon recovery, she felt the need to open up to her fans and followers about her condition and appreciate all the support she was given when she was ill. She had a number of radio interviews, got featured on Molemo wa kgang at Btv and also had a documentary compiled by Matla Basha.

The documentary was to share how she survived, considering that she was paralysed for six months and later on she walked on crutches. She said the response and questions she received during interviews revealed that most people were still in the dark about the condition.

Gee said she was also disheartened to learn that some individuals with similar conditions had given up all the hope that they could recover and stand on their feet again, and on the other hand some caregivers had no idea on what assistance to give, especially when one was paralysed.

With these challenges, Gee felt the need to do something, hence the workshop. Meanwhile, public health specialist at Merrymoon Clinic in Gaborone, Dr Ntombizodwa Bala said Lupus is an hereditary chronic condition, which can leave one paralyzed or deformed.

The immune system that is supposed to protect the body cells becomes over active then attacks normal organs and women are the most affected.

Dr Bala said there was no treatment for the condition, however efforts to control the damage were administered through following a specific diet, prescribed medication and exercising..ENDS