Wednesday, July 23, 2008

Wa'rapa'

Otherwise known as Epilepsy is a disorder of the central nervous system characterized by loss of consciousness and violent uncontrollable contractions of muscles.
Before now, i had never known or seen anyone come under the 'attack of wa'rapa' ( some believe its an evil spirit) but all that changed yesterday.
After work, i had gotten to the bus garage and i noticed a guy standing and whispering to a lady seated inside d bus i was to board, 'Na wa wa' i muttered. the lady who was prolly in her mid 20s was on low-cut, a top and 3/4 pants (the in-thing for lagos gals), their gist continued till the bus got filled up, the guy tapped/caressed d babe on the shoulder and left. The journey was rather fast cos there was no traffic, thank God. We got to our destination and started alighting, i got down and had only taken 3 steps when i heard "Gbauu!" followed by a loud scream. Na so all man begin run (me nko???? i take off o) who wan die?? lol
I had gotten to a distance then realized some people had stopped running, 'wetin dey hapen for there?' i asked a guy i saw walking calmly behind me, chuckling, he answered 'wetin dey pursue u?' 'if na u nko', i retorted. 'hahahaha, he laughed, anyway na one wa'rapa'-chick like dat'. 'Whats wa'rapa'?? i asked, at this point i noticed a small crowd near d garage. 'Sistah, abeg i nor fit explain, go there go look am', with dat he walked away. On auto pilot, i walked back, when i got to the garage, i saw d lady in low-cut, who some mins ago was talking to her 'guy' twitching on the floor, 'bring spoon', 'bring salt and water' 'dont let her close her mouth o' filled the air, as some women ran helter skelter looking for water( i guess) 'aaww poor girl' i looked on with tears in my eyes , '' she and who follow???" a man asked as he brought out a spoon n forced it into her mouth, Nobody answered, and i wondered abt the guy talking to her at the bus stop, Was he aware of her condition? After some mins , she stopped convulsing, opened her eyes and whispered something to d man holding her, he then asked someone to call a taxi. some female traders started chasing the children who had gathered around away. The cab came and 'the good samaritan' with a another woman, helped the lady inside and cab drove away. the next thing i heard was;
'Na wa o, see as dis thing jus disgrace dis fine gal' 'She be ogbanje??'
'Na only God go save person for dis
lagos o' 'NO! na warapa dey do am' 'Una sure say she nor be winch??' 'She needs serious deliverance o'
'Na una sabi, oya make una dey go, film don finish!!' this from a woman holding a broom poised like she wants to sweep us off the road.
I walked home disturbed, with many questions in my head,
Is epilepsy hereditary?? Didnt she have a premonition?? Is she cursed??
(i hope not) Does it have a cure?? How can one contract it???
*sigh* and such a fine girl too, My pipo i jus tire.

59 comments:

O'Dee said...

1st!

Writefreak said...

*Sighs* I don't know the cause but i know it is a terrible disease, only happens to them in public and no they never have the premonition. As for me, i think it is demonic...because God says His people will never be put to shame so why should someone have a sickness that is always seeking to shame them! It is a terrible condition, don't know if it has any medical cure!

O'Dee said...

D disease is very terrible.
A boy in my high school had it.
Am not sure about the cure, but am sure there is a way to control it.

princesa said...

Eh ya. I feel for that poor girl. Epilepsy is a terrible thing. I don’t know the cause sha but I sha think that certain things triggers the condition off in those that suffer it. Maybe she saw something or… inshort I no no jare!

How u dey girl?

LG said...

OLUWADEE:sweery u can say dat again
d embarassment is sumthin else, *sigh* na God hand we dey
@1st: oya come take suya, e sweet o, lol

WRITEFREAK:aah demonic ke? i dont want to believe dat o, but who know....

*iyawo, any new toaster lately *wide grin*

PRISCO: u might have a point there,
maybe it was d wind, cos she was sitting close to d window...
*i dey jare, thank God no rain 2day, thanx. how mumsy?

isha said...

Chei! God protect us o. OluwaDee who was the person that had it in high school? I hope she's feeling better now.

Unknown said...
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Unknown said...
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LG said...

ISHA: AMEN o my sista.Amen

9JALINES: thank God its not,
*sigh* i jus feel for the girl.
hope u r gud.

Unknown said...
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LG said...

9JALINES: U r welcome sweerry,
thanx to u too for the link.
i m on it
mwaah!!

The Activist said...

I grew up believing that anybody with an epileptic condition is either cursed or demonic because that was how they were treated. They get into a fit in the public places because the condition is prone and often trigger off by noise. From what I have gathered it’s not hereditary, it is not demonic and the victim is not cursed. It’s just like having cancer or one other disease.

But the way the majority of Nigerians view this condition is like the victim is jinxed!!! To bad for our ignorance!!!

Here are some insights“Epilepsy is a disorder in which nerve cells of the brain from time to time release abnormal electrical impulses. These cause a temporary malfunction of the other nerve cells of the brain, resulting in alteration of, or complete loss of consciousness. There are several forms of epilepsy. Most people will have seen someone suffer a major epileptic seizure, suddenly losing consciousness, jerking the arms and legs, etc. But there are other types of epilepsy - for example, one common form of epilepsy in children merely consists of staring blankly and losing contact with the surroundings for a few seconds” For more info including the treatment go to the link below http://www.hpathy.com/DISEASES/epilepsy-symptoms-treatment-cure.asp.

Just last Month, a development worker decided to look into this condition and help out the victims of this disease because they are discriminated against and ridicule at will. We need to understand this to treat the victims better.

Unknown said...

I decided to amend my comments as some of it may be misunderstood by others.

Epilepsy as I said earlier is not demonic. It is a medical condition.

Anyone Interested in knowing more about epilepsy?

Cut and Paste this link:

http://hcd2.bupa.co.uk/fact_sheets/html/epilepsy.html


@ LG: thank you for posting this topic. There is obviously a lack of knowledge out there.

@ Writefreak
God also says: My people perish from a lack of knowledge. Hosea 4 v 6

mizchif said...

Ignorance really is a terrible disease. It's funny that in this day and age, there are still people who view epilepsy as demonic or spiritually related. It is a condition which can be medically explained tho it may be idiopathic.

Standtall, thank you for the educative insight.

Naija Idol said...

Epilepsy is very terrible. the bad part of it all is that the victim never has premonition. I dont think its curable sha nd i also dont think its demonic.

Jennifer A. said...

Aww menn!!! Epilepsy is really a terrible thing to have, because a patient loses all consciousness and there is nothing they can do about it.

I heard epileptic patients are not allowed to drive.

Lord, have mercy.

Jennifer A. said...

When I read writefreak's comment I remembered how Jesus healed the epileptic child in the bible...his father said he usually "threw himself uncontrollably in and out of the fire"...

But God's name is Jehovah Rapheka, the Healer...

Jennifer A. said...

I also do not believe that epilepsy is demonic, but sickness in general is from the devil...no matter what type of sickness it is. It's not God's plan for us to fall sick...we were created to "prosper and be in good health." That's why when we do fall sick, we pray for healing.

Chari said...

wow....
mayn i dunno w@ to say at all...buh I find 9jan pretty annoying when it comes to stuvvins like this mayn...like wtf?

mehn I dnt evenknow w@ to say again...am so sad abau this

Mz. Dee said...

Wow. see how many comments already.
funny thing is.. i just watched a 9ja movie with mercy johnson and desmond elliot. it was about epilepsy and i was tellin my cuz i feel sorry for any1 with this sort of disease.
apparently it has to do with the brain.. its sad that a cure has not be found. and i do hope they find one soon.
lol @ the woman wantin to sweep u ppl off the road.

James Tubman said...

that is really scarry

i used to live with a guy who would have random epileptic seizures

he would say all types of weird things

he would shake and stutter

you can forget about getting sleep when he acted up

i wish i knew what i know about helping people with seizures

i could have shut him up a lot sooner and got a little more sleep lol

NaijaScorpio said...

Writefreak don kill me oh! I think other people have already commented that it's a purely medical condition so i'm not going to talk too much about that.

Just a reminder: GOOGLE it!

archiwiz said...

That's so sad... Its great that there were people willing to help her though... At least it shows that ignorance is depleting, even though its small small.

Writefreak, do God's children not suffer trials and tribulations? Can you determine how the trial or tribulation will come?

Tairebabs said...

OMG! I have never seen anyone who has had an epilepsy attack but I know its not witchcraft or demon possession or the like. It's a disease. I have heard that it is hereditary but I have never really found out. Will ask a doctor. It's very sad. I feel for the girl. You know how embarrassing it is for a lady when she falls down by mistake in public and how some people laugh; not to talk of something like this happening.

The expression Wa'rapa, this is the first am hearing of it.

DB said...

eh-yah poor girl
n sound like she is a cool chick to look at
i think u r supposed to outgrow it or something
well everybody get their own for body
just that some people's own is more obvious and come at the wrong time
sucks to those who think they r better off.

LG said...

STANDTALL:thanx dear for the info, i really appreciate ie.

MIZCHIF: u can say dat again, i heard lots of trash dat nite, i was so shaken, imagine dem calling her a witch.

9JAIDOL: it MUST be curable o, i cant imagine anybodi living with sth like dat all their life.

JAYCEE: not allowed to drive? i m hearing dis for d first time o, nut it makes sense tho'

LG said...

JAYCEE: Thanx dear, i dont want to believe its demonic too,
*pls wat book of the bible did Jesus heal the child??

CHARI: i'm sad too but i kno things will get beta (by His grace)

MZ.DEE: dearie, wats d title of d movie, was desmond epileptic???

JAMES TUBMAN: 4 real! dat wld have been sumn, so wat happened to him? how did u cope? wat triggered his? was he cured?
so many questions *sighs*

LG said...

STING: thanx, already have

ARCHIWIZ: I give glory to God for dat man o, i was just standing there too shocked to do anything

TAIREBABS: babes, thank God she wasn’t wearing skirt o, u need to see how she was rolling 4rm one side to another, gathering dirt around her, i just pray she wasn’t injured.

DB: I don’t kno if some people out grow it without it being cured o, ll confirm 4rm a doctor sha.
My fear now is how does one kno he’she doesn’t have it?

*how ur back?? Hope u r massaging it

Afrobabe said...

Hmm I dont know what causes it but I know its really terrible, seen it in boarding school and always reminds you of how frgile life relly is...
I know it can be triggered by suden sharp light ie loads of cameras going off and lightening

Rayo said...

eeyah, last semester exams, a gal had an episode in the exam hall, twas awful. lg, i don update, i neva c u 4 my syd, oh nd i'm tryna upload s.a pix now.

LG said...

AFRO: loads of cameras going off and lightening; dats another one
thanx.

RAYO:na wa o,for exam hall sef?? was there a stampede? or wat cld have caused it? wat abt her exam???

BTW: i don reach there te'le, i even collect attendance no 5, lolll

aloted said...

so sorry to hear about the girl..men this sickness is not something u'll pray even on your enemy.

I believe God can heal all sicknesses and epilepsy is one of them. whether it is demonic or not is not the issue here...it calls for deliverance and with God all things are possible.

Writefreak said...

ok seems my comment stirred up a lot of counter comments, lemme make myself clear. My belief is that nothing in the physical happens without spiritual undertones, so i don't mean an epileptic patient is demon possessed, i only mean it is caused by the devil since it is not caused by God...

When i say epilepsy is demonic, what i mean is this
@archiwiz, yes children of God suffer affliction and trials and it may take a while but when you have faith, you can overcome
@naijalines
I am not saying anyone suffering the condition should not seek medical help o...and i definitely know what epilepsy is to be honest!

Enough said!

LG said...

ALOTED:yes dear, i cant wish it on my worst-est enemy sef, its so terrible /embarrasing

WRITEFREAK: dear thanx for clarifying ur 'previous comment'
i undastand ur point tho'

Zayzee said...

sad. unfortunately, people will call it what they want. ogbanje, witch whatever. and all these classification might be in their minds, hindering a quick help. Never heard if it has a cure. The only cure I know is God.

Lighty 'neferet' Kopearl said...

isnt this sad i would have reacted the same way u did. starting with tears in my eyes and asking so many questions. its really sad though.

hopefully the guy knows if he is her guy and i hope they find a way thru it.

na wa oo.

LG said...

UZEZI: so true...
GOD IS THE ONLY CURE.
*welcome back

LIGHTLY: dearie, it was so embarrasing, one minute she was o.k, d next minute, she was convulsing, hope her guy knos abt it n stands by her.
*how ur side?*

SOLOMONSYDELLE said...

why is everything supposedly caused by witchcraft or juju? epilepsy comes in so many forms with numerous triggers. If the person had access to better medication and education we all wouldn't be worried if na winchy winchy.

I respect Nigerian spirituality and religion, but I just wish we had better healthcare as it could save lives and help people with debilitating diseases manage to live reasonably normal lives. Just my 2 cents, sha...

How you dey?

Parakeet said...

Shame...one Sade girl in primary school had it and it was so terrible. She didnt have a lot of friends because everyone was scared. In Britain around the 19th century anyone who had epilepsy was more or less ostracised. it can be hereditary and has no cure. They never know when they're gonna have a fit but its often very manageable. Scientists are still unable to determine what really causes it. And no she's not cursed or anything, just a genetic disorder I think.

LG said...

MAMABOMBOY: dearie u ve said it all o, with improved n affordable health care system in 9ja, life ll definitely be better everyone

@winchy-winchy; everysickness na winch for lagos o even mosquito bite, na wa


PARAKEET: thanx dear, but i still dont want to believe it has no cure.
hope u r gud.

LG said...

DOJA: its very pathetic, even in dis 'century' of 'refinement.'
Welcome back

doll (retired blogger) said...

Hmmm I can imagine the scenario…unfortunately I don’t have answers…I don’t knw if it is hereditary, ogbanje, or wateva or if it has cure…(except of course divine healing…I know that for sure)

I had a friend (bunk mate) in secondary school who was plagued by this ailment and its really a terrible thing

LG said...

DOLL: My sista only GOD has d answers n like u said thru 'divine healing' ALL ailments are cured, i pray dat lady gets healed AMEN.
welcome back.

ibiluv said...

babe........
it aiint hereditary......
i have seen it happen....
she knows......her folks must also know....he may or may not know.....

but it doesnt change who she is.....afterall its like asthma....

it choses its victims.......she didnt get to choose.....

sad though.......cos na every ailment that peopel dont understand be ogbanje or witchcraft based for naija.........

NikkiSab said...

awww...dats so painful. poor gal. its painful.

LG said...

IB & NIKKY
my sistahs, na so we c am o.
IT IS WELL SHA

Smaragd said...

it's all been said.

according to HOUSE MD and Grey's Anatomy, epilepsy can definitely be managed, if not cured.

Allied said...

Warapa is just another common chronic neurological disorder and not an evil spirit. Nigerians always term what they don’t understand as an evil attack from ones enemy. It is just ignorance.

LG, I do want you to be aware that having a seizure does not classify one as epileptic, only when a person has had two or more seizures are they considered epileptic. These seizures are referred to as "Epileptic Seizures.

Warapa can be controlled with medication but not cured. It is generally not the kind of condition that gets worse with time and most adults who have it can expect to live a normal life span. Between seizures life goes on.

Sometimes Epilepsy is inherited but if one parent has Epilepsy the risk of the child developing it is so remote that most people can ignore it.

LG said...

SMARAGD: yep it can be managed IF the 'patient' is enlightened n not c as been 'cursed'
how u? shey u don update????


ALLIED: bahh why didnt i think of dat
..abeg i was just scared n confused, n i kept hearing 'warapa' well....
Thanx all d same
hope u r gud?

ShadeCrown said...

Na wa oh.. I feel sorry for the gurl but i knw theres nothing God cannot do. she shd move closer to God

Jennifer A. said...

LG, to answer ur question read Matthew 17:14-20 (I just found it off biblegateway.com).

Here, the boy's seizures were demonic. Therefore epileptic seizures could actually be demonic just like every other disease (but not always). Whether or not it is demonic is really not the matter, but the ultimatum is that God can heal a person of that disease...because every sickness is of the devil.

Jennifer A. said...

I really love the preciseness and accuracy of Uzezi's comment.

LG said...

SHA: i hope so too, thanx.
how u?

JAYCEE: I got it, thanx luv.

Dee said...

This is one topic I truly appreciate.

Like in most comments above, epilepsy is not demonic! It is just like any other long term sickness. Yes, we all say anything bad is fron the devil and his cohorts! But please epilepsy is not demonic. It is not hereditary. It does not spread by contact. In other words if you see a victim having epileptic fits it is alright to touch the person and render necessary first aid. Fear not, 'cos you would not get the disease.

On the issue of cure, only God Almighty has an answer to that. However, on the human angle, it can be controlled by taking the prescribed medications. Please note that these medications are only prescribed by specialists. Nobody suffering from this disease is allowed to TRY medications as such may complicate issues.

Please people lets learn to show some love to other people living with various ailments!

LG said...

DEE: finally... i tot u travelled ,

"Please people lets learn to show some love to other people living with various ailments!"

preach it sistah,
howz d fam??

Dee said...

LG I no travel o! I was just a little bit down. We are all fine. Thanks for your care!

LG said...

DEE: awww hope nothing serious o, God forbid.
have u seen ur doctor???? r u at home? abeg try not to stress ursef o.



take kia

Dee said...

Just checking and to say THANK YOU LG!

Buttercup said...

eeya...we really need the grace of God to protect us from such...poor her..

how u doin babe?