Pooja
by Anu

Pooja was diagnosed with Vitiligo, when she was 6 years old. We were devastated. It was very hard on us, as parents we spent countless hours reading research and finding specialists. As you already know, there are few dermatologists, who will take Vitiligo seriously, and even fewer who specialize in the field.

We did take Pooja to several dermatologists, first in an attempt to accurately diagnose it. Once they did confirm that it was Vitiligo, we saw a doctor, who comes highly recommended in the field. The doctor was very kind and squeezed us into her very tight schedule. The treatment involved use of steroids, and we as parents were very uncomfortable with steroid use on such a young child.

At the same time, my in-laws, who live in India, were telling us about Unnani treatment for Vitiligo that was being researched and practiced in India. This program is solely funded by the Govt. of India. Even though at that time, we were very unsure about trying non-traditional medicine, we decided to pursue the Unnani treatment. Our decision to use Unnani was made easier, because the treatment here was just as experimental and did not guarantee any success.

The medications were not child friendly did not taste or feel nice. As much as Pooja hated them and whined about them, we pursued using them. I admire her every day for all that she has put up with. She had to give up some of her favorite foods, take medications several times and day. Pooja has been a real trooper during this whole experience. The medicine has helped and regimented all the affected parts on her face and is slowly re-pigmenting her knees.

We don’t know what the future holds, but for the present, we feel very blessed that we have a beautiful, intelligent, smart and kind daughter. We feel fortunate that she has friends, family, teachers and neighbors who respect and love her for who she is. We feel fortunate that she does not have a disease that is life threatening.

Like I said earlier, we don’t know what the future holds, we do know that we will handle it. Having the opportunity to be involved with the AVRF has been a blessing. We have been able to channel our efforts in a positive way and the AVRF has taught us to deal with vitiligo emotionally. For that we will be forever grateful.

By Pooja’s Mother,Anu

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