From a Bible and a Koran to bless her, a contribution as low as ₹500 to services of a free Arabic translator, help and good wishes in all forms are pouring in for Eman Ahmed Abdelaty, the heaviest woman in the world currently under treatment at Saifee Hospital. The gritty 36-year-old, who weighed 500 kg, is losing at least two kilos every day after being put on a stringent medication regime that involves getting rid of water retention.
Her doctor, bariatric surgeon Dr. Muffazal Lakdawala who facilitated Ms. Ahmed’s trip to the city from Alexandria, Egypt says he gets at least 500 WhatsApp and Facebook messages every day from people who simply want to enquire about her. “And then there are people who send wishes in unique ways,” he said, citing an example of a Bible that was sent from Hebbal, Bangalore with a ₹500 note and a note that said, “Let my lord heal you completely. Praying for you”. The note, though, was a demonetised one.
A city-based businessman has also offered to translate from Arabic to English for Ms. Ahmed. “I am not a translator but I want to offer my services for your good cause. I can assist purely on humanitarian grounds as I speak the Egyptian Arabic dialect and English fluently,” he said in his letter.
The hospital has also received several letters, many of them in Hindi. “Eman and her sister Shaaima don’t know Hindi, so we have read some of the letters to her sister, and she was very touched. We have also responded to a letter that came from Amravati with due permission from Shaimaa,” said Saifee Hospital’s COO, Huzaifa Shehabi. “Every other person who meets or messages me wants to know how Eman is doing, as if they are asking about my brother or sister,” he said.
Ms. Ahmed has also received a Koran from the religious head of the Dawoodi Bohra community, Syedna Mufaddal Saifuddin. His wife had also Ms. Ahmed last week.
‘People full of kindness’
“Every second person is so concerned about my sister. It is extremely touching to see so much kindness,” said Shaimaa, 34, who has started working out at the Saifee Hospital’s gymnasium to kill time. Shaimaa is keen that her sister be treated in Egypt, but the first choice of all doctors who visited their Alexandria home for consultation spoke about surgery. “Deep inside, I knew that if Eman is operated directly, she will never make it out of the operation theatre. When I contacted Dr. Lakdawala, he said surgery will be the last option and many other things will need to be done first.”
Shaimaa has been allotted a tiny room near the special one made for Ms. Ahmed, outfitted with a fridge, TV, an attached bathroom and other basic amenities. The entrance to the two-storey building is secured 24/7 by half-a-dozen guards. Visitors are not allowed cell phones to ensure privacy. Other patients and their relatives who ask to see Ms. Ahmed are politely turned away.
Water loss for weight loss
At the hospital, Ms. Ahmed’s daily intake of fluid is 2,000 ml, while she passes nearly 3.5 litres of urine. In cases like these, water loss leads to weight loss, says Dr. Lakdawala, and a litre of water lost equals about 1.5 kg of weight lost. This way, Ms. Ahmed is said to have lost more than 35 kg. Dr. Lakdawala is awaiting the genetic test reports, after which he will finalise her treatment plan. “Three of the world best genetists are helping us out with her case,” he said.