“10 months ago, I woke up to find that I couldn’t move my hands and legs. The doctor diagnosed me with GBS syndrome, where the peripheral nervous system shuts down without prior symptoms. I was paralyzed the neck down and spent 45 days in the hospital. It was not until distant relatives started showing up and crying that it dawned on me that this was it. I was going to die. It’s hard to describe the feeling. It’s like you have so much to say but you really cannot gather everything and fit it for words. The doctors had given their final word. A few weeks, a few months maybe. But as days passed, I slowly started to recover. It was nothing short of a miracle. Today, after 10 months I can move around with minimum help. I can type and I have even started working a few hours a day. We never know what is going to happen in life and we act like we have figured it out. Today, I just smile and accept everything that happens, both good or bad.”

– Tara Devkota Poudel, Met her in Bagbazaar, Kathmandu