Wolaytie has “emerged victorious”

Without the compassion and generosity of people like you, many women like Wolaytie would still be hidden away, silently suffering in pain and shame with debilitating obstetric fistula injuries. This is Wolaytie’s incredible story of resilience and transformation.

Wolaytie grew up in a remote village in the Semenari Woreda of southern Ethiopia as the daughter of a farmer. After getting married, Wolaytie was happy to find out she was pregnant. Due to the remoteness of her home, she could not access antenatal healthcare during her pregnancy and planned to give birth at home with the assistance of a traditional birth attendant. 

But after five agonizing days in an obstructed labor, Wolaytie was carried on a homemade stretcher to the nearest health center where, barely alive herself, she was told her baby was stillborn. 

In critical condition, Wolaytie’s family paid for an ambulance to transport her to the nearest hospital where her baby was surgically removed. Soon afterwards, still grieving the loss of her baby, Wolaytie began leaking urine and feces. Fortunately, her husband stood by her but her community shunned her. She told us:

“I lived with the urine incontinence for 17 years. For years, people spoke behind my back, saying I smelled of urine. They avoided coming to my home and refused to eat what I cooked. I felt too ashamed to visit others. Even at church, people would leave fearing they might be cursed. I was stigmatized and despised and lived a life filled with tears and embarrassment.”

Wolaytie had no idea there was a cure until the Hamlin Fistula Ethiopia team arrived in her village, searching for women with untreated childbirth injuries. After initial treatment at Hamlin’s Yirgalem Fistula Hospital Wolaytie was referred to Hamlin’s Addis Ababa Hospital due to the complexity of her injuries. There, she was finally cured. 

“I feel like my enemy has been defeated, and I have emerged victorious. I am determined to change my life.” - Wolaytie

Wolaytie’s recovery continued at Desta Mender rehabilitation and reintegration center, where she took courses in dairy and poultry farming, animal husbandry and agriculture as well as handicrafts, pottery and numeracy and literacy. Wolaytie recalls:

“The training is excellent and everything is provided for us, including a variety of meals every day. Even those who cannot read or write receive literacy education, and everyone learns how to sign their names. I plan to buy a cow and produce dairy products. I also want to raise a calf. I aim to be productive and helpful not only for my family but also for my neighbors. I aspire to become a vendor as well.

For 17 years, I was unable to do anything due to the fistula and my isolation. I struggled to sleep well, but now I can sleep peacefully without worries. Once, I was stigmatized and despised, but now everyone talks to me and engages in social activities with me. I can eat whatever I want, and I feel truly free.”

“My village is situated in a jungle, making it difficult to access. Yet, the staff travelled through mud and rough terrain to help us recover.

I once thought no one cared for me but these wonderful people [the Hamlin team] came to find me. They provided us with support wholeheartedly and with love.

I will do my best to make Emaye (Catherine Hamlin) proud. She stood up for women like us when others turned away. She was like a mother to us.”.