The girl from the basin: the story of a Nigerian woman with the head of an adult woman and the body of a baby

Rahma Haruna from Nigeria was a bright, cheerful girl who dreamed of opening her own store one day. But she suffered from an unknown disease: her limbs did not develop and she was in constant pain. Because of her defect, the girl lived in a plastic basin. On December 27, 2016, Rahma died.

We want to tell you about this amazing girl.

19-year-old Rahma from Kano was born healthy, but when she turned six months old, she suddenly stopped growing and her body stopped developing normally. Her mother Fadi says: "From the age of six months, when she began to sit, everything began. She never learned to crawl. At first she had a high fever, and nothing else. Then — abdominal pain. Then the body parts, arms and legs ached. She can't move them if she's in pain."

Rahma's family did everything possible to provide the girl with a full life, and transported her around the village in a plastic basin. Rahma said, "They help me a lot. How do they do it? They give me everything I need." The girl was very friendly with her ten-year-old brother Fahad, who dearly loved his older sister. "I help her in many ways. For example, I bathe her. And I take them for a walk every day," the boy said. "I am happy when I see how people help her. I like to take her to relatives. She is very happy when we visit them," the girl's brother added.

The cause of Rahma's illness is unknown, despite the fact that her family has put a lot of effort into making a diagnosis. Rahma Hussaini 's father explains: "I spent 15 years looking for a cure. I farm, trade in the market and do a lot of other things to earn money for its maintenance. I sold almost everything I had. To date, I have spent more than a million naira (3.5 thousand dollars). Only God knows how much I actually spent."

Doctors were confused by Rahma's defect, and some even claimed that the girl was bewitched by a jinn, a spirit in Islamic mythology. Her family hoped that a charity organization or a medical specialist would pay attention to their case, which could alleviate the girl's daily pain.

When the local press wrote about Rahma, and the girl received several generous gifts. The first of them was a wheelchair, which greatly helped Rahma and her family.

Rahma's mother says: "One day we went to the supermarket and met a man who bought her a stroller. He took a picture of us, and this picture was published in local newspapers. Since then, we have been receiving help from people."

Despite the daily difficulties that Rahma faced, the girl was full of hope for the future and the fulfillment of her dreams. She wanted to open her own store. "I thank God for everything I do. I want to start my own business. A grocery store with everything you need —that's what I want."