Frustrated woman's pregnancy belly finally disappears
Thuto Ratau (34) of Raserura ward in Mochudi is healed from her bulging tummy that made her look like she was pregnant, eating away all her confidence.
She recently underwent a successful surgery and is happy to have her beautiful body figure back after years of pain and begging for help.
In 2022, Ratau went to the clinic after realising that she was pregnant. At the clinic, she was told that she had fibroids and they needed to be removed. She was referred to the hospital for further assessments and at six months pregnant, doctors advised that the fibroids be removed during birth or after to prevent complications.
Her tummy never went back to normal size after she gave birth and she was in and out of hospital, sometimes in excruciating pain. The process leading to her finally getting help was painfully long for her liking. At one point, she publicly complained of not getting the help she wanted and being sent from pillar to post at Princess Marina Referral Hospital in Gaborone.
Ratau recalls that the pain she was in made her appear impatient, she was always groaning in pain and was forced to let go of her job. She struggled to sleep at night; she could not lie on one side and then turn to the other with ease. She even went to the limits of reaching out to the Minister of Health, Dr Edwin Dikoloti, as the pain drove her to knock on every door.
At Marina, they informed her that she had a nagging heart problem and suspected that the surgery would be risky if they carelessly go ahead with it, they feared that she might die in the process. The hospital at the time promised that they woud do everything to assist Ratau, advising that she will have to be patient and see cardiologists for her heart problem so that doctors are able to carry out a successful operation.
Ratau is happy that although the surgery was life threatening, it went on successfully and her life has been restored. She is now happy that she is able to fend for herself and put food on the table.