Miriam

Ethiopia
Bow legs

This is Mariam from Ethiopia.

Soon after she was born, Mariam legs began to bow. Her village thought she was cursed and they used to cross themselves when they saw her. For this reason Mariam’s mother way was forced to hide her in their home.

After visiting several hospitals Mariam’s mother was told to expose her daughter to the sunlight – this method was thought to heal her bow legs. Mariam’s mother did as she was told, but after trying this for months she did not see any changes.

One day as Mariam was lying out in the sun, a stranger walked past and told her mother about the CURE hospital in Addis Ababa and that they could help her daughter. Mariam’s mother took her straight to CURE Ethiopia.

Whilst at CURE, Miriam received life-changing surgery to correct her bow legs. She is now able to run around, play with her friends and is no longer scorned by her community.