Njambi Koikai: How 20-year battle with Endometriosis pushed me to politics

Radio presenter-turned-politician Njambi Koikai has opened up on her two-decade struggle with Endometriosis and Adenomyosis, which she says eventually led her to the path she is currently pursuing of politics.

Njambi narrated how the battle with the diseases that affect the female reproductive system saw her lose some friends, relationships, jobs, and even “some of my organs” along the way.

The Reggae MC, who is seeking the Dagoretti South MP seat on an independent ticket at next week’s polls, recounted how the disease eventually saw her seek treatment abroad thereby giving her time to think about the direction she wanted to take with her life.

She took to Instagram on Wednesday to post of photo of herself in a hospital bed, with a number of tubes inserted into her chest.

“The tubes in my chest in this picture were not all fixed in one day. It started with one chest tube, then the regular x-ray sessions the following morning showed I had some pockets of water in my lungs. I was taken in to the operating room and another chest tube was inserted,” she narrated.

“On the third day, the x-ray sessions showed more water up my ribs. Another chest tube added. Fourth day, same thing. Fifth day, my doctor walked in and said to me, 'Your chest is filled with tubes and we've found more fluid up closer to your breast. We can access that point by inserting a tube in your back'. I asked if they could insert the tubes on my chest so I can be able to lie on my back.”

She added: “I ended up with five tubes. The howling, growling and pumping of the tubes was nothing I ever imagined. My tiny body was drained, pumped with medication and emaciated.”

Njambi went ahead to recall how, to keep herself sane amidst all the procedures and the pain, she kept the hope that she would recover alive and pushed any negative thoughts to the back of her mind.

Fyah Mummah, as she is popularly known among the Reggae community, said thoughts about her family, community, and life’s purpose kept running through her mind the whole time.

This, she added, was how the idea of giving back was born, and she committed to fully get into it as soon as she recovered and was back home.

“I never cried. Instead I was caught up in thought. The prospects of surviving this were not very promising and every single day presented itself with new challenges. I knew that the only thing I had to do was to stay positive and cancel any negativity. I thought about my life and the multi-faceted dynamics I've had to experience. I thought about my family and my community,” she wrote.

“This space of pain gave me more time to recoup my life's purpose and I made a commitment to God and myself that when I survive I will go back and serve the community I was born and raised in.”

She further added: “Getting into elective politics has not been easy but it's a defining moment for young people like me. It's five days to the election and I cannot believe we've made it this far. This is a monumental election for us to be the change we want to see in our communities.”

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