Features
Azoospermia; the ‘sperm-less’ journey to fatherhood
In the rural setting, a man’s manhood is figuratively likened to a hunting gun.
Like a hunter, it is believed that a man’s greatest asset in the bedroom is the gun with which he is expected to shoot a game; in this case, satisfy a woman sexually and most importantly get her pregnant.
Therefore, when a man is unable to do either of these especially the latter, it is said that “Abanagye ne tuo” an Akan expression which literary translates as “the state has confiscated his gun.” At this point, the man is deemed inept in the bedroom.
Peddlers of sex enhancement drugs have gained notoriety for using this expression in their commercials which are blared on moving vans in town and until recently, on radio and TV.
In the quest of some men to reclaim their supposed figurative guns from the state, and avoid the stigma that comes with their condition, they have gone out of their way.
Kofi Darko (not real name) is one of such men. He is a 35 year old driver. In his case his wife, a teacher, whom I would refer to as Ama can vouch for his stellar sexual performance since they married four years ago.
However, instead of her womb being filled with a growing foetus, her heart has rather been filled with hope that her husband would be healed from a medical condition called Azoospermia.
The condition
According to Stanford Health Care, one of the leading health facilities in the United States, which specialises in Azoospermia treatment, the condition is the absence of measurable sperm in a man’s semen.
In its profile of infertility conditions online, it states that the lack of sperm in the semen could be due to blockage of the male genital system although there is completely normal sperm production. This is called obstructive Azoospermia.
The condition is termed non-obstructive Azoospermia when it is as the result of poor sperm production.
Per the hospital’s website, Azoospermia is one of the major causes of male infertility and is found in five to 10 per cent of men evaluated for infertility. The condition may be present at birth or may develop later in life.
The discovery
Kofi and Ama learnt of the condition when they both visited a health facility after four months of not getting pregnant. The visit to the hospital became necessary after she did not get the desired results from herbal medicine.
“I was very shocked when I found out about my husband’s condition. I was shattered when I googled and I realised there was no cure”, she said while trying hard to fight back her tears.
It was a bitter memory to flash back. But that was just one scene of their predicaments for their search for a solution led them into more problems.
Spiritual solution to biological problem
Due to lack of financial strength to pursue the various options for child birth, they resorted to spiritual solution to a biological problem by visiting different pastors.
Kofi was made to consume all sort of concoctions, adhere to all manner of spiritual directions and part with varying sums of money. One pastor even wanted to impregnate his wife on his behalf.
“I get infuriated when I hear about pastors who claim they can help couples to deliver. One took my money for oil and later told me the oil bottle fell and broke so I have to pay again. Another wanted to sleep with my wife”, he said.
The stigma and teasing
According to Kofi, he had gone through all these trouble because he could no longer bear the stigmatisation and the teasing from close associates.
“I try to avoid the company of my colleague drivers because they tease and ask me if my manhood works. They feel that they are only playing with me but sometimes I feel so hurt and close and go home.
“It has been a painful experience and try as I have to brush it off, I find myself thinking about it over and over again. If I had just one child, I know all these will end”, he lamented.
According to Ama, the stigma is affecting their sexual life since Kofi is of the view that once he cannot make her pregnant, there is no point in having sex.
“He does not seem to enjoy the experience any longer and he does it just to please me. It is not the same as a few months ago. ”, she said.
Treatment
Back to the Stanford website, treatment for Azoospermia depends on the type. For obstructive Azoospermia, surgery could often fix blocked tubes in a man’s reproductive tract or make connections that never developed because of congenital defects.
For non-obstructive Azoospermia, advanced treatments could help men with that condition to experience the return of sperm to their semen and aid unassisted conception.
All not lost
But if both ways do not work, Dr Maryann Zuolo, a medical doctor at Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, says, there are several ways they could have children.
“There are options like invitro fertilisation (IVF) which helps with fertilisation, embryo development, and implantation, so you can get pregnant. There is surrogacy too. A couple having problems should not think all is lost”, she said.
The cost of IVF ranges between GH¢15,000 –GH¢ 40,000. Sadly,Kofi cannot afford it.The only currency he can afford now is the hope that his sperm-less journey to fatherhood will end.
As Member of Parliament for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa recently advocated, parliament should consider a legislation which would make Assisted Reproductive Technologies affordable and convenient for Ghanaians.
While we wait for that time, we have a duty to support and not stigmatise childless couples.
Fatherhood/samba/Ayoo/21/06/2020
Azoospermia; the ‘sperm-less’ journey to fatherhood
BY JONATHAN DONKOR
In the rural setting, a man’s manhood is figuratively likened to a hunting gun.
Like a hunter, it is believed that a man’s greatest asset in the bedroom is the gun with which he is expected to shoot a game; in this case, satisfy a woman sexually and most importantly get her pregnant.
Therefore, when a man is unable to do either of these especially the latter, it is said that “Abanagye ne tuo” an Akan expression which literary translates as “the state has confiscated his gun.” At this point, the man is deemed inept in the bedroom.
Peddlers of sex enhancement drugs have gained notoriety for using this expression in their commercials which are blared on moving vans in town and until recently, on radio and TV.
In the quest of some men to reclaim their supposed figurative guns from the state, and avoid the stigma that comes with their condition, they have gone out of their way.
Kofi Darko (not real name) is one of such men. He is a 35 year old driver. In his case his wife, a teacher, whom I would refer to as Ama can vouch for his stellar sexual performance since they married four years ago.
However, instead of her womb being filled with a growing foetus, her heart has rather been filled with hope that her husband would be healed from a medical condition called Azoospermia.
The condition
According to Stanford Health Care, one of the leading health facilities in the United States, which specialises in Azoospermia treatment, the condition is the absence of measurable sperm in a man’s semen.
In its profile of infertility conditions online, it states that the lack of sperm in the semen could be due to blockage of the male genital system although there is completely normal sperm production. This is called obstructive Azoospermia.
The condition is termed non-obstructive Azoospermia when it is as the result of poor sperm production.
Per the hospital’s website, Azoospermia is one of the major causes of male infertility and is found in five to 10 per cent of men evaluated for infertility. The condition may be present at birth or may develop later in life.
The discovery
Kofi and Ama learnt of the condition when they both visited a health facility after four months of not getting pregnant. The visit to the hospital became necessary after she did not get the desired results from herbal medicine.
“I was very shocked when I found out about my husband’s condition. I was shattered when I googled and I realised there was no cure”, she said while trying hard to fight back her tears.
It was a bitter memory to flash back. But that was just one scene of their predicaments for their search for a solution led them into more problems.
Spiritual solution to biological problem
Due to lack of financial strength to pursue the various options for child birth, they resorted to spiritual solution to a biological problem by visiting different pastors.
Kofi was made to consume all sort of concoctions, adhere to all manner of spiritual directions and part with varying sums of money. One pastor even wanted to impregnate his wife on his behalf.
“I get infuriated when I hear about pastors who claim they can help couples to deliver. One took my money for oil and later told me the oil bottle fell and broke so I have to pay again. Another wanted to sleep with my wife”, he said.
The stigma and teasing
According to Kofi, he had gone through all these trouble because he could no longer bear the stigmatisation and the teasing from close associates.
“I try to avoid the company of my colleague drivers because they tease and ask me if my manhood works. They feel that they are only playing with me but sometimes I feel so hurt and close and go home.
“It has been a painful experience and try as I have to brush it off, I find myself thinking about it over and over again. If I had just one child, I know all these will end”, he lamented.
According to Ama, the stigma is affecting their sexual life since Kofi is of the view that once he cannot make her pregnant, there is no point in having sex.
“He does not seem to enjoy the experience any longer and he does it just to please me. It is not the same as a few months ago. ”, she said.
Treatment
Back to the Stanford website, treatment for Azoospermia depends on the type. For obstructive Azoospermia, surgery could often fix blocked tubes in a man’s reproductive tract or make connections that never developed because of congenital defects.
For non-obstructive Azoospermia, advanced treatments could help men with that condition to experience the return of sperm to their semen and aid unassisted conception.
All not lost
But if both ways do not work, Dr Maryann Zuolo, a medical doctor at Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, says, there are several ways they could have children.
“There are options like invitro fertilisation (IVF) which helps with fertilisation, embryo development, and implantation, so you can get pregnant. There is surrogacy too. A couple having problems should not think all is lost”, she said.
The cost of IVF ranges between GH¢15,000 –GH¢ 40,000. Sadly,Kofi cannot afford it.The only currency he can afford now is the hope that his sperm-less journey to fatherhood will end.
As Member of Parliament for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa recently advocated, parliament should consider a legislation which would make Assisted Reproductive Technologies affordable and convenient for Ghanaians.
While we wait for that time, we have a duty to support and not stigmatise childless couples.
Source: Ghanaian Times
Features
Tears of Ghanaman, home and abroad
The typical native of Sikaman is by nature a hospitable creature, a social animal with a big heart, a soul full of the milk of earthly goodness, and a spirit too loving for its own comfort.
Ghanaman hosts a foreign pal and he spends a fortune to make him very happy and comfortable-good food, clean booze, excellent accommodation and a woman for the night.
Sometimes the pal leaves without saying a “thank you but Ghanaman is not offended. He’d host another idiot even more splendidly. His nature is warm, his spirit benevolent. That is the typical Ghanaian and no wonder that many African-Americans say, “If you haven’t visited Ghana. Then you’ve not come to Africa.
You can even enter the country without a passport and a visa and you’ll be welcomed with a pot of palm wine.
If Ghanaman wants to go abroad, especially to an European country or the United States, it is often after an ordeal.
He has to doze in a queue at dawn at the embassy for days and if he is lucky to get through to being interviewed, he is confronted by someone who claims he or she has the power of discerning truth from lie.
In short Ghanaman must undergo a lie-detector test and has to answer questions that are either nonsensical or have no relevance to the trip at hand. When Joseph Kwame Korkorti wanted a visa to an European country, the attache studied Korkorti’s nose for a while and pronounced judgment.
“The way I see you, you won’t return to Ghana if I allow you to go. Korkorti nearly dislocated her jaw; Kwasiasem akwaakwa. In any case what had Korkorti’s nose got to do with the trip?
If Ghanaman, after several attempts, manages to get the visa and lands in the whiteman’s land, he is seen as another monkey uptown, a new arrival of a degenerate ape coming to invade civilized society. He is sneered at, mocked at and avoided like a plague. Some landlords abroad will not hire their rooms to blacks because they feel their presence in itself is bad business.
When a Sikaman publisher landed overseas and was riding in a public bus, an urchin who had the impudence and notoriety of a dead cockroach told his colleagues he was sure the black man had a tail which he was hiding in his pair of trousers. He didn’t end there. He said he was in fact going to pull out the tail for everyone to see.
True to his word he went and put his hand into the backside of the bewildered publisher, intent on grabbing his imaginary tail and pulling it out. It took a lot of patience on the part of the publisher to avert murder. He practically pinned the white miscreant on the floor by the neck and only let go when others intervene. Next time too…
The way we treat our foreign guests in comparison with the way they treat us is polar contrasting-two disparate extremes, one totally incomparable to the other. They hound us for immigration papers, deport us for overstaying and skinheads either target homes to perpetrate mayhem or attack black immigrants to gratify their racial madness
When these same people come here we accept them even more hospitably than our own kin. They enter without visas, overstay, impregnate our women and run away.
About half of foreigners in this country do not have valid resident permits and was not a bother until recently when fire was put under the buttocks of the Immigration Service
In fact, until recently I never knew Sikaman had an Immigration Service. The problem is that although their staff look resplendent in their green outfit, you never really see them anywhere. You’d think they are hidden from the public eye.
The first time I saw a group of them walking somewhere, I nearly mistook them for some sixth-form going to the library. Their ladies are pretty though.
So after all, Sikaman has an Immigration Service which I hear is now alert 24 hours a day tracking down illegal aliens and making sure they bound the exit via Kotoka International. A pat on their shoulder.
I am glad the Interior Ministry has also realised that the country has been too slack about who goes out or comes into Sikaman.
Now the Ministry has warned foreigners not to take the country’s commitment to its obligations under the various conditions as a sign of weakness or a source for the abuse of her hospitality.
“Ghana will not tolerate any such abuse,” Nii Okaija Adamafio, the Interior Minister said, baring his teeth and twitching his little moustache. He was inaugurating the Ghana Refugee and Immigration Service Boards.
He said some foreigners come in as tourists, investors, consultants, skilled workers or refugees. Others come as ‘charlatans, adventurers or plain criminals. “
Yes, there are many criminals among them. Our courts have tried a good number of them for fraud and misconduct.
It is time we welcome only those who would come and invest or tour and go back peacefully and not those whose criminal intentions are well-hidden but get exposed in due course of time.
This article was first published on Saturday March 14, 1998
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Features
Decisions have consequences
In this world, it is always important to recognise that every action or decision taken, has consequences.
It can result in something good or bad, depending on the quality of the decision, that is, the factors that were taken into account in the decision making.
The problem with a bad decision is that, in some instances, there is no opportunity to correct the result even though you have regretted the decision, which resulted in the unpleasant outcome.
This is what a friend of mine refers to as having regretted an unregretable regret. After church last Sunday, I was watching a programme on TV and a young lady was sharing with the host, how a bad decision she took, had affected her life immensely and adversely.
She narrated how she met a Caucasian and she got married to him. The white man arranged for her to join him after the marriage and processes were initiated for her to join her husband in UK. It took a while for the requisite documentation to be procured and during this period, she took a decision that has haunted her till date.
According to her narration, she met a man, a Ghanaian, who she started dating, even though she was a married woman.
After a while her documents were ready and so she left to join her husband abroad without breaking off the unholy relationship with the man from Ghana.
After she got to UK, this man from Ghana, kept pressuring her to leave the white man and return to him in Ghana. The white man at some point became a bit suspicious and asked about who she has been talking on the phone with for long spells, and she lied to him that it was her cousin.
Then comes the shocker. After the man from Ghana had sweet talked her continuously for a while, she decided to leave her husband and return to Ghana after only three weeks abroad.
She said, she asked the guy to swear to her that he would take care of both her and her mother and the guy swore to take good care of her and her mother as well as rent a 3-bedroom flat for her. She then took the decision to leave her husband and return to Ghana.
She told her mum that she was returning to Ghana to marry the guy in Ghana. According to her, her mother vigorously disagreed with her decision and wept.
She further added that her mum told her brother and they told her that they were going to tell her husband about her intentions.
According to her, she threatened that if they called her husband to inform him, then she would commit suicide, an idea given to her by the boyfriend in Ghana.
Her mum and brother afraid of what she might do, agreed not to tell her husband. She then told her husband that she was returning to Ghana to attend her Grandmother’s funeral.
The husband could not understand why she wanted to go back to Ghana after only three weeks stay so she had to lie that in their tradition, grandchildren are required to be present when the grandmother dies and is to be buried.
She returned to Ghana; the flat turns into a chamber and hall accommodation, the promise to take care of her mother does not materialise and generally she ends up furnishing the accommodation herself. All the promises given her by her boyfriend, turned out to be just mere words.
A phone the husband gave her, she left behind in UK out of guilty conscience knowing she was never coming back to UK.
Through that phone and social media, the husband found out about his boyfriend and that was the end of her marriage.
Meanwhile, things have gone awry here in Ghana and she had regretted and at a point in her narration, was trying desperately to hold back tears. Decisions indeed have consequences.
NB: ‘CHANGE KOTOKA INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT TO KOFI BAAKO INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT’
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