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Ngae Lay

Ngae Lay first noticed her thyroid problem when she was nine.  However, when she lived in Burma she could not get treatment and her father used traditional medicine to treat her.  When she was 19 she moved to Thailand to find work.  At this time, her friend at the factory she worked in told her about Mae Tao Clinic (MTC).  She came to the clinic and had blood tests.  The clinic gave her some medicine for her condition.  She comes back to the clinic regularly for medicine, but the clinic does not have the facilities to remove her goiter and can only alleviate the symptoms with medication.

Ngae Lay says that she feels tired all the time and that she is often short of breath.  She says her illness affects her work, she works in a sewing factory and she cannot hold her head up to work and she gets a stiff neck.  In the past, she has had two miscarriages, because of her condition she is unable to carry a baby to term.  Recently, she has had difficulty swallowing and anything she eats or drinks comes back out through her nose.  

Ngae Lay’s mother died giving birth to her and she lived in Burma alone with her father until she was 19.  However, she could not earn much money in Burma and so came to Thailand to find work.  She sends money back to her father in Burma each month.  

Ngae Lay met her husband in Thailand.  They both work in a factory in Mae Sot.  When she works in the factory she used to earn 2500-3000 baht (US$ 71-85)/month, however lately, due to her illness, she has been unable to work as much and only gets around 1800 baht (US$ 51)/month.  Her employer allows her a couple of days off for her illness, but has said if she takes too much time off she will lose her job.  Her husband earns 2500 baht (US$71)/month.  She says, even though they cannot afford it, she has asked her husband if she can stop working as it is becoming too difficult for her.

She says that she hopes in the future she can get better.  She says if she is well she hopes to continue working so that she can save enough money to have a child.  Her dream is to get pregnant and carry her baby to term.