A Race Against Time at 2,500 Meters

Dear friends, dear sponsors of Back to Life,

Warm greetings on the February full moon, fittingly also called the ‘Snow Moon.’ The mountain villages of Mugu, in western Nepal, have been deep in snow for weeks.

In the remoteness of the Himalayas, the line between life and death is often as thin as the mountain air itself. That is exactly the line we stand on at Back to Life – every single day. For the women fighting to survive childbirth. And for the babies who need a miracle to live to see their first sunrise. Today I would like to tell you about one such miracle, named Gaurab.

Gaurab was born in the autumn of 2023 in the high mountains of Mugu, in our Jiuka birthing center, and was joyfully welcomed by his parents Nani and Manraj Thapa. But the joy quickly gave way to great fear: hours passed without the newborn being able to pass urine. His little body was poisoning itself. In this remote region, such a medical emergency is usually a death sentence. Our experienced midwives Laxmi and Sirjana recognized the danger immediately. They knew: without immediate, specialized medical help, this child would not survive the next few days.

What followed was a race against time. We organized a jeep – as close to Jiuka as the mountains allow. For the village lies at over 2,500 meters, with no road access at all. The father and three men carried the rescue stretcher with the mother and the newborn, but often the path was so narrow and steep that Nani had to walk herself. Finally they reached the vehicle and drove for five agonizingly long hours over bumpy mountain tracks to the airstrip at Kolti. When they arrived there, completely exhausted, it was the middle of the night. The parents watched over every breath of their son, fervently hoping he would live to see the morning. We knew it depended on the weather whether the small plane would be cleared to fly in the morning.

How Birthing-Center Sponsorships Save Lives

The parents were not alone in these difficult hours. Back to Life was at their side for support, and we brought them all the way to the life-saving hospital in the lowlands. There, the doctors immediately performed an emergency catheterization. The relief came at once. Gaurab’s life was saved for now.

But the treatment is not over with that. Children with a congenital urinary-tract obstruction need close medical care over many years. Regular kidney-function checks, ultrasound examinations and medical follow-up are necessary. In many cases, a targeted operation later follows to permanently remove the cause of the blockage and allow the child to grow up healthy.

For Gaurab’s parents, who are simple mountain farmers in Nepal’s poorest province, this is an impossible burden to bear, which is why we are supporting the family until Gaurab is old enough for the operation the specialists have recommended.

Give Support Where It Is Urgently Needed

With timely help and continuous care, children like Gaurab have a good chance of a normal, active life, even in the remote mountain regions. What matters is that they are not left alone – neither in the first critical hours nor in the years that follow.

This is exactly what Back to Life stands for: we stay by the families’ side, supporting them medically and personally – for as long as support is needed.

And you, dear friends, make this possible with your sponsorships, which save lives. For that I thank you from the bottom of my heart.

You are warmly welcome to get involved in one way or another:

To birthing-center sponsorship ➜

To a direct donation ➜

When you glance at the Snow Moon today, you will know that it is also shining down on Gaurab and his family,
Yours,

Stella Deetjen