The HI Rehabilitation Officer provides strengthening exercises to Karim at the hospital center | © HI
The HI Rehabilitation Officer provides strengthening exercises to Karim at the hospital center | © HI
Karim, a newly married young man from Tula Toli in Rajapalong Union, worked as a day laborer, collecting firewood near the Bangladesh-Myanmar border. One morning in January 2025, while on his usual route, he stepped on a landmine. The explosion tore through his leg and his world.
The days that followed were filled with both physical and emotional pain. Karim was moved between hospitals: MSF, Cox’s Bazar Sadar, and then Chittagong Medical College. He underwent four surgeries due to severe infection. For over a month, he lay in a hospital bed, entirely dependent on others.
“I couldn’t do anything on my own. Bathing, eating, and even going to the toilet. I needed help for everything,” Karim says. “I felt like a burden.”
But things began to shift when MSF referred him to Handicap International (HI), whose rehabilitation team worked at the same hospital. Around the same time, a neighbor who is also an amputee shared how HI helped him regain the ability to walk. That gave Karim hope.
Karim joined the HI program in February 2025, embarking on a journey he never thought was possible.
“That landmine took my leg, but not my spirit. HI helped me stand again with courage, not just crutches.”
Over the next few months, he received 10 rehabilitation sessions, including pre-prosthetic therapy. These sessions involved strengthening exercises, proper positioning, massage, and therapeutic bandaging. He was provided with auxiliary crutches to help him walk and a toilet chair to regain dignity in managing personal hygiene.
“Little by little, I started doing things again, washing myself, dressing, walking with crutches. Even small steps felt like victories,” Karim smiles.
Today, Karim has made remarkable progress. His leg stump has healed, and his muscles have regained strength. He is now ready to receive a prosthetic leg, which will allow him to walk again without support.
But Karim’s dreams don’t stop here.
“I want to work again. I want to support my wife and my family. I don’t want pity, I want purpose. With HI’s help, I believe I can get there.”
HI’s Project Inclusive Specialized Services for Vulnerable Persons, Including Persons with Disabilities in Cox’s Bazar, is funded by the U.S. Department of State Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (PRM)
