Cory's Experience With Malaria

My daughter Cory shares her experience with malaria that she contracted in Madagascar. April 25 was World Malaria Day to remember the people that are suffering with this disease throughout the world.
I not only have a heart for Africa but also a big connection, as well as malaria. Since I lived in Madagascar, Africa for many years, I was infected with malaria, more than once.
Let me share my story...I lived in Madagascar, Africa for close to nine years as a missionary with Youth With A Mission (YWAM).
I was over there in 1999, starting out as a long term missionary after a summer trip in 1997.
I first got malaria in October of 1999, when I was on an outreach with a group of Malagasy's. My symptoms just started
out as a normal cold, but than it got worse over time, and the symptoms increased. After the head cold symptoms, the n I was
hot then cold, dizzy, nauseated, loss of appetite and extremely weak...that's what I can remember anyways. I finally was able
to see a doctor and they knew right away that I had malaria. I was put on medication right and had to have three shots,
once a day. The medicine was okay, but when it came to the shots...OUCH!
I figured that I had gotten bitten on the previous outreach, as there were many mosquitos that we had to 'fight off'. Also, with
a strong change in the weather, it just made it all worse.
It took a while before I got better, as I was really weak. I also had some weird side effects for a while from the shots.
Once infected with malaria, it's in your blood. It can become dormant at times and then comes back again and attacks the body.
The following year, around April, just a few weeks before my birthday, I got sick with malaria for the second
time. I was actually planning on going home in June of that year, and with this case of malaria worse than the first, I was
given the option of going home early.
This time of Malaria was worse as I could hardly keep anything down, and I wasn't even able to feed myself. I had the
similar symptoms as the first time, but just a worse case of it. I was so grateful and blessed to have a 'family' in
Madagascar who 'took me in' and took care of me. One night though (I remember as if it were yesterday), I was so sick,
I was about ready to go to the hospital. It had just gotten so bad, I really  thought that was my last night. I was prayed
over and the following morning I started to feel better and day by day my health improved. It took time though to really regain my strength. After some time though, it came back.
As I said earlier, malaria can come back. Less than two years later I came down with malaria again. This time it
wasn't as bad as the first two though. I started to get the symptoms again and I saw a doctor. I was put on medication, got a
couple shots and I was told that if the medicine didn't work, I would have to be admitted to the hospital. Of course I freaked out, who would want to go to the hospital...so I prayed! I got better from the medicine and the shots, and regained lost strength over time.
I don't know why or how I got malaria the first time--if the medicine that I was on didn't work, or because I might have
missed a couple pills (Oops)...but malaria is real and it's not just a bite from the mosquito, but a deadly disease.