Compos Mentis (AMSUL Digest 2017) by Association of Medical Students University of Lagos

aMsul aMs D gest

NOVEMBER 2017

A BALANCE OF STORIES Single stories are not lies. But they are a misrepresentation of any community

THE HITCHHIKER’S GUIDE TO DATING ON A BUDGET Not having 30 billion in the account doesn’t mean you can’t have a fun date in Lagos.

SPEAK OUT It’s OK to not be OK. Bassey Ikpi breaks the norm on mental health awareness and stigma

#notKolo No one is immune against a mental health challenge. Why the stigma?

U.G.L.Y. Like the saying goes, “Monkey no ﬁne but him mama like am”

COMPOS MENTIS “of sound mind”

A PUBLICATION OF THE ASSOCIATION OF MEDICAL STUDENTS UNIVERSITY OF LAGOS 2017

SEYE SHANIYI | 200L

BOLANLE OYEBOLA | 500L

Photography: Shina Oyeleye @seno030 Body art: Fisola Faroun @ďŹ s_ola and Ileri Lawal @ileri_lawal Make up: Tomisin @_Tommiie_

2017 FACE OF AMSUL

CONTENTS

NOVEMBER 2017

EDITORIAL 2

COMPOS MENTIS

FEATURES A BALANCE OF STORIES

The 2017 Digest turns its focus on Mental Health. We take on the challenges of having a sound mind with breath-taking articles and visuals.

Stereotypes classify people and put them in boxes creating an unfair narrative that stiﬂes a more robust representation.

INTERVIEW 12

DEATH IN THE POT

SPEAK OUT

When it comes to food, what you see is not necessarily what you get. There is a huge difference between good food and good-looking food.

BASSEY IKPI Writer, Poet, Mental Health Survivor and Advocate. Bassey speaks out on her journey through bipolar disorder and her advocacy to end the stigma on mental health challenges.

FRACTURED DREAMS

BE ALL YOU WANT TO BE

Medical training is tough to ensure that only the best minds get to succeed. But what happens to your mind when you fail?

DR. DAMI AJAYI Poet, Writer, Music Critic, and a Senior Registrar in Psychiatry at the Federal Neuropsychiatric Hospital, Yaba, Lagos. We get to ask Dr Dami how he does it all.

CAS9 - IS THIS THE FUTURE? RESEARCH 18

CHOICE OF PLACE OF DELIVERY AND FACTORS AFFECTING THESE CHOICES AMONG WOMEN IN IDI ARABA MUSHIN

This is the stuff of sci-ﬁ movies. Imagine deciding the shade of the colour of your pet - a psychedelic purple puppy isn’t a bad idea.

GUILTY... NOT GUILTY

You think you've seen crazy? Think again. Here are some interesting cases of insanity pleas following horrendous crimes.

ECOTOXICOLOGICAL EFFECTS OF PHARMACEUTICAL EFFLUENTS FROM SELECTED WATER BODIES IN LAGOS STATE, NIGERIA ON TADPOLES USING Bufo bufo

THE STORY OF YOU SOCIAL MEDIA

Unzip that mask and let the true you show. We know the journey is not easy because we all struggle inside. Talk to someone who cares.

45 U.G.L.Y. They say you don’t choose the people that love you but you deﬁnitely can choose who you’d love - ﬂaws, warts and all.

LIFESTYLE 47 #notKolo

CREDITS

GRAPHIC DESIGN RUFA’I KEYEDE @ROOKEY2 (IG/FB/TWITTER) keyede.rufai@gmail.com +234 905 135 7985

Amsul Digest | 2017

THE HITCHHIKER’S GUIDE TO DATING ON A BUDGET

AMSUL Tweet Chat 4.0 takes Mental Health in Nigeria head on with the hashtag #notKolo which means not crazy.

You don’t have money? No stress, we’ve got you covered with fun dates you can plan on a budget. Go out! Don’t hide your face.

COVER ART MODEL KOME AGHA PHOTOGRAPHY AYO FABOYA @afp.studio

DESIGN @ROOKEY2 MAKE-UP DEMME BY BARBARA ADEYEMI @demme_b.a

WRITERS Owate Bola Ileri Lawal Buchi-Njere Oluchi Osakwe Gift Onunkwo Emeka Ngini Chinazom

Adefolalu Oluwatoyosi Kenechukwu Ijeoma Okonkwor Oyor Nwachukwu Chiamaka Igbor Clement

Editorial COMPOS MENTIS WHAT IS A SOUND MIND composed of? Is it a mind bereft of worries, free from the deluge of trials and stressors that abound in our world today? Health is defined as not just the absence of disease but the complete physical, social and mental wellbeing of an individual. In our world today, and more importantly, in Nigeria, mental health has always been an issue, but for the first time, we are beginning to move from denial to acceptance. People are beginning to realise that it is important that we take care of our minds, that mental health illnesses are real, and a diagnosis does not equal doom. It is difficult though, how do we take care of that which we cannot see? How can we take care of that which we do not fully understand? How do we change age old myths and perceptions about mental health and make people understand that mental health conditions are simply illnesses like any other illness? These and many more questions birthed the decision to focus the 2017 AMSUL Digest on Mental

Many thanks to the members of the Editorial Board, for the

Health.

long meetings, moments of tension and the sacriﬁces made

It is important that we ask these questions,

and endured. Also, to the team of advisers composed of

and seek answers, it is important that we

Faculty and Board Alumni, we are deeply indebted to you

are there for people, because in a country

for the invaluable advice you gave us, and for believing in

such as ours, weighed down by many

our aspirations and dreams even when we doubted them. I

troubles, there are many lost individuals

am grateful also to the AMSUL Executive Council for the

who are not of sound mind. We must train

ups and downs, the battles fought and victories won. Our

ourselves to recognize symptoms of

success is indeed AMSUL's success.

mental illness, to read the distress signals

An exciting array of articles, interviews, research papers,

from the drowning individuals around us.

and a summary of what 2017 has been for AMSUL await you

The World Health Organisation chose

when you turn this page, and dare I say that just like wine

Mental Health as the 'ﬁeld in focus' for

that ages pleasantly, this is the best AMSUL Digest yet!

2017, and amidst the tweet chats, the walks, the social media campaigns and all, let us not forget the purpose. Let us

Okonkwor Oyor Editor-in-Chief

remember that a sound mind is the key to a sound world.

Amsul Digest | 2017

AMSUL 2017 EDITORIAL BOARD MEMBERS

OGAMBA CHIBUZOR

NWACHUKWU CHIAMAKA

ADEJUMOBI SEKINAT

AWOFESO OPEYEMI

SALAUDEEN ZAINAB

LAWAL ILERI

OLADUNMOYE SEYE

OKONKWOR OYOR

ADEYEMI OMOKEHINDE

TIAMIYU SABIAH

OSAKWE GIFT

ADELEYE IRETOMIWA

SORINOLU PEACE

ABUDU KABIRAT

BUCHI-NJERE OLUCHI

OKORO EBRUBA

ONYEODI IFEANYI

Amsul Digest | 2017

From The President’s Desk THERE WERE SEEMINGLY INSURMOUNTABLE challenges yet we overcame them, thanks to our will and that of God who turned our mountains to mole hills and made our challenges a stepping stone. On this note, I want to thank God for all we achieved this year. With less than 365 days, we had a daunting task of repositioning this foremost association in the College of Medicine and Nigeria at large, placing her in her rightful place, building on the successes laid by our predecessors and creating new landmarks and milestones. We came, we saw and we conquered thanks to a team of outstanding executives and also not forgetting AMSULites, who gave us massive support in all programs. Words can't describe how much we really appreciate you all. The ten (Brammy,Lanre, Jibola, Bisola, Fatima, Oshoke, Henry, Emmanuel, Deji and myself), who piloted the affairs of the association; I give thumbs up to you all for a job well-done. We fought, we laughed, we cried, we planned and worked tirelessly, for what AMSULites see. For me there is no greater reward in life but an opportunity to serve humanity, and we did not let them down.

Health Week (4th Annual Scientiﬁc Conference, 3rd

Interesting and exciting programs back to back,

edition of the Inter Class Project and ofﬁcial

thanks to our collective effort. We might have our

commissioning of the AMSUL website) and just

ﬂaws (no one is perfect), but you would agree

recently the 3rd place winner at the DOKITA QUIZ at

that AMSUL at 51 was a blast.

Ibadan.

Highlights of the year were, World Health Day

With this you would agree that indeed action speaks

outreach for non teaching staff in LUTH/CMUL,

louder than words. AMSUL AT 51 WAS A SUCCESS.

Malaria to Zero outreaches in collaboration with

The future can only be better as we continue this

Hacey International, AMSUL Games 2017 (best

legacy of greatness.

ever) , COMPSSA Sports Festival 2017 overall

LONG LIVE AMSUL

winner (back to back), Mr and Miss Medilag 2017

LONG LIVE CMUL

winner, NIMSA South West Regional Meeting 2017

LONG LIVE UNILAG

host, had a trip to FAMSA General Assembly 2017 in Bayelsa were we had the position of the General Assembly Chairman and we came home with the position of the host school for Standing

Idio Uduak

AMSUL PRESIDENT 2016/2017

Committee on Health and Environment (SCOHE) FAMSA after a keenly contested election. These were crowned by a beautiful and successful

Amsul Digest | 2017

AMSUL EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE 2016/2017

AGBALAYA FATIMAH SOCIAL SECRETARY

AGBARAKWE BRAMMY VICE PRESIDENT

OBADEYI O. J GENERAL SECRETARY

IDIO UDUAK

AJIBADE AJIBOLA

PRESIDENT

ASST. GEN. SECRETARY

UDUIGWOME EMMANUEL FINANCIAL SECRETARY

AJAYI ABISOLA WELFARE SECRETARY

OMAMOGHO HENRY TREASURER

IDORNIGIE OSHOKE P.R.O.

BALOGUN ADEDEJI SPORTS SECRETARY

AMSUL SENATE 2016/2017

Amsul Digest | 2017

E C N ALA

STO

RI E

available, white-narrated stories of Africa

ILERI LAWAL 400L MBBS

to view Africa as a place of great landscapes, wild animals and bush, uncivilized people. That was her single story of Africa. She hadn't been told of the political heroes who resisted colonial rule. She wasn't aware of the engineers at Yaba-Tech, who were creating new technology with limited resources and competing with counterparts worldwide.

IN 2009, I ENCOUNTERED an icon that would shape a lot of

She didn't know of the skill of LUTH

my perceptions in the coming years and would later come

doctors, and the complex procedures

close to my concept of a role model. She was Chimamanda

carried out successfully despite the

Ngozi Adichie and she was delivering a speech – a TED talk –

challenges of equipment.

on the dangers of a single story. The ﬁrst time I listened to it, I

Therefore, there is the need for a balance

was in secondary school. I could hardly understand the depth

of stories. Single stories are not lies. They

of her standpoint and so what stood out in the entire speech

are just incomplete and hence,

were her illustrations. She told of Fide, her family's domestic

misrepresentations of any community.

help who she was taught to pity without knowing that

We must resist them. Single stories are

poverty was not the only truth about his family. They were

found not only in published literature but

also creative basket weavers, artisans in their own right and

in person-to-person conversations. It's

human beings deserving of more dignifying interactions than

single stories that create stereotypes.

mere compassionate condescension.

These stereotypes are convenient in

She spoke of the condescending sympathy her white

classifying people and ﬁling them into

American roommate had for her as though she, Adichie, was

cute little boxes in our minds. We see one

an underprivileged being from Africa meant to be pitied and

feature of a person and expect the

incapable of intellectual conversation or activity. Her

person to be all and only what we've

roommate, like many foreigners, had learnt from the few

been told people with that feature are.

Amsul Digest | 2017

For instance, a simple one: all men are not dogs. All lawyers are not liars. All politicians aren't corrupt thieves. LUTH doctors are highly skilled and competent – a fact we can

PERCEPTION vs. REALITY Which of the two hospitals A & B do you think have more competent, dedicated and patient-friendly staff?

easily believe, because we've been to the Emergency Ward and surgical theatres and have seen more patients recover than die. This fact about LUTH is of course harder for an outsider to believe because of the single stories of catastrophe which have the upper hand of the narrative. Minorities – tribal minorities, socio-economic

minorities, religious minorities, sexual minorities – suffer the most from these stereotypes and incomplete representations in mainstream media and public opinion. There's a power differential – which Adichie spoke about in the same referenced TED talk – that oppresses by determining what stories get told and how. It seeks to make a group of people more different from another. It makes one story the definitive story. It suppresses other stories which are also true from being circulated and accepted. It justifies mob-action and supports unfounded prejudices. It makes it okay for a person to be beaten on the mere suspicion of homosexuality. It permits oppressive legislation. It fuels genocides and encourages racism. It justifies supremacist ideologies. And it fights, tooth and nail, the concept of equality. It turns a blind side to fundamental human rights and it never gives room for the fullness of truth. This 'power' could be political. Sometimes it's dressed in the pseudo -whiteness of religion. We fight back by telling our own stories, full stories, and allowing the stories of others into our hearts. Take your story from the pens and lips of others and tell it yourself. Give people a chance to be other things than what they're expected to be. A person

Hospital A tells a story of beauty, of competent, dedicated friendly

may be this, but he/she is also a lot of other

staff. Hospital B tells a story of dingy dull looking hospital rooms, with

things. In giving room for the complexities

equally dull looking staff, of lesser skill and poor attitude to work. This

of individual stories we ﬁnd that we are

is the danger a single story portends. The balance is that Hospital B

more similar than we are different, and inch

was transformed by a remodeling exercise into Hospital A, the staff in

closer to regaining paradise.

B are every bit as qualiﬁed, competent and dedicated as the staff in A. Beware of stories told from one angle. Always seek the big picture.

Amsul Digest | 2017

CAGES CAN HOLD CONVICTS But not humans with demonic instincts So they built a special one for me To live off in pure misery Bricks painted white, eerie tapestry` So cold they chill your fantasies Floors littered with grime and dust Legacies of the fallen cursed A weak light shining above To keep me always in focus A slit carved under the door To bring succour from the nurse Plastic tables and chairs For metal gives room for fear Mattresses with no covers Prevents dangling prisoners No calendar, no clock, no watch Time here is more than enough It slows down your mind Runs it down to decline Growls from wolves without fur

A craving for solitude

So let's amp up the volume

Screams from guests around four

Dropped me in this institute

And hope for a reaction

One-sided lengthy overtures

So therapy is insolvent

Don't destroy my ballroom

Discourage intending visitors

When problems aren't confronted

It's my means of distraction.

Bangs from the tenant across

This haven has become my home

This is my mount of Zion.

Till blood breaks through pores

A world I populate alone

This is my Asylum.

I smile through his torture

The fears of the unknown

As Pain knocks him to the ďŹ&#x201A;oor

Don't penetrate this zone

The pills come sliding in

So bring on spices, herbs and potions

Nurse through the slits look in

Send shocks till I get concussions

Their multi-coloured medicine

This illness will never depart

Never holds back anything

Neither will my body, so there's that

For I have never been insane

The screams have become my music

But company has been my bane

The light is now my chandelier

For heartbreaks dig upon the brain

The walls the borders of my ballroom.

Holes so big, you can't feel pain

The dance will never disappear

Amsul Digest | 2017

BUCHI-NJERE OLUCHI 200L MBBS

FROM STORIES OF DYED palm-oil to tales of 'plastic' rice,

governments took a more laissez-faire

adulterated food is not new to Nigeria or the world. The

attitude towards the production and

antecedents of this industry stretch back in time - for as long as

sale of food, amongst other

there have been comestibles for sale, an ignorant public, and

commodities. The wheels of commerce

greedy merchants.

turned unimpeded and made way for

Records going back to 11th century in Europe indicated that

food purveyors to take advantage of

food fraud has been in existence for most of history. At ﬁrst,

the public in the most heinous of ways,

certain tradesmen such as bakers, butchers and ﬁshmongers

all in the name of proﬁt. Vegetables

had their businesses strictly policed by their respective guilds

were coloured with copper to keep

that ensured quality standards were upheld in every region.

them a garish 'fresh' green. Candies

Guild membership was important to any tradesman who

were given enticing red and green hues,

wanted good patronage. Members who compromised the

produced by red lead and copper.

integrity of the guild by selling substandard produce were met

Pepper, an imported and expensive

with harsh punishment and even loss of their livelihood. Some

commodity, was mixed with ﬂoor

guilds also existed to prevent people from being swindled by

sweepings to add bulk to it. Tea leaves

measurements. The most notable group of such enforcers were

were partly or wholly substituted with

the pepperers of France, appointed by the king and being in

similar-looking leaves from the sloe

possession of his ofﬁcial weights.

shrub, a plant commonly found on every

However, by the late 16th century ,the guild systems were

hedge. Bread in those days, as now, was

already declining. With the dawn of industrialization in 1780s

only fashionable if snowy white, but the

Britain, and its gradual spread throughout Western Europe,

white ﬂour that could produce such

Amsul Digest | 2017

bread was laborious to mill and therefore expensive. Keeping in line with what the public wanted, bakers would bleach the lowquality, darker flour that was more readily available with alum to create the desired white loaves, at a fraction of the cost. Cherry laurel leaves, known for years to be poisonous, were nevertheless used to flavour custards and puddings to approximate the flavour of bitter almonds, which were more expensive. Sour and spoiled wine was sweetened with lead, despite its being recognized as a poison

production abounded – so-

raw foods since these are not as

since 1649. In the newly-

called swill milk that was

strictly regulated as processed

industrialized world, food was not

obtained from inebriated cows

food. The Nigerian market has

just a scam. It was lethal.

fed on the leftovers from

been inﬁltrated with palm-oil

The ﬁrst public intimation of the

breweries and tainted with

coloured with red azo dye to

horrors of the food industry were

alcohol, meat packaged in

make it more appealing, a

by Frederick Accum, a naturalised

disgustingly unsanitary

chemical more commonly used

German immigrant and chemist

conditions and doctored with

to dye clothes that could

who simply enjoyed good,

chemicals like borax to mask

possibly be carcinogenic.

untainted food and was appalled

decay. With constant public

Calcium carbide is used to

by the state of food available at the

outcry and innovations in food

hasten fruit ripening, so that

time. In 1820, he published A

science, the food industry

unripe fruits can easily be

Treatise on Adulteration of Food,

gradually cleaned up its act.

transported and then ripened at

and Culinary Poison, detailing some

Now there exist stringent food

will, but this chemical often

of the most common swindles in

standards like the international

contain traces of arsenic and

the British food industry. His

Codex Alimentarius and locally,

phosphorus that are harmful to

treatise, while shocking, did nothing

the National Agency for Food

health. These and countless

to effect meaningful changes in

and Drugs Administration and

other swindles endanger the

food production, partly because

Control (NAFDAC) regulations

health of millions, and we can

the government of the day was

that guide food production and

only hope that the various

wary of involving itself in

packaging. Twenty-ﬁrst century

regulatory bodies in place

commerce and also because

consumers may not need to

continue to give this issue the

Accum never had a chance to

worry about lead or copper, but

attention it deserves. The duty

further his campaign against

threats lurk in our food all the

also lies with every person to

adulteration. A scandal involving

same. Colouring, preservatives,

closely monitor their food. Read

the Royal Institution library later

stabilizers - all are common

labels, examine food for its

that same year would see him

ingredients on any processed

colour, taste, texture and smell,

return to Germany in disgrace,

food label today that few

and above all, cultivate 'a

never to return to England. It was

people understand, and can

perfect acquaintance with that

not until 1860 that the ﬁrst laws

provide an avenue for food to

which is good'.

against food adulteration were

be tampered with. Even more

established. Still, cases of poor food

worrisome is the adulteration of

Amsul Digest | 2017

STANZAS WHY I once used to have bright dreams Now every night is the same dark themes Friends turned enemies behind the scenes Poking fun as I burst at the seams

A continuous search for compliments Founded belief in my disappointments These sculpted smiles are lined with deceit Frail is the human that lies underneath Slowly I tear apart with no witness No angel to lift away my distress

Is it truly better to be lonely than hurt To give up than wallow in murderous thoughts Dreaming and dreading the result of ideas Pangs of suicide begin their caress My insides are badly bruised and rotten From injuries still sore but long forgotten

Feeling of terror to which I obsess

Memories of the very ﬁrst pierce

Triggered by utter loneliness

Blood is the way I shed my tears

Haunted by fears in the light

Searching for strength to prevent the traps

Covered by mares in the night Seeking comfort from stranger's insights Opened the door to danger's delights. Replaying my life, I wonder deeply Where did things go wrong with me? I never reached out to trust anyone For I was the victim of everyone's tongue I pushed my feelings deep into the cupboards Till they broke out and came for the coward They overpowered me in my current state

Of accelerating my body's collapse Melodies of cheer don't even help To pause my mind as I reach for the shelf Knives of all shapes and sizes Bruises too, yet endorphin rises While carving these patterns on my wrist Moments of happiness ﬁnally exist The feel of the metal on my skin Heals me whenever my troubles begin Jagged edges become straight again

Damaging the way my brain operates

Healing my feelings with such blissful pain

And now I wear nothing but black

My love for danger brought me to this end

To my psyche's constant attack The darkening on my mind's tint The burial of survival instincts

My longing for just one caring friend Seeking a reward that puts an end to surprises When that killing blow strikes and my soul arises

Pain shines visibly from my eyes

And as the ﬂoor beneath me gets damp

A reﬂection of the tears I have cried

My heart rate slows, my muscles cramp

Rivers have ﬂowed and covered my sides Drowning me deeper inside my mind

Amsul Digest | 2017

The blackouts of my despair are cured A better tomorrow is ﬁnally assured

WRITER, POET, MENTAL HEALTH ADVOCATEâ&#x20AC;¦ Bassey Ikpi is a modern day change agent, not only in terms of mental health awareness and helping to end the stigma, but someone who is helping people dream, who helps us see that there is a whole world out there for us to take on. She has broken the norm of 'suffering and smiling' that our society is so used to and has chosen to

OUT

photo credits: DAVID ASUMAH PHOTOGRAPHY

S P E A K

photo credits: MANIA MAGAZINE

What was growing up like?

so busy and since we moved abroad for a better

I was born in Nigeria. We moved to Stillwater,

life, as long as I got good grades and didn't get into

Oklahoma when I was four. I didn't live with my

trouble everything was ﬁne.

parents. My dad was in the States going to school, my mum was in a different part of Nigeria also

Can you tell us how you started poetry? What about

going to school, I was raised in the village with

spoken words?

different family members, moving from house to

I started writing poetry when I was 8 but never

house. I felt really unsettled for a while until my

shared it with anyone. My parents knew that I wrote

mum came back from wherever she was when I was

but poetry was something I used to centre my

four and said we were moving to America.

thoughts and sort out my feelings. My freshman

I knew for certain at the age of 8 that something

year in the university I stumbled upon a poetry

wasn't right. It just felt that I wasn't normal. I

reading on campus and that's where I saw people

mimicked other people to pass for okay. I noticed

my age reading their work. It was fascinating, the

others kids didn't do that, other kids slept; other

following semester I got bold enough to share my

kids didn't feel like there was a stampede inside of

work and I went from Bassey the girl who dances to

them. I had insomnia very early, I could not just

Bassey the girl who does poetry and I performed all

sleep. Things just always felt more…I also remember

over the city. After a period I began to feel

that there was always a running commentary in my

unchallenged by my work and was unhappy in

head, I didn't hear voices. I just spoke to myself a

school. Depression, I don't know if it was waiting for

lot. It eventually helped me as a writer but at that

me, but it became crying all day, can’t get out of

time I just wanted it to be quiet, to let me sleep.

bed, can’t function. I got a 0.0 GPA my ﬁrst

I found ways to adjust early. Since I didn't sleep I

semester. I just couldn't do it; I couldn't read all

read my textbooks from cover to cover. I read other

those books. My brain just wasn't working on that.

things as well, so I knew things and in school it was

Even then, I didn't tell my parents. I went to the

all about knowing things, memorising, being able to

counselling centre on campus. I was like “look,

test, and it worked for me because my parents were

there's something wrong. I don't know what it is,

Amsul Digest | 2017

but there's something wrong”. She was the kind of

do my makeup but the tears kept ruining it. I was

counsellor that I have learned to dislike, which is the

getting really frustrated. I don't remember how

one that listens and just writes things down and then

but I remember ending up underneath the sink in

says 'well, the session’s over'. And you're like 'what

my dressing room, still sobbing. I was pulled out

the…, I need things. I need answers. Just tell me

of the show and asked to go home and rest. But

something'. I went twice then stopped going because I

not before getting a list of doctors. I ended up

didn't feel it was helping. I did a bit better that

seeing four or ﬁve doctors in a day. I lied to most

semester, but still ended up on academic probation. I

of them. I walked away with an anorexia

went to community college but still wanted to go

diagnosis, a sleep disorder. I knew what to say,

back, I felt I was better; it was just that ﬁrst year. I'll

because I knew what I wanted to hear. But the ﬁnal doctor: there was just a way she looked

be better. So I went back. I don't really

Look,

remember what happened then, I was

her “Look, I'm just going to keep

keep lying to you but the

something wrong with me and I

truth is there's something

me a few questions, and then she

new as I had always had a bubbly personality. I remember going to class one day, something happening and then I

at me; I knew she knew I was lying. I told

I'm just going to

irritated a lot, and the feeling was

left, found a friend and asked her if she wanted to go to New York for

lying to you but the truth is there's

wrong with me and I

the weekend, she was like 'yeah, let’s go' . We went to New York and

don't know what

I never came back. And that was the end

to do

of college. I meant just to go for the weekend. I

don't know what to do”. She asked got up and called Dr Goodman. They both treated me for three years, they were amazing. She said 'He's on the 58th St. He can see you

right now. I need you to go to him' and that's where I was diagnosed.

just needed a break, I remember feeling happy, real happiness, and not the fake one I was used to. New

After your diagnosis, how did you feel?

York supported the illness I didn't know I had then,

After a 5-10 minutes conversation, he said you

because it's literally the city that never sleeps. You

have Bipolar II Disorder. I’d never heard of it, so I

could always ﬁnd something to do at 3am, 4am. What

was like that's not true. But the more he shared

insomnia that came with it. The weekend turned into a week, the week into a month, turned into summer, turned into a year, turned into

the symptoms and what it meant, the more I couldn't deny it. I was like “that's exactly what I have”. It all made sense. Once I got diagnosed I was like 'let’s cure this, let’s ﬁx this'. It had a name, it

Def poetry Jam and my career.

was a thing. It wasn't something I

And that was it. There was no

made up. It was a thing other

reason to go back.

people had. I thought I could be cured. I was going to take the

What prompted you to seek

medication for a month like

a diagnosis?

antibiotics and I’d be cured and I’d

I remember getting into my

get back on the road and start my

dressing room and I just

life. It doesn't work that way at all.

couldn't stop crying. I'm

I ended up in the hospital. It took

trying to put my makeup

a lot of trial and error to get the

on, trying to talk

right cocktail. I continued

myself down, but I

therapy. I just felt better. I

just couldn't stop

was like okay, great, life

crying. I kept trying to

resumes now. But they

photo credits: DAVID ASUMAH PHOTOGRAPHY

I know now to be hypomania and the

photo credits: DAVID ASUMAH PHOTOGRAPHY

took me off the tour. I became an insurance risk. Everyone is telling me I can live a normal lie, but now people are removing normality from me or what I know to be normal. So what's the point? Why am I doing this? What were the reactions from family and friends? Relationships got weird; people started treating me like I was made of glass. I was like - no I want to be normal, I want to feel normal, I don't want to be treated like a sick person. That was my fear, and that became the reality. So I stopped taking my medication. I of course crashed. I was diagnosed with passive suicidality, which is basically losing the will to live. What life changes did you make after your diagnosis? After watching the show Girlfriends, I felt they weren't portraying the right thing about bipolar so I used the opportunity to talk about it on my blog. I just told people what's going on and went to bed. I woke up to hundreds of comments and responses from people who could relate. It started this whole thing and when I got back on my feet, I started talking about it on stage. I read your autobiography and couldn't help but notice 'The SIWE project'. The incident that led to the passing of Siwe was rather sad, how did that make you feel? Do you think anything could have been done differently? What do you hope to accomplish with 'The SIWE Project'? I babysat Siwe and her brother, I met them when I ďŹ rst moved to New York, and they became family. Her mother was worried about her and how she was different emotionally from other kids her age; I found it remarkable that she noticed that in a four year old. As she got older, the more symptomatic she got. She was a cutter; she tried to commit suicide about three times before she turned ďŹ fteen, at 15 she succeeded. I remember thinking that I wasn't doing enough. If somebody that close to me could slip away and I'd just seen her three months ago and she looked great and was telling me all that she was going to do. I just realised I needed to do more, give people a space to say what they felt, without the chain, that stigma, especially in the black community, so people would get help. What are your techniques of self care and coping skills to maintain your mental health? I was lucky enough to have this tag team therapist and psychiatrist who worked together early to help me. Therapy helps you relearn the bad habits you picked up when your

Amsul Digest | 2017

brain wasn't working right. Medication saved my life,

accomplished so much at such a young age. Then I

but it doesn't have to be about medication. I'm

was 27, I'd done a lot. I was supposed to go on and

advocating whatever treatment means to you from

do greater things and instead I was diagnosed with

a medical professional.

bipolar.

In your experience, what are the biggest

What has been your involvement in the effort to

misconceptions about mental illness?

educate the public?

There's a show 'Empire'. Andre, one of the

I did lose some people. I also have trouble getting

characters has allegedly been diagnosed with

people to see me, rather than the disease. In order

bipolar. A lot of people don't know bipolar but they

to protect myself, I'm very careful about what

can reference Andre, what I have to do now is un-

surrounds me and who, but I keep that outward

Andre; take down the drama so people know that

projection in order to do what I set out to do. I have

it's a false representation. Everyone presents

to be careful how I present, because I'm still trying

differently, but that drama is not accurate.

to get people to accept and understand what this illness is. We need to ease people into it; you have

What can each of us do in our community to correct

to get people to empathise. Once they do, you can

those misconceptions?

ease them into mental illness as a whole.

As a black girl in the world, I don't want to generalise but there's so much we have to deal with and adding another thing is not something people want, the fear of it being on your permanent record. They already see you as black, now they'll see you as crazy too. If I grew up a different

Do you have anything to say to those reading this interview that may be having suicidal thoughts or mental health struggles? I've had people tell me they wish they have what I have so they could write. If you need

race, I think I would've been able to

that then you're not that,

recognise and have the

go ďŹ nd something else to

conversation earlier. Someone

be. I refuse to allow

would have noticed at least.

people romanticise this

Someone once told me Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d

illness in a way that makes it more dangerous for people living with it. I'm not ashamed of it but it doesn't

photo credits: WWW.ZIKOKO.COM

mean it has made my life better.

Amsul Digest | 2017

RESEARCH Author: NWOGU MERIT 500L MBBS College of Medicine University of Lagos

CHOICE OF PLACE OF DELIVERY AND FACTORS AFFECTING THESE CHOICES AMONG WOMEN IN IDI ARABA MUSHIN INTRODUCTION

AIM OF STUDY

Maternal mortality and neonatal mortality are part

To determine the choice of place of delivery and

of the major public health challenges in the world

factors affecting these choices among women in Idi-

especially in developing countries like Nigeria.

Araba, Mushin Local Government Area, Lagos state.

Nigeria is the second largest contributor to the under-ďŹ ve and maternal mortality rates in the world;

METHODOLOGY

in Nigeria, we lose about 2,800 under-ďŹ ves and 145

Description of Study Area

women between the ages 15-49 every single day.

Idi Araba is one of the ten wards that make up

The maternal mortality ratio in Nigeria is currently

Mushin Local Government, South West Nigeria. It is

560 per 100,000 women and the neonatal mortality

bounded by the Lagos University Teaching Hospital

rate in Nigeria is 64 per 1,000 live births.

(LUTH) on the East, Ilasa on the West, Mushin on

According to the world health organization, skilled

the North and Itire on the South. According to the

attendance during delivery and 24hours emergency

available census in 2006, Idi Araba had a population

obstetric care is one of the methods of reducing

of 48,944 residents. The community is served by 83

maternal mortality which is also crucial to preventing still birth and improve newborn survival.

health facilities; 5 public facilities and 78 private 4

In practice, skilled attendance is synonymous with a 5

facilities including those within the community and those easily accessible from the community.

health facility delivery. However, over 60% of births

Study Design

in Nigeria occur at home and this increases the risk

This is a descriptive cross sectional study aimed at

of neonatal and maternal mortality due to

determining the choice of place of delivery and

complications which could have been prevented or

factors affecting these choices among women in Idi

properly managed by a skilled birth attendant.6

Araba, Mushin Lagos State.

Amsul Digest | 2017

Study Population

Table 1: Socio-demographic Characteristics n=309

This study was carried out among women between

Frequency

Percentage %

the ages 15 – 49 in Idi Araba, Mushin Lagos State.

Age

The inclusion criteria were; All women between the ages 15-49 who

15- 19 20 – 24

3 23

0.97 7.44

reside (lived in the community for at least six

25 – 29

14.89

months) in Idi Araba community

30 – 34

23.62

All women between the ages of 15-49 that

35 – 39

28.80

have delivered a child prior to the survey.

40 – 44

45 – 49

Mean Age + SD = 34.5 + 7.1

Sample Size Determination The minimum sample size was determined using the

14.24 10.03

formula: n= (z2 x p x q)/d2

Occupation Professional

p = prevalence is 25%, representing the proportion of

Intermediate

women who chose the health facility as the preferred

Non-manual Skilled

place of delivery in a study done in Wukro and

Partly Skilled

Butajera districts in the Northern and South Central

Unskilled

5.50

0.97

60 43

19.42 13.92

186

60.19

Ethiopia.7 Data Collection Tools And Techniques Data collection was done using pre tested

Religion Christian Islam

194

62.78

114

36.89

Traditional Worshipper

0.32

interviewer-administered questionnaire which was developed from reviewed literature sources. A multi stage sampling method was used.

Marital status Single Married

Data Analysis The data collated from the questionnaire were analyzed by the use of a statistical software; EPI info version 7.1. The questionnaires were checked for

Divorced

3.56

283

91.59

0.97

Separated Widowed

2 10

0.65 3.24

consistency and analysis was done using frequencies

Level Of Education None

and presented in frequency tables. The results were

Primary

5.18

processed using Microsoft Excel. Chi square was used

Secondary

177

57.28

to test for associations and where there were

Post-Secondary

expected values less than 5, Fisher's Exact was used.

Quranic

1.62

Test of signiﬁcance was performed using 99%

Vocational

0.65

conﬁdence interval and the levels of signiﬁcance was set at 5% RESULTS Of the 320 interviewer administered structured questionnaires distributed to the respondents 309 of

5.83

29.45

Level Of Education Of Husband None Primary Secondary Post-Secondary Quranic Vocational

0 7 144 109 21 2

0 2.47 50.88 38.52 7.42 0.71

them were retrieved, giving a response rate of 96.60%. The retrieved questionnaires were all properly ﬁlled and therefore analyzed. There was a statistically signiﬁcant association between socio-demographic characteristics, ANC attendance, cost of services, cultural beliefs and

Amsul Digest | 2017

Estimated monthly income <15,000 71 15,000-24,000

22.98

117

25,000-34,000

35,000-44,000

>45,000

37.86 16.50 7.12 15.53

choice of place of delivery.

health facility, while the older

Most of the women who had

Majority of the women 84.13

women and women of middle

registered for ANC chose to

would prefer to deliver at a

age mostly chose to deliver at a

deliver at a health facility

health facility while some of the

health facility. This is quite similar

compared to those who didn't;

women 15.87% would prefer to

to studies done in Nairobi. This

this ﬁnding is similar to that of a

deliver outside a health facility.

similarity may be because the

study carried out in Uganda.12

The reasons for their preference

older women who had more

Cost of Services:

were majorly quality of services

experience in child birth had

A larger proportion of the

provided at a particular place of

more knowledge of the available

women who felt that the cost of

deliver 41.10% and friendly

maternal health services.

services was too expensive

approach of attendants 19.41%.

Marital status:

delivered at a place outside the

Majority of the women in this

health facility (26.27%) compared

DISCUSSION

study who chose to deliver at a

to women who said cost did not

Choice Of Place Of Delivery

health facility were majorly

affect their choice (12.57%).

This study shows that, 81.88% of

married while most of the single

Cultural Belief:

the women chose to deliver at a

women chose to deliver outside

Most of the women who had an

health facility and 18.12% of the

the health facility.This ﬁnding

individual or cultural belief

women chose to deliver outside

was similar to a study done in

concerning childbirth chose to

the health facility. This ﬁnding is

Kenya. A possible explanation

deliver outside the health facility

different from those of a study

could be that pregnant single

50.01%; this is similar to a study

done in Zaria, Nigeria among 315

women are frowned upon by

done in Kongwa district,

women where 37.78% of them

society and most single women

Dodoma.13 This similarity is due to

chose to deliver at a health

would deliver at a place where

deep rooted culture and belief

facility. This could be because

they can have their privacy which

which is passed on from

Zaria is in Northern Nigeria which

is mostly at home.

generation to generation among

is reported to have a higher rate

Level of education:

such women.

of home deliveries among

A large proportion of the women

women. Factors that affected the

without formal education

Preferred place of delivery

choice of place of delivery this

(77.78%) chose to deliver outside

The large proportion of women

study include:

the health facility. This ﬁnding is

preferring to deliver outside the

Age:

similar to those of studies done in

health facility is similar to studies

The younger women were less

central Tanzania.

likely to choose to deliver at a

ANC attendance:

done in rural Lagos state.14 This increase in the preference for

Amsul Digest | 2017

health facility delivery among women in rural

Epidemiology And Population Health London

Western and Southern Nigeria could be as a result

School Of Tropical Medicine. London 2009.

of the several strategies and awareness campaigns

Kitui J, Lewis S, Davey G. Factors InďŹ&#x201A;uencing

put in place by the Government of Nigeria to

Place Of Delivery For Women In Kenya. An

Improve maternal and child health.

Analysis Of The Kenya Demographic And Health Survey, 2008/2009. Bmc Pregnancy And Child Birth. Kenya 2009.

CONCLUSION The choice of place of delivery is dependent on

National Population Commission Nigeria And

certain factors; the huge gap in the achievement of

ICF International. Infant And Child Mortality,

the Sustainable Development Goals targets 3.1 and

Nigeriia Demographic And Health Survey. 2013;117-118,135.

3.2 in Nigeria can be bridged if women can make better choices in terms of place of delivery.

Seifu Hs, Debebe S, Meselech A, Alemayehu M, Mesganaw Fa, Saifuddin A. Utilization Of Institutional Delivery Service At Wukro And

RECOMMENDATIONS The community health workers should educate

Butajera Districts In The Northernand Southern

women and their husbands on the importance

Central Ethiopia. Bmc Pregnancy Childbirth.

of place of delivery to maternal and child

2014; 14:178.

health; this can also be done at religious homes.

East Afr J Public Health. 2012 Jun;9(2):80-4. Utilisation Of Delivery Services In Zaria, Northern Nigeria: Factors Affecting Choice Of

The Local Government should create forums for

Place Of Delivery. Sule ST1, Baba SL.

the education of female children to at least secondary level so that they can be

Mwanza JN. Factors InďŹ&#x201A;uencing Women's

empowered on the use of media and the use of

Choice Of Place Of Delivery In Mbonu West

health services.

District, Makeuni County. Nairobi 2015 10. Say L, Raine R. A Systematic Review Of

The Local Government should upscale the

Inequalities In The Use Of Maternal Health Care

training of TBAs so that they can recognize

In Developing Countries: Examining The Scale

complicated deliveries and promptly refer.

Of The Problem And The Importance Of Context. Bulletin Of The World Health Organization. 2007;85 (10):812-9.

Lagos State Government should subsidize health care services and make them available to women of reproductive age.

11.

Mrisho M, Obrist H, Schellenberg AK, Mushi B, Mshinda MT, Taner M, Schellenberg D. Factors Affecting Home Delivery In Rural Tanzania.

REFERENCES 1.

United Nation. Millennium Development Goal Report. 2015; 33

UNICEF. Maternal And Child Health; The Children http://www.unicef.org/nigeria/children_1926.ht ml (Accessed 18th April, 2017)

WHO, ICM, And FIGO. Making Pregnancy Safer:

Tropical MED. Int. HEAL.2007;12(7):862-872. 12. Hazemba AN, Siziya S Choice Of Place For Childbirth: Prevalence And Utilization Of Health Facilities In Chongwe District Zambia. 46513 PB 13. Mwanakulya E S. Factors Contributing To Home Deliveries In Kongwa District, Dodoma. The DarEs-Salaam Medical Students' Journal.2011:21 14. Adejumo OA, Odeyemi SD, Adejumo EN.

The Critical Role Of The Skilled Attendant; A

Preferred Place Of Delivery By Women In A

Joint Statement by WHO ICM AND FIGO

Rural Community Of Lagos State, Nigeria.

Geneva.2014

Nigerian Journal Of Clinical Medicine; 2013:5

Gabrysh S, Campbell O. Still Too Far To Walk: Literature Review Of The Determinants Of Delivery Services Uses. Department Of

Amsul Digest | 2017

AL NE KENECHUKWU IJEOMAH 400L MBBS

I'm alone. I was born that way, and I'm to die that way, so they say. And the worst thing is that amidst the clanging cymbals and ceaseless confusion of everyday living, I find my peace within myself. Aloneness makes me think. Thinking helps me breathe. I breathe not just air but moments, times – good or bad – gone in a few moments of an exasperated sigh. I'm scared that my loneliness will cloud the good times, blurring my full range of vison in making choices. Choices, they say, are how we take control; how we decide what pictures to paint. We choose to tell the how-are-you asker that we're fine, even when we feel not even a semblance of control in this tsunami of feelings and emotions called life. I'm scared that I'll wear loneliness like some dark torn fabric. The sort found in the depths of your closet – that ages like you, with you; that rips open at joints and crevices – like you. I'm afraid that I'll cling to my insecurities and cut down my expectations, and that hope would lose its audacity in a false sense of realism. I fear that I'll wear a cloak that fits all of my excuses. I fear that I'll wear it everywhere, because its indifference, its neutrality rhymes with all the other colours of emotions I wear to life's events. I fear I will never find love with the cloth on. *** Maybe there's beauty in seeking one's own company – having members of oneself at the conference tables of one's own mind. Maybe I'd train my selves to become stronger; together to bask in the glory of the independent and garner willpower to make every outsider an intruder and the foreign, the enemy. I'll tell us to stick together, to dine and wine as brothers, to share and that there's enough to go around. We should be generous, as ruling is only for a while, and not get poisoned by gluttony. We must not be frightened by the looming darkness, seeping through crevices in the wall created by emotions which keep darting through, creating blankets of shadows, taking a portion at a time. The fear of the outside would bind us together, and we'd be fine, yes, we'd be fine.

Amsul Digest | 2017

A Piece About Academic Failure And Mental Health In Medical School

“MEDICAL SCHOOL COMES FOR your mind,” Tade (not real name), a radiography student once told me. I was in Part 1 and was very new to this environment. He wasn't. Having spent 4 years as a medical student before getting withdrawn and compelled to start afresh in the department of Radiography, Tade was one you would call a College of Medicine “O.G.” “You have to be physically and mentally strong,” he said. I don't remember the rest of our conversation in the two-man turned sixman room where we stayed, he as a bonaﬁde hosteller and I, a squatter. But I remember how I nodded to his words superﬂuously, to convince both him and me that I grasped the weight of his words. After two professional examinations and a resit, I had a much better understanding of how vulnerable medical students and doctors could be to psychological trauma.

Amsul Digest | 2017

result of his set, Nona never repeated a class till 600 level but has been “stuck” there since 2012. “You constantly ask yourself: Is it worth it?” he says. Nona was diagnosed with manic bipolar disorder when he was in 200L. He had crossed over from Akoka with a GPA of 4.35 and hence is all too familiar with the is-this-the-same-me phenomenon that medical students go through when they compare their sterling high school grades with the Ps and Fs that are arranged against their matric number on results day. “I've seen all the different emotions at play at that notice board. Some start laughing, some burst into tears and few end up in E1 (psychiatry ward). Failure is rife in medical school and no one teaches you how to deal with it”. On his ﬁve years spent in ﬁnal year, he says, “I would want to attend ward-rounds and clinics but I fear that I'll be embarrassed for not knowing something I should and these people would be so terrible to me.”Nona hardly leaves his room in hostel. “The days go by in a blur. There are no patterns, no stand out moments; memories are only formed when you can get out of bed.” AMSUL Digest interviewed Dr Charles Umeh, a consultant clinical psychologist at Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH) and lecturer of Clinical Psychology at College of Medicine University of Lagos (CMUL), and asked him about why many medical students have psychological challenges. He postulated that it stemmed from the general fact that most young people do not pursue courses they Most of us come in with the mentality of saving the

have a passion for. Rather, they're coerced into the

world. We come in with our big, wild childhood

so called 'money making' professions. Thus, a good

dreams till reality comes and takes many bites out of it till it bears no semblance to the ideal. We

number of students here are unfulﬁlled and easily could crack under pressure.

suddenly discover how different medical practice in

A lot of students here suffer from clinical depression

Nigeria is from Grey's Anatomy and House. And so

and other less severe, yet crippling forms of the

we face disappointments and failures not just

disease. James (not real name), who was recently

academically but socially. Society sets us on a high

withdrawn from medical school told me of how he

pedestal. Family members – nuclear and extended –

contemplated suicide and spent several weeks in his

have high expectations from us and whether or not

room doing nothing but eat, sleep, cry and ask

we realize this, we are under pressure.

questions that had no answers. While the aetiology

Nona (not real name) a 600 level medical student in

of his psychological challenges seems obvious, it is

his 10th year in CMUL shared some of his struggles

also in the nature of depression to have an

in an exclusive interview for the AMSUL Digest on

absolutely unidentiﬁable cause.

the psychology of repeating the same class over

“What facilities are available for students who need

and again. Admitted in 2007 with the best UTME

psychological help or therapy?” We asked Dr Umeh.

Amsul Digest | 2017

CMUL still does not have a designated structure to handle various mental health issues amongst the students. However, it has a counselling unit which handles academic issues but unfortunately cannot handle complex mental health issues. On the other hand, LUTH has a department of psychiatry wellequipped to handle all mental health issues but students are reluctant to use it. Why? Because even among the “enlightened” medical students, mental illness carries a lot of ignorance-fuelled stigma. This was evident in the frenzy that greeted a student's attempt to jump off the top ﬂoor of Block 1 hostel, recently. For most, it was a funny story and no one seemed to realize that laughing in that situation was akin to laughing at a dying patient in the triage of the Accident and Emergency Centre – while doing nothing. Nona opines that this stigma is rooted in how mental illness is portrayed in popular culture, on

Dr Charles Umeh, Lecturer/Consultant Clinical Psychologist, CMUL/LUTH

television and in the African society. It's in how we are raised to see and despise mad people on the

Aware Nigeria Initiative (MANI), tells of how he was

road. “How about we change the lingua?” He

saved from suicide by his friends who took him out

suggests. “Call it mental or emotional illness. Not

under the guise that they were all going to the

madness.” As your leg can be sick, your kidneys can

movies but drove him to a psychiatric centre

be sick, so also your brain can be sick. Most mental

instead. They had watched their friend shrink into

illnesses can be treated and managed. Street mad

himself, self-mutilate, and lose interest in academic

men were not made so in a day. They were simply

activity and they did something! That act saved a

regular guys who got ill and who never got care.

life, and many other lives in turn when you consider

Moving forward, we must watch out for ourselves

the impact an organization like MANI has.

and for one another. Nona gave an illustration: You

Dr Charles Umeh prescribes the biopsychosocial

know there's something wrong with your foot when

model in the holistic handling of psychological

you see it bleed and the pain pathway in your brain

illnesses. Pharmacological and non-pharmacological

is stimulated. But when the problem is with your

interventions could be indicated, depending on the

brain, who's gonna tell ya? We have to watch out

aetiology. He encourages students to make use of

for abnormal or sub-optimal performances of our

the Counselling Unit, located on the ground ﬂoor of

friends, colleagues and members of our religious

the Radiography building , beside the College gate.

organizations. Dr Victor Ugo, founder of Mentally

Find out more about mental health from a plethora of online resources. If you're struggling with depression, a desire to self-harm, or suicidal thoughts triggered by conflicts relating to family, health, academics, relationships, sexuality, religion, addiction, death, trauma, stress, finance or anything else, please talk to someone. You can also reach out to Mentally Aware Nigeria Initiative (MANI) on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram or call 0806 010 1157, 0809 356 5520, 0813 667 0508. You could walk to the staff clinic on the 3rd floor, Accident and Emergency Block, LUTH, and book to see a psychologist. Confidentiality is assured. Private therapy sessions subsidized for students can be booked with Amanda Ihemebiri, an internationallycertified, Lagos-based psychotherapist. Call 0813 572 0679. Find a microscopic reason to live, and live. Don't let mental illness write your story for you. You are worth fighting for.

Amsul Digest | 2017

Cas9 Is This The Future? BOLA OWATE 200L MBBS I STUMBLED UPON something quite interesting one day. Some

Let's talk about the science a little

of you may know about it. A while back, a tool based on

CRISPR means Clustered Regulatory

bacterial CRISPR-associated protein 9 (CAS9) nuclease was

Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeat.

developed. After years of research on manipulation of gene

It's basically a unique organization of

function, science has come to provide a way to make close to

short partially palindromic repeated

perfect edits to the genetic codes of life forms. There are many

DNA sequences found in genomes of

similar technologies but the interesting thing about this one is

bacteria and other microorganisms.

its pinpointing ability. As I said, close to perfect.

In 2007, it was found that the bacteria,

In the ﬁeld of genome engineering, the term “CRISPR” or

Streptococcus thermophilus can acquire

“CRISPR-Cas9” is often used loosely to refer to the various

resistance against a bacteriophage by

CRISPR-Cas9 systems that can be programmed to target

integrating a genome fragment of an

speciﬁc stretches of genetic codes and to edit DNA at precise

infectious virus into its CRISPR locus. To

locations, as well as for other purposes, such as for new

simplify this, the bacteria picks that

diagnostic tools. With these systems, researchers can

invading viral DNA, processes it and

permanently modify genes in living cells and organisms and, in

creates an instruction to CAS9 proteins

the future, may make it possible to correct mutations at precise

to target the viral DNA and disable it,

locations in the human genome in order to treat genetic causes

basically saving the bacteria from said

of disease.

virus. The protein cleaves away DNA

Let's put it this way; have you ever thought of a puppy in the

fragments in a small locality not a mass

exact colour of your choosing? I mean the exact shade. That

of fragments. Researchers saw the

seems too easy, so imagine a child born with a Barcelona logo

speciﬁcity and quickly realized they

on his belly. Too crazy? Now, imagine immunity to HIV. I guess

could exploit this capability of CRISPR

we can relate to that better. Science has made it possible with

to cut apart speciﬁc DNA sequences to

the CAS9 technology.

knock out genes.

Amsul Digest | 2017

achievable with a single treatment. Imagine that in man. Possibly, the technology can be used in producing more speciﬁc antibiotics that target only disease causing bacterial strains while sparing beneﬁcial bacteria. What the future holds Researchers are still working on the technology, testing it and trying to come up with an There are three basic steps in the

cells.

enzyme of the right size more

CRISPR immune system:

The exciting part of the

applicable in this speciﬁc

1. Adaptation: the invading viral

technology is the application in

genome editing. More

DNA is processed into short

medicine. The ﬁrst evidence that

importantly, researchers are

segments that are inserted into

CRISPR can be used to correct

working on making the

CRISPR sequence as new

mutant genes and reverse

technology more practicable in

fragments.

diseases symptoms in living

humans.

2. CRISPR RNA is produced. The

animals was published some

This is a major scientiﬁc

repeats and fragments undergo

years ago. By replacing the

breakthrough and we have to

transcription. The single strand

mutant form of a gene with its

acknowledge that if everything

RNA chain is cut into short

correct sequence in adult mice,

falls rightly in place in the

pieces called CRISPR RNAs.

researchers demonstrated a cure

research, it would be another big

3. Targeting: the CRISPR RNAs

for a rare liver disorder possibly

leap for mankind.

guide bacterial molecular destruction of viral material. Because CRISPR RNA sequences are copied from viral DNA sequences, they are exact matches to the viral genome and thus, excellent guides. How's it applied? What is really important is the application. The CRISPR system serves important roles in industry. Industrial processes that utilize bacterial cultures find the system useful. CRISPR-based immunity increases resistance of the bacteria to viral attack. Also, based on the study, scientists have learned how to make precise changes in genes of organisms as diverse as flies, fish, mice, plants and even human

Amsul Digest | 2017

...

OSAKWE GIFT 400L MBBS AT SOME POINT IN

ANTHONY AND WILLIAM ESPOSITO

our lives we may have

Two brothers who killed a police ofﬁcer

heard about pleading

and a manager, tried to prove their

insanity aka claiming

insanity by banging their heads on the

you have a mental

table until they bled, barking like dogs,

illness to escape the

drooling and crying. They also pursued

adverse consequence

a hunger strike for ten months towards

of a crime committed.

the end of their incarceration. They

The world has evolved

were executed via the electric chair.

past just acquitting a

Anthony Esposito, Jan. 16, 1941

said criminal only on

DANIEL SICKLES

the basis of insanity, as

New York politician and civil war union general shot and killed Philip Bartor

trials extend for

key for having an affair with his wife, Theresa. He pled temporary insanity as

months and even

he was enraged at the inﬁdelity at that time. The public was nonchalant

years to enable the

about his actions and applauded him for liberating them from the adulterer

jury reach the best

Philip. He was acquitted of his murder charges.

decision they possibly can. Here are some

STEVEN STEINBERG

interesting cases

Stabbed his wife Elena with a kitchen knife 26 times, killing her. He called the

gathered over the

police after to report an attempted burglary gone awry; though the police

years…

found no signs of a break in. it was said to be a case of homicidal

Amsul Digest | 2017

somnambulism simply known as 'sleepwalking murder'. He claimed he did not remember the crime as he was sleeping at the time. He however did not deny the fact that he murdered his wife. The jury found him not guilty on grounds that he was temporary insane when he committed the crime. He walked away a free man, even though he fabricated the story about the intruders. ANDREW GOLDSTEIN Pushed Kendra Webdale, a young writer, into the path of an approaching train in New York, killing her. He had a history of schizophrenia and claimed to hear voices, believed someone dissected his brain, that his genitals were enlarged from eating contaminated food, and someone named Larry stole his faeces and ate them with a fork and knife. The prosecutor accused him of premeditatedly killing the woman, as she closely resembled 'Stephanie H.', who on previous occasions sexually frustrated him. Controversy arose because Goldstein was committed to the hospital 13 times

Lorena Bobbitt during her trial. Manassas, Virginia, January 1994

the previous year, each time voluntary and once requested for permanent hospitalization but was

LORENA BOBBITT

turned away each time. He was found guilty of

Lorena and John Bobbitt were a young couple.

second degree murder in his 2nd trial and a state

John had a history of mentally and sexually abusing

law was introduced, 'Kendra's law', which allowed

her throughout their marriage. One day he arrived

the right of families to demand involuntary

home highly inebriated and proceeded to rape her.

hospitalization for their relatives. He admitted

After the incident, she stepped into the kitchen for a

before his 3rd trial that he was aware of his actions

drink of water and saw a carving knife on the

when he killed Kendra, laying the case to rest.

counter. She then went to where he was sleeping and cut off almost half of his penis with the knife. With the severed penis in hand, she drove off to a ďŹ eld and threw it away. She then called the cops and a team searched for the genitalia and was able to recover it. He was taken to the hospital and it was reattached. During the trial, Lorena revealed details of her marriage and the domestic abuse. Her defense claimed she was suffering from clinical depression from it, causing her to wound her husband. The jury acquitted her of her charges due to temporary insanity. She was however ordered to undergo psychiatric evaluation for 45 days and was released thereafter. She later appeared on The Oprah Winfrey show to talk about her experience and has since been an advocate for domestic causes herself.

Amsul Digest | 2017

JOHN HINCKLEY JNR He was obsessed with the movie 'Taxi driver', where Jodie Foster starred as a child prostitute and Robert De Niro plays Travis Bickle, who plots to kill the presidential candidate in the ﬁlm. He watched the movie 15 times and was obsessed with Jodie Foster. He then began to stalk her; he relocated to her school area, signed up at her university in Yale, slipped poems and messages through her door and persistently called her. As he grew more persistent, he even considered taking his own life in front of her to get her attention. Eventually, he decided to attempt an assassination of President Ronald Reagan. He shot at him 6 times as he left Hilton hotel, wounding people. One of the bullets hit the president's chest but he survived it. His defense pled insanity and he was acquitted of all 13 charges of assault, murder and weapon count. JONATHAN SCHMITZ Edward Theodore “Ed” Gein 1906-1984

Jenny Jones, a national talk show was producing a program about same sex crushes. They hunted for people that would admit openly to having a crush

ED GEIN

on television and found Scott Amedure, who had a

'They smelled too bad' was a quote from Ed Gein

crush on his friend Jonathan Schmitz. Producers of

who claimed he would never have intercourse with

the show invited Schmitz and reasserted that

any of the dead bodies he dug out of their graves.

Schmitz was fully aware that the show was about

What he did take interest in however, was skinning

same sex crushes. Schmitz claimed later that he

the corpses and wearing them, he would also

expected to ﬁnd his ex girlfriend on stage but found

collect body parts and use them as decorative items

Amedure, who described his sexual fantasy.

in his home, for example a suit made out of human

Schmitz was said to have been shocked, but the

skin, a belt made out of nipples, a lampshade made

two men went on a drinking spree afterwards and a

out of a human face, a refrigerator ﬁlled with human

sexual encounter was said to have ensued.

organs, vulvas in a shoebox, and so on. This grave

Amedure was said to have left a suggestive note at

robber was perversely fascinated with his deceased

Schmitz apartment a few days later, but he didn't

mother and the intimacy of female body parts. He

take it well. He purchased a shotgun and drove to

was arrested and tried for the murder of Bernice

Amedure's home to confront him, after which he

Worden and also confessed to killing two more. He

shot him twice in the chest, killing him. This is a

was found guilty of ﬁrst degree murder and served

special entry because of the defense used, known

a life sentence at a mental hospital until his death.

as gay panic defense. It is deﬁned as temporary

The county sheriff was so horriﬁed by the severity

insanity caused by undesirable homosexual

of his crime, that he assaulted him during

advances. He was found guilty of 2nd degree

questioning. He subsequently suffered a heart

murder and sentenced to 25 to 50 years of jail.

attack and died a month after testifying at the trial. He has inspired several horror movie characters including Buffalo Bill, Norman Bates, and Leatherface.

Amsul Digest | 2017

The eyes are a window to the soul You wake up before your alarm rings, tired, and you just remain still, eyes open, staring into the nothingness that you feel. In your chest, an intense feeling bubbles. It froths in your heart, ascends to your mind till it stings your eyes and tears fall. You do not know why you are crying, why sadness seems to have enveloped you in a cold, soothing hug. You remain there until your alarm rings, then you slowly make your way down the bunk, wondering why the night did not last forever down. You pick up your toothbrush, toothpaste and walk to the bathroom. It is empty, just the way you like it. As you brush, you look in the mirror at yourself. Skin, the color of an opepe tree's bark, eyes brown like dark chocolate; eyes that hold so much sadness, and you cannot explain what is wrong with you. You do not know how you got to this place where functioning every day is a struggle. You are simply lost. In the shower, you allow your tears mingle with the cold water, and you cry in the way you cannot cry in your room, or anywhere around school.

the story of

YOU by OKONKWOR OYOR, 600L

Amsul Digest | 2017

Your tears fall, but the sadness never ends. You blink back the tears because you do not want your eyes to become swollen, you do not want to answer questions. You get back to your room, and busy yourself with a novel. You have always loved reading, but these days, you read because you need to escape, immerse yourself in another world that is not your own, and be free from the bleakness that is yours. Today, the novel does not offer any solace, any escape, so you open your room door, walk to the balcony and stare.

Look around you, everyone is yearning for a bit of light, be the light in someone's life You stare at the dark sky, bereft of sunlight, a reflection of your life, of the world you reside in in your head. You stare down at the earth, contemplating for the umpteenth time the best way to jump, and if the distance is enough to kill you on impact. You are in the medical students' hostel, three floors up and every morning, you go through this ritual. It is early, many people in the hostel are still asleep, and you know that if you jump, no one would know, you calculate that you would be long dead before anyone finds you. You imagine the screams of horror that would rent the air. You imagine the classmates that would cry. You wonder how your roommates would feel. After all, you are the noisemaker in the room, always cracking jokes, and dripping with sarcasm. You imagine how your family would feel, wonder if they would understand. Lastly, you think about God. The big GOD you were brought up to fear, and worship. You think about His hell, His heaven and you realize you do not care about any of it. You do not care if your family cries, if your classmates weep, if your roommates continue to blame themselves. You know that the only thing that keeps you from jumping every morning is the fear of failure. The fear that if you survive, you would become headline news. You would be nursed in a psychiatry ward, people would talk, and whisper about you. You fear that if you survive, your misery would become public knowledge, people would spite, and pity you. Worse still, you would remain trapped in this life, and your chances of leaving on your own terms would be reduced because no one would let you be alone.

Amsul Digest | 2017

What is your mask? You have thought about slitting your wrists; your daydreams consist of fantasies of metal breaking skin and piercing vessels. Fantasies of blood slowly seeping out, your heart working overtime, then slowly fading out. But you are never alone long enough to make it a reality, every time you think you have the time, you fear failure, and it holds you back. You do not want to become a pity case. Darkness fades into light and you watch the sunrise, wondering where the 'you' that enjoyed such little things disappeared to. You go back into your room and prepare for the day. As your roommates wake up and you exchange pleasantries, you feel it slipping back on;the mask with which you go through the day. The smile comes back, and the jokes return. An hour later, you walk out with your roommates to class, still laughing and gooďŹ ng around. Someone stops you on the way, to ask you about the meeting later today. You smile, and answer that you have made wonderful plans, and encourage the person to come with friends. Inside, you sigh deeply. You have always loved planning, organizing and doing things differently. But lately, the joy they bring into your life has faded, now, extracurricular activities have become a burden. You want to resign from all the various posts you have, you want to walk up to your Head of Department, and ask for a break from school, you want to ask the Big Man Up There for a break from life too, but you cannot. You know that no one would understand, so every day, you wear your mask and smile through the day, improvise through the meetings, and brainstorm through the planning and organizing. It is a game you play so well that no one notices, you wish they would.

Amsul Digest | 2017

Stars are only visible in darkness, and we share the same cosmic material. You want someone to walk up to you and ask if you are fine, if you are really fine. You want to hold someone and cry, cry away all the sadness you feel, but you do not know who to trust, who will understand and not ask you to shake it off. You are afraid to have all that you feel written off as a case of transient blues, because you know it is not. You know deep down that one day, fear of failure will not stop you from jumping, head down to the cold earth. One day, metal will break skin, pierce vessel and crimson fluid would flow out. You would lay back down, plug your ears and allow your favorite songs herald you into the nothingness that you seek. But, maybe before then, a fading part of you wishes, hopes that someone would simply ask, not in the cursory way we all do, “How are you?” Maybe you would have the courage to say, “I am not fine”, then the person would listen, hold your hands, allow you cry, and maybe, just maybe, sunlight would peek into your world, and the bleakness would die a little. Maybe you would one day, be fine.

Amsul Digest | 2017

Doctor, writer, music critic – an apt summary of your professional career. What are the other competing adjectives when you think of how best to introduce yourself? Well, as a Nigerian, we are family people. So, adjectives like brother, cousin, son, friend also apply. These are all important things I do for a living as well. I'm a senior registrar in psychiatry, music critic, writer of poetry and short stories.

BE ALL YOU WANT

TO BE Doctor, poet, writer, music critic, Dr. Dami Ajayi does it all. A Senior Registrar in

How did growing up (family, society, and experiences)

Psychiatry at the Federal Neuropsychiatric

shape your world view and choice(s) of profession?

Hospital, Yaba, Lagos, Dami Ajayi is also a

Firstly, being a doctor was not my intention; I had relatives

critically acclaimed poet whose works

who hammered it into me that I had to be a doctor. I got

have earned awards including second

bribes – watches, plastic stethoscopes and the like! So the

place, ANA Poetry Prize, 2015. He has

choice of a medical profession was really given to me.

published two collections of poems –

What I really wanted to do for myself was to write, and I

Clinical Blues (2014) about his experiences

knew that since I was about eleven years old. So writing

in medical school and more recently, A

really is my ﬁrst or preferred profession. I grew up in two

Woman's Body is a Country (2017). He co-

places. My early childhood was in Ado-Ekiti, and then I

founded Saraba Magazine in 2008, while a

moved to Lagos when my father switched professions

student of Obafemi Awolowo University,

from lecturing to work in ﬁnance. In Lagos, I schooled in

Ile-Ife

Yaba and lived in Iju Ishaga. What that meant was that I

appeared in several online publications.

and

his

music

reviews

have

spent my childhood in trafﬁc. During these long journeys I would read, and, I imagine, that stimulated my appetite for books. I wasn't really a sociable kid; what I loved to do was read. In addition, my parents are in the academia, so they always placed a premium on educational accomplishments. Your latest work, a collection of poems “A Woman's Body is a Country” was released this year. Please tell us more about your inspiration, creative process and what you seek to achieve with your poetry. I've been writing poetry since I was eleven, and reading [novels] since I was about that age. Poetry is the writing form that appeals most to me, and comes most easily. My poetry, I'd say, is inspired by living, life, humanity, and seeing how my experiences interface with others. Life and art have a complex bidirectional relationship. My ﬁrst book, “Clinical Blues”, is a book that helps you understand what it means to be a doctor or medical student, at a certain time in Nigeria's history. There's a disillusionment that comes with passing through medical school – you come in with so much enthusiasm and optimism and watch it be dashed – and that was essentially what I tried to capture. It also had the elements of coming of age. With “A Woman's Body is a

Amsul Digest | 2017

“There's a disillusionment that comes with passing through medical school – you come in with so much enthusiasm and optimism and watch it be dashed”

poor. The legal backing for

Doctorow said that “Writing is a

mental health in Nigeria is the

socially acceptable form of

Lunacy Act of 1916! The mental

schizophrenia.” The truth is that

health bill currently pending in

to be a writer, you have to think

the legislature is not coming to

out of the box, and when you do

fruition. In a country where we

that, you are already leaving the

have more spiritual leaders than

Gaussian curve middle and going

doctors, you cannot expect

towards the extreme. Humanity

people to not explore these other

clusters around mediocrity and

options and the hospitals would

writers are the exceptions

not even have the capacity to deal with all mental health cases.

.You have travelled out of Nigeria

Another key challenge is the

and have had opportunities to

Country”, I wanted to be more

disillusionment of doctors.

not practice in Nigeria. Why do

intentional, to explore affection

Doctors are leaving in their

you choose to stay? Do you have

as a verb, as opposed to being a

hundreds and we have a country

big dreams for Nigeria?

noun. Our emotional responses

with less than 500 psychiatrists

The truth is that this is the only

to life, living, bodies, lovers,

that makes no effort to keep

country I have. I carry a Nigerian

things, people, scenarios. I

those it trains. So these are the

passport; I'm not ashamed of it.

wanted to write from a point of

realities.

However, if you go outside the

view similar to my realities. I seek

country, your realities are shaken.

to achieve something beautiful

What is it about being a literary

But I have big dreams for this

with my poetry; I'm obsessed

artist that predisposes to mental

country. I hope Nigeria will one

with beauty and poetry is about

health challenges?

day be able to rise above

beauty.

I think the question should be

ethnicity, tribalism, nepotism; to

rephrased. What is it about

come to a point where everyone

Challenges of mental health in

mental health that predisposes to

is Nigerian ﬁrst. I have big

Nigeria, as a psychiatrist?

writing? There's something called

dreams for this country but I'm

The truth about psychiatry - if

hypergraphia, commonly found

just one person.

you call it the neglected child of

in schizophrenics. They feel a

medicine, you wouldn't be too far

need to express themselves, even

from the truth. And how do we

if in jargon. That's what we do;

as a society engage mental

we ﬁnd ways to express

health? It is still shrouded in

ourselves. Recording our

myth. People see mental illnesses

thoughts and realities is a human

as repercussion for evil, being

impulse, and those who have

weak, demonic afﬂiction, but

unusual experiences are more

never as the fact that some

likely to record them. Also it is

transmitters in the brain have

commonly believed that the

gone amok. In addition, the

illness of genius is bipolar

amount of money voted to

affective disorder. If you look at

mental health in Nigeria is

any list of famous people

ridiculously low, perhaps because

rumoured to be bipolar, you'll see

mental illnesses do not kill people

writers, actors, thinkers. After all,

directly, but reduce the quality of

the difference between genius

life. The engagement with mental

and madness is a thin line. One of

health at the legislative level is

my favourite authors, E.L.

If you look at any list of famous people rumoured to be bipolar, you'll see writers, actors, thinkers. After all, the difference between genius and madness is a thin line. Amsul Digest | 2017

Do you have mentors?

exams when due and that was because I was able to multitask.

Of course, I do. Mentors are

Multitasking is a delicate balance, and you just need to strike that

important, and mentorship really is

balance. So my advice is to be everything you want to be, and be

bidirectional. I have mentors in my

spiritual about it – believe something!

different ﬁelds. In writing, all dead writers are my mentors. I can

How do you unwind?

engage with their writings without

I like to unwind. You have to ﬁnd time to also relax, to not be too

their physical presence and enjoy

serious. Because the professions I am in are very serious, so I ﬁnd

them. Also, there are writers like

time to relax often – in the company of friends, beers, loud music,

John Irving, Lawrence Sanders,

ﬁnger foods. I don't meditate. The Zen is in being in the company of

whose books I read a lot. In fact, my

people who you have no grudges against and have no grudges

style of writing is a tribute to him

against you; those who share their hearts and souls with you. These

[Lawrence Sanders]. In the ﬁeld of

moments also feed back into my work; ideas come through these

poetry, people like Wole Soyinka,

experiences.

J.P Clark, Niyi Osundare, Chinua Achebe. In psychiatry, Prof. Femi

What are your life goals? Do you keep a timeline? What is your

Oyebode, a poet, writer and

concept of fulﬁlment?

psychiatrist; Dr. Femi Olugbile, a

I don't have any life goals. People say I'm ambitious, but I don't even

writer and psychiatrist; Niran

understand that. I take every day as it comes. I try to be disciplined.

Okewole, a poet and psychiatrist;

Next year, for instance, I'd be very busy with my dissertation and

Wale Okediran, a writer and doctor.

would have less time for writing. Bottom line, you have to set goals,

These are all people whose lives

but I don't give myself strict timelines. I just plan my time very well.

have shaped mine and who have

I'm able to achieve all I'm able to achieve by doing things as at when

done what I hope to do. I look at

due.

their lives and try to see what I can take from them. Many medical students are taking to writing – poetry, short stories. What's the best advice you can give to those interested in both ﬁelds? When I was in school, I was so passionate about writing that my parents wanted me to abandon it to focus on studying. Then my dad read a book that said, “Why be one when you can be both?” That was when he stopped trying to dissuade me from writing. That's what I tell everybody. Don't just be both, be everything. The challenge is to learn how to not be a jack of all trades but to master your trades. You must write if you want to, but not at the detriment of your medicine. I never failed any exams in medical school, passed my membership

Amsul Digest | 2017

YOU HAVE BEEN A pretty serious medical student for the past four years - good grades, fairly okay social life, you get involved with AMSUL planning a few times, save up to attend the dinner, and the most expensive place you have gone to for a social hangout with your friends is Domino's, and when you're feeling a bit rich, you throw in the smallest cup of Cold Stone ice cream. Basically, you're a regular guy (or girl). Then, suddenly, your life changes! You meet this incredibly smart, engaging and beautiful girl. She matches your wit, gets your esoteric jokes and does all of this still looking like a million

THE

dollars. Or you, Miss Independent

GUIDE

give you great advice, and looks like

DATING

ON A

HITCHHIKER'S

meets him - he does not try to tell you

BUDGET Nwachukwu Chiamaka 500L 38

you're too ambitious, he gets you, listens to you, he is smart enough to Will Smith. The mall suddenly doesn't seem beďŹ tting to take the love of your life to, and on special occasions you really want to go all out. But your bank account is just eyeballing you. If you are not a rich kid like my friend Bolu, this is probably you and you're tearing your hair out on how to do something nice that does not have you drinking borrowed garri for three weeks. Here is a list of pocket-friendly places you can go on dates without having to trip over six year olds going to see Despicable Me 3.

Amsul Digest | 2017

Food, oh glorious food! Everyone likes food. Even I (with

Sunday Buffet!

my erratic appetite) like to gorge myself on an all-you can eat from time to time. Buffets are the best way to just let yourself go, and it gives you an opportunity to watch how your date eats when there are no restrictions (if you have paid for someone's food before, you would know how important an observation like this is). Buffets usually cost about ten thousand naira, but there are two places that have friendlier prices- Hotel Bon Voyage (4,500 naira per head) and Red Beryl Lounge (2,500 naira per head). Hotel Bon Voyage is located at 57a AJ Marinho Drive ,Off Tony Anegbode Street, Victoria Island, and Red Beryl is at

Tip: These buffet options usually do not Tip: include drinks, so you might want to take a

Fefferetti Mall, 37 Adebayo Doherty Street, Lekki Phase 1.

little extra money for your drinks or just

Hotel Bon Voyage has the buffet offering every day of

drink water in the Uber before going in.

the week, however Red Beryl's is just for Sundays.

The Jazzhole

Artsy people, get in here! If you want time out from the general madness that is Lagos, as well as a comfortable place to cozy up to your date who loves books and music, The Jazzhole is just the place for you. It's a sweet haven of good music, African art, books and a nice café with delicious sandwiches, cakes and other such snacks. In the evenings there's a live jazz band and there are Tip:

If your date is a big-eater, you might want to get

monthly exhibitions of African art, music and books.

food at Foodee ﬁrst before leaving.

The Jazzhole is located at 168, Awolowo Road, Ikoyi. Ice-cream has been spicing up romance since the beginning of time, and it's pretty inexpensive as well.

Desserts

You can ditch ﬁt-fam for a day and indulge in the lovely desserts Lagos has to offer. Two places with great desserts are Cream Slices at 109 Ogunlana Drive, Surulere ( low t-fare yay!) and Melting Moments at Ikeja City Mall (if you're not interested in Tip: My dentist friend insists I let you know

running into the entire school during your date). The ambiance at these two places is nice, they're quite

you have to brush your teeth or at least

cozy and aren't noisy. The best part is, the desserts

rinse your mouth after this encounter.

are out-of this--world amazing!

Amsul Digest | 2017

Outdoor dates can be so much

Picnic!

fun, and you spend only as much as you decide you want to spend. You are not restricted by food menus at a particular restaurant as you can mix and match food from different stores e.g buy chips at Shoprite and chicken at Tastee Fried Chicken (their chicken is amazing by the way). You can also score massive points by cooking for her (or him) and showing off your culinary prowess.

Ndubuisi Kanu Park at Alausa, Ikeja

You would need a nice basket, paper plates, cups, disposable cutlery and napkins- a bit more effort consuming, but cheaper and would create a lasting impression. Two places I would deﬁnitely recommend are Ndubuisi Kanu Park at Alausa, Ikeja and Jhalobia Park along Airport Road. They both have beautiful scenery, lots and lots of grass and nice little huts you can sit in. You may take a

Jhalobia Park

mat if you want to go all out. Jhalobia has an entry fee of one thousand naira and you can take your own food in. However, entry is free at Ndubuisi Kanu park, Tip:

there's free wi-ﬁ, but there might

Some of these parks are used for events so it is wise to call ahead to be sure you would be able to get in when you get there.

be a few issues with taking your own food in.

I have tried my best to only include places that you can go to without spending a fortune on transportation. Uber, Taxify and the likes are still a cheap easy way of getting around. I would advise you always check the fare estimate ahead of time so you can plan. It's usually a better idea to go to these places on off peak days( such as a weekday evening) - less crowd, and a lower likelihood of surges in taxi prices. Last but deﬁnitely not least, the best dates aren't the ones at the fanciest places, but the ones with great conversation and a lot of fun! Try to relax, have fun, and create a memorable day for you and your date. I hope I get invited to a lot of weddings soon!

Amsul Digest | 2017

RESEARCH Authors: Adebayo, Adeyinka Elizabeth Dr G.O. Afolayan Department of Pharmacology, Toxicology &Therapeutics Faculty of Basic Medical Science, College of Medicine of the University of Lagos

ECOTOXICOLOGICAL EFFECTS OF PHARMACEUTICAL EFFLUENTS FROM SELECTED WATER BODIES IN LAGOS STATE, NIGERIA ON TADPOLES USING Bufo bufo INTRODUCTION

to separate the analytes and contaminants present in the

The increase in demand for

selected samples.

pharmaceuticals has resulted in a

Analyses of the ﬁve extracted compounds were quantitatively

consequent increase in pharmaceutical

carried out using the High Performance Liquid

manufacturing companies in the country

Chromatography. The extracted pharmaceutical efﬂuents

and hence, increased pharmaceutical

were analyzed to reveal different concentration of drugs. All

waste which may contain substantial

values from the experiment were obtained using the

amount of toxic substances which poses

chromatogram.

risk to health (Ayodele et al., 1996; Anetor

A recovery study was conducted using a neat standard,

et al., 1999; Osaigbovo and Orhue, 2006).

extracted standard and internal standard to ensure the

Lagos being an industrial area may have

accuracy and determine percentage recovery.

an increase in the concentration of these pharmaceutical efﬂuents and this may be

Animal Collection Acclimatization

dangerous to the health system. Hence,

Four hundred (400) tadpoles (Bufo bufo) were obtained

there is need to assess the disposal

from fresh water habitat in Iwaya and Festac town areas in

methods of pharmaceuticals in our

Lagos state. The ﬁve-day old tadpoles were allowed to

environment.

acclimatize in their natural habitat water mixed with tap water. These tadpoles attached to algae present on water

AIMS & OBJECTIVES

lettuce for growth and survival.

To determine the presence of selected pharmaceuticals in some water bodies

Acute Toxicity Testing and Abnormal Avoidance Response.

within Lagos State and toxicological

This test was a modiﬁcation of Ezemonye and Ilechie's work

effects of these pharmaceutical efﬂuents.

(2007). Efﬂuents were distributed into 4 groups of different concentrations ranging from 0%, 25%, 50% & 100%. Thirty

METHODOLOGY

tadpoles per group were used. Abnormal Avoidance

Sample Collection, Solid Phase Extraction

Response characterized by poor swimming abilities and

(SPE) and High Performance Liquid

Mortality was observed per group at an interval of 24 hours

Chromatography.

over a 96-hour period (Wojtaszek, 2004). The 0% served as

The samples were collected from selected

the control group for the experiment.

water bodies in Lagos State, Nigeria. The

Probit values for lethal concentration LC50 at 96 h was

Solid-Phase Extraction (SPE) technique is

calculated for the tadpoles. Statisical Analysis was conducted

employed in the extraction of the sample

using One-way ANOVA (Analysis of Variance).

Amsul Digest | 2017

RESULT 12

Abnormal Avoidance Response

Concentration (µg/ml)

E3 E1

E1 E2 E3

0 control

100 per

15 0% 25% 50%

Mortality

50 per

DIﬀerent Concentra ons of E1, E2 and E3.

0% 25% 50%

100%

0 DAY 1

DAY 2

DAY 3

DAY 4

Administra on of diﬀerent concentra ons over a 4-day period

DAY 1

DAY 2

DAY 3

DAY 4

Administra on of diﬀerent concentra ons over a 4 day (96 h) period

16 14 12 10 Mortality

Mortality

Drugs detected from analyzed Samples

25 per

25% 50%

100% 4 2 0 DAY 1

DAY 2

DAY 3

DAY 4

Administra on of diﬀerent concentra ons over a 4day (96 h) period

Amsul Digest | 2017

DISCUSSION

reported by Odiete (1999).

In this study, the pharmaceutical efﬂuents greatly

Abnormal avoidance response of tadpoles in the

affected the survival of Bufo bufo. The acute

treatment concentration showed a relationship

toxicity result showed a concentration dependent

when compared with mortality such that tadpoles

increase in mortality. The results obtained

that displayed abnormal avoidance responses died

suggested concentration-dependent survival and

the subsequent day. The abnormal avoidance

concentration graded lethality among the tadpoles

response was concentration dependent in the

i.e. mortality increased with increase in

treated groups. In contrast, the control group

concentration such that 100 % concentration of

yielded normal avoidance response. There was no

each efﬂuent (E1, E2 and E3) recorded the highest

signiﬁcant statistical difference between the three

mortality (Akintonwa et al., 2009). There was no

efﬂuents – E1, E2 and E3 when compared using the

signiﬁcant statistical difference in the mortality of

abnormal avoidance response. Similarly, there was

tadpoles between E1, E2 and E3. In contrast, the

no signiﬁcant statistical difference between the

control was the least toxic as death was very

efﬂuent-treated groups of each efﬂuent.

minimal when compared to the efﬂuent treated

Alternation in avoidance of response as stated by

groups. Results of the acute toxicity testing was

Brodie and Formanowicz in 1983, Cooke in 1997 was

similar to earlier results obtained from effect of

found to precede mortality. This indicates that

pharmaceutical efﬂuents on root of Allium cepa by

behavioural alternations resulting from intoxication

Akintonwa et al., in 2009.

was a more sensitive measure of toxicity than

The high mortality recorded per efﬂuent-treated

mortality. It has also been stated that tadpoles

group could be explained by bio-concentration of

exhibiting abnormal avoidance response have

these contaminated water samples in the amphibian

greater susceptibility to predation (Kreutzweiser et

larval stages. This can result in retention of these

al., 1994).

efﬂuents in the amphibian's body tissue which when

After pre-concentration and quantiﬁcation using the

fed on by a predator can lead to the concentration

HPLC, the analyzed samples were found to contain

of the chemical from one trophic level to the next as

selected analytes which include: metformin

Amsul Digest | 2017

(antidiabetic drug), ibuprofen (NSAID), levoﬂoxacin

REFERENCES

& ciproﬂoxacin (antibiotics) and chloroquine (anti-

Akintonwa A, Awodele O, Afolayan G, Coker

malarial). However, paracetamol was not detected

H.A(2009).Mutagenic screening of some commonly

in all the analyzed samples.

used medicinal plants in Nigeria. Journal of

Presence of these drugs even at sub-therapeutic

Ethnopharmacology, 125(3) 461-470.

doses can result in development of resistance e.g.

Anetor J. I, Adeniyi F. A, Taylor G.O (1999).

antimicrobials and even conditions such as

Biochemical indicators of metabolic poisoning

hookworm, ascariasis, typhoid, liver and kidney

associated with lead based occupations in

damage, Alzheimer's disease, Non-Hodgkin's

nutritionally disadvantaged communities. African

lymphoma, multiple sclerosis, hormonal problems

Journal of Medicine & Medical Sciences 28: pages 9-

that can disorder development and reproductive

12.

processes, cancer, heart disease, damage to the

Ayodele J.T, Momoh R.U, Amin M (1996).

nervous system, different type of damages on

Determination of heavy metals in Sharada Industrial

babies in womb, Parkinson's disease, damage to the

efﬂuents, in Water Quality Monitoring and

DNA and even death could result from drinking

Environmental Status in Nigeria, Proceedings of the

water polluted by pharmaceutical efﬂuents (Kapoor,

National Seminar on Water Quality Monitoring and

2015). This is due to ability of these contaminants to

Status in Nigeria, powered by Federal

persist in the environment over a long period of

Environmental Protection Agency and National

time as it runs into ground, surface and drinking

Water Resources Institute. Federal Environmental

water; it can pose a serious health risk to humans

Protection Agency, October 16-18, 1991: pages 158-

leading to mutagenicity and carcinogenicity

166.

(Velagati et al., 2002).

Kreutzweiser D.P, Holmes S.B, Eichenberg D.C (1994). Inﬂuences of exposure duration on the

CONCLUSION

toxicology of triclopyrester to ﬁsh and aquatic

The results obtained from this study revealed

insects. Archives of Environmental Contamination &

presence of pharmaceuticals in the samples

Toxicology 26: pages 124–129.

collected from surface water. This may pose

Odiete W.O (1999). Impacts associated with water

adverse consequences on health of humans and the

pollution in Environmental Physiology of Animals

environment at large. Therefore, there is an urgent

and Pollution. Diversiﬁed Resources Limited, Lagos

need to enforce the treatment of pharmaceutical

1st edition, pages 187-219

efﬂuents by pharmaceutical companies in Nigeria so

Osaigbovo, A.E, Orhue E.R (2006). Inﬂuence of

as to reduce such environmental and health risks.

pharmaceutical efﬂuents on some soil chemical properties and early growth of maize (Zea mays L).

RECOMMENDATION

African Journal of Biotechnology. 5: 18.

Strict monitoring by the Regulatory bodies such as

Velagati R, Bums P.K, Gill M, and Prothero J. (2002).

NAFDAC to ensure that waste water from these

Impact of arrest good manufacturing practices and

companies is well treated before being discharged

emission regulation and guidance on the discharge

into water bodies is recommended.

of pharmaceutical chemicals into the environment from manufacturing, use and disposal.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Environmental Health Prospectives 110: pages 213 -

I want to thank my Parents and Sisters for their

220.

encouragement and support. I also wish to thank

Wojtaszek B.F (2004). In site investigation of the

Ojobor P.D. for his technical support, Dr D.K.

effects of vision and Realse silvicultural herbicides

Adeyemi and Dr J.A Oladimeji-Salami for their

on plankton and larval amphibians. PhD Thesis,

immeasurable assistance.

University of Guelph, Guelph, Canada.

Amsul Digest | 2017

"IF I SHOULD ASK you who you love the most, how long will it take you to call yourself?" These are the lines that begin the Spoken Word Piece "U. G. L. Y." And it was just that until I began to ask myself and close friends the same question. Thus, #theUGLYmovement was birthed on Instagram, a movement to promote

U.G.L.Y. U.G.L.Y. U Gotta Love Yourself

self love. Why self love? Because it plays a crucial role in our overall physical, social and mental wellbeing. Here are some of the most honest, deep and very helpful responses to "Why U. G. L. Y.?"

by Igbor Clement, 500L "#UGLYbecause... Those are not flaws, they don't stop who I want to be, they don't define who I am, they are just there to define my uniqueness"

@oluwatomie_rol #theUGLYmovement

@redmosquitodraws

#UGLYbecause... LOVE ME, HATE ME, IT DOESN'T INFLUENCE MY SELF-WORTH. I'll rather embrace it all, ﬂaws and perfection, strength and weakness. My self love is borne out of the truth that my weaknesses have got nothing on me

"#UGLYbecause... (You)

@temilohluh

do not deprive yourself of

#theUGLYmovement

love, loving yourself is the

#UGLYbecause wishing to be

ﬁrst principle to becoming

someone else is a sentence

the best you can be"

of misery and exhaustion"

@funmibi_obadare #theUGLYmovement

Amsul Digest | 2017

@deolaar_ #theUGLYmovement

"#UGLYbecause...

I refuse to blend in, I opt to STAND OUT.

No matter how many comments are passed...

#UGLYbecause there is

Your real self is still your

only one ME, and only ME

real self..."

can love ME to please ME."

@_trapkween

@graceangel_s #theUGLYmovement

#theUGLYmovement

"#UGLYbecause...

My ﬁve ﬁngers aren't

many ﬂoodlights

equal, So how do you

have been

expect me to be perfect?

reduced to

Of course I do have ﬂaws.

ﬂickers because

But...

they loved

They don't deﬁne me"

someone, people

@_janna__o

“#UGLYbecause...

#theUGLYmovement

Ordinary mirrors can't show

and things. But not themselves..."

"#UGLYbecause...

you (who) you truly are...

@taralagh

I've learned to

Because you show the world

#theUGLYmovement

embrace the scars in

how to love (you)... And U

me and the ﬂaws I

Gotta Love Yourself, because

have 'cos my ﬂaws mark my special identity." But...

you're the MASTERPIECE..."

@_oluwatoni_ #theUGLYmovement

They don't deﬁne “#UGLYbecause only self love guarantees true

me"

happiness. You have to embrace your weaknesses

@seun_funmii #theUGLYmovement

nobody is perfect, so why the stress? And you

"#UGLYbecause... My

can't give what you don't have, you can't truly love

imperfections are a part of me

someone else if you don't love yourself."

but they do not DEFINE me, my actions do"

@iam_alake

@topsaky #theUGLYmovement

#UGLYbecause... My hairline doesn't agree with

#theUGLYmovement

me. Ugly because I see on a bathroom scale what I

"#UGLYbecause the self is the

want to see on my test results. Ugly yes, ugly but

basic unit of love. Loving

perfect. Perfect ‘cause I am in the light of he that

yourself translates to loving

has called me into being. Perfect ‘cause I've learnt

your Creator and loving your

to love myself just like U Gotta Love Yourself"

neighbors as yourself. The world needs love and love starts with loving you. U. Gotta. Love. Yourself."

@thatpoetclem #theUGLYmovement

and scars to show God's strength and beauty. TBH

@nazom_ngini #theUGLYmovement

U Gotta Love Yourself U.G.L.Y.

Amsul Digest | 2017

#notKolo AMSUL TweetChat 4.0

A lot of brainstorming is put into organising the AMSUL tweet chats year after year to meet the very high standard set by our predecessors. This year with our theme being 'mental health' we decided to address the misconceptions surrounding mental health and shed more light about it. Thus the reason for #notKolo

AMSUL

The King In The Not

@AMSUL_UNILAG

@thatpoetclem

#notKolo

Kolo or #notKolo? Tonight we go know @AMSUL_UNILAG @MentallyAwareNG #mentalhealth

DJtegzi_#MobMusic @Tegzoid_d_don Just Because your friend, neighbor or colleague visits a psychiatrist or psychologist in sessions does not make them MAD or Crazy avoid Stigmatisation.... Don't be stale This is 2017 join the #notKolo trend

Zain @_Olah__

EMe~NKwo @molilkid We say he's weird, eccentric Solitude is his home For Rumours, he atones Talk to him, perception isnt visual Words work wonders #notKolo

Even As medical student, I still make stupid jokes about mental health which isn't meant to be. We should all be sensitive to what people are going through. You never know who is struggling #notKolo

Izzie. @zeetah_

Chibuike Davidson @Davidsonbolt No one chooses mental illness, so stop judging and act appropriately #notKolo

Amsul Digest | 2017

Please if you notice behavioral changes in the people around you, you'll do a great deal of good by helping them seek help. They may need attention from a psychiatrist or clinical psychologist. #notKolo

AMSUL

desert wolf

@AMSUL_UNILAG

@therealdimeji

#notKolo

Pls don't say 'get over it, are u not a man'. They may need therapy to overcome depression, anxiety disorder, mania etc. Advice to get help 4rm a psychiatrist. #notKolo

Ogbonnaya Elijah Ife @ogbonsifeanyi06 Pls ooo Not everyone that's mentally challenged is evil spirit ooo.. stop the spiritual ďŹ&#x201A;ogging.. #notKolo

HarmattanFell @akenny_O Dear Pastors and religious leaders, Pray for your members who are mentally ill, But encourage them to see a psychiatrist too. #notKolo

Chibuzor F. Ogamba @Cogamba The fact that your elderly mother in-law behaves abnormally does not mean she is responsible for your marital problems. Do well to ?Dementia, ?Alzheimers, ?Schizophrenia, ?Complex partial seizures #notKolo and see an expert.

Chuqu_amaka @El_Ai_Jah It's easy to say suicide is stupid until it's your friend that is contemplating doing it #notKolo

Ajike @he_shouts_bibi Everything in Nigeria is spiritual, hence people with mental illness end up in the wrong places, when they ďŹ nally seek help. #notKolo

Death's Emissary @RickyBlaise Depression is real Obsessive Compulsive Disorders are real Post Traumatic Stress Disorders are real Bipolar Disorders are real U may think they only affect d whites bt they r very common among us in Africa Patients suffering from these disorders shud nt be ridiculed #notKolo

Oluwafemi Dewunmeee @ThakeeNaH Kings, You don't have to have to be strong every time, it's okay to seek help #notKolo

@__Nogitsune According to society, men are supposed to be strong, show no fear. Whilst everything is wrong inside, we just bottle it all up. I don't even think men cry. If I cry, I'm #notKolo sha.

Aminah Taiwo

Night King

@aminah_tai

@OlumsAkinde

While mental illness can occur at any age, three-fourths of all mental illness begins by age 24 #notKolo

There is no immunity to mental illness. Not everyone develops a mental illness during their lives, but anyone could. #notKolo

Tobby #Notkolo

Osakwe Gift

@Astute_writa

@lilmsImportant

Nigerians just attribute everything to the Village. She just needs someone for her to open her heart to. She's deďŹ nitely #notKolo

@poet.oma @philsgift01 Its not the gods nor His village people speaking to him, it is schizophrenia #notKolo

Dr.George @georgizman009 No matter what life's throwing at you, suicide is not a way out #notKolo

Mental illness is not contagious , you can't catch it by being kind #notKolo

Alternating Current @chiedu_ahmad Did you know that depression is a clinically diagnosed condition and can be treated with medication? #notKolo

2ndekol @ola2ndejohn Alcohol is not the treatment for depression, seek help.. #notKolo

Olatanwa AMSUL @AMSUL_UNILAG Helplines #Suicide #notKolo

@timaagbalaya You don't have to lie on the outside because you think you have an image to protect in the inside you might just be chasing your helper away #notKolo

Izzie. @zeetah_ Do you have a persistently low mood or feel uninterested in doing things you used to love? Do you hear voices that others can't hear? Do you harbour thoughts of self harm or suicide? It's all part of mental health. Please talk to a doctor today.# #notKolo

HarmattanFell @akenny_O You haven't lived your best life yet. Don't end it. #notKolo

Amsul Digest | 2017

MOVIES ON MENTAL HEALTH ONUNKWO EMEKA 500L

The silver screen has a signiﬁcant effect on our perceptions especially in cases where we lack exposure. Mental health is a heavily recurring topic in film and TV and has created characters from the misunderstood to the downright terrifying, some depicting actual illnesses, while others are completely ﬁctional. These are some of the movies whose stories deeply resonated with me.

What's Eating Gilbert Grape

It's Kind Of A Funny Story.

Split

This ﬁlm, slow as it seems, grows

We meet our protagonist at a point

Split focuses on a man with

on the viewer and has such an

where he is in total self-doubt

criminalistic tendencies coupled

emotional core to it that tears

about himself and his abilities, due

with dissociative identity disorder.

ﬂow so easily. It is about autism,

to some circumstances he ﬁnds

This ﬁlm is a thriller in all

the person it affects, and the

himself in. He diagnoses himself

ramiﬁcations and even though it

lives of all those directly

with depression and admits himself

touches on a rather controversial

involved in his care. This is also

to a rehab centre. He becomes the

mental disorder in a highly ﬁctional

combined with stories of self-

viewer's eyes and ears to the plight

manner, it's a beauty to behold all

discovery, romance, overcoming

of the mentally diseased and

the personalities embedded in this

addiction and even death.

comes to a shocking realisation.

character.

Rating:

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The Machinist The ﬁlm centres around a machinist whose insomnia and psychological issues lead to a workplace hazard, the consequences of which drive him off the rails once more into paranoia and delusion. The Machinist is a ﬁlm about loss and the burden of persecution from those we hold dear. Rating:

««««««««««

Black Swan Nina is a dancer in a prestigious ballet company, given the chance to headline in a forefront production. She is initially ecstatic about the role, however the workload, stress and the constant fear of replacement haunt her until her life becomes a living nightmare. Black Swan is a metaphorical movie about the inner demons artists face when trying to

16 50

attain perfection. Rating:

«««««««««« Amsul Digest | 2017

The Babadook Amelia Vanek is a deeply troubled widow isolated by her husband's death. She drowns out her grief by dedicating her life to their only child. When her son starts to see visions of a monster set out to harm their family, she develops conﬂicted feelings towards him. When the monster

manifests to her, she comes to an unexpected realisation. The Babadook is about how we deal with grief after the loss of a loved one and the effect of isolation on a troubled mind. Rating:

«««««««««« Nightcrawler Nightcrawler is not a typical story of a mentally disturbed individual, however it fringes on ethics, capitalism and choices. We view a character with a lapsed sense of morality and heavily sociopathic tendencies. He uses these attributes to get ahead in the world, whereas others would have seen

them as a limitation. Rating:

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The Beaver Walter, the CEO of a bankrupt toy company is depressed and has lost interest in his daily activities and family, becoming a burden to all those around him. He however invents a special toy that allows him live off as an alternate personality, until he can no longer separate the real from the

unreal. The Beaver is a tale about depression, insecurity and reinvention. Rating:

««««««««««

12 Memento In this ﬁlm, Leonard suffers anterograde amnesia and

struggles to come to terms with

The Perks of Being a Wallﬂower

Requiem for a Dream

the murder of his wife. He aims

The Wallﬂowers of the world are

Requiem is a story of four

to seek out his wife's killer but

ignored and the rejected. This

interrelated people trapped in

the closer he gets to solving the

movie follows Charlie, a teenage

different phases of substance

puzzle, the more confused he

boy suffering from depression and

addiction but with a crescendo of

seems to become. Memento

PTSD as he tries to manoeuvre

even worse choices. We see

deals with amnesia and the

through life as an outsider. Charlie

problems in their life compound as

traumatic effects on the psyche

has repressed memories about

they fail to recognise the cause of

of those affected. The recurring

various parts of his life and seeks

it all. The calm demeanour of the

patterns and fractured storyline

to discover the truth behind his

characters even in the face of

make this movie a pleasure to

condition. Perks is a fun,

destruction is heavily disturbing. If

watch as the viewer becomes

captivating story enriched with

this movie doesn't scare you, you

the detective.

easily lovable characters.

may indeed need rehab.

Rating:

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Amsul Digest | 2017

Rating:

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8 The Sixth sense

The sixth sense is about a

Melancholia

psychologist who is obsessed with

Melancholia is a ﬁlm about

the only failed case he handled.

American Beauty

depression and how depressed

The encounter haunts him so much

What is life when we are stuck in

people often tend to ﬁnd peace

he decides to take up a familiar

monotony? American beauty

in disastrous situations. The ﬁlm

case involving a child. The child

follows a man in a middle age

centres on a newly-wed bride

seems to have the hallucinations

crisis, going through life with a

who is regretting her decision.

but on further prodding, he is seen

deeply set frown until he

She ﬁnds herself unable to enjoy

to be supernaturally gifted. The

encounters his daughter's best

the pleasures of marriage, but

sixth sense is not so much about

friend. This fascination brings out

when faced with a threat to the

mental illness but focuses on the

the inner demons that have

entire human existence, she has

doctor-patient dynamic and how

haunted him and result in his

an unexpected reaction.

toxic it may become.

destruction in more ways than one.

Rating:

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Rating:

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Rating:

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6 Fight Club

Fight club is in short, an insane

movie for insane people. It has a

Still Alice

Synecdoche New York

highly convoluted plot central to

Alice, an accomplished English

If we got to see life as a fractured

which is a man suffering from

Professor, is diagnosed with a

mirror, replacing the pieces as we

insomnia, for which he actively

premature form of Alzheimer's

try to move on. Would we ever see

searches for a cure. A chance

disease. Having her most prized

our true selves? In synecdoche, a

meeting with a stranger

ability ripped from her at such an

man decides to recreate his life in a

provides the therapy he needs in

early age, she struggles with life

play but ﬁnds that the alterations

more ways than one. However,

like she has never before. This

he makes have ripple effects in real

therapy is insolvent when

movie dwells on identity and the

life. This movie is utterly moving

problems aren't confronted.

resolve of the human mind.

and poetic from start to ﬁnish.

Rating:

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Rating:

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Rating:

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2 Shutter Island Shutter Island is a psychological thriller, focussing on a

detective’s foray into a mental health institution with

We Need To Talk About Kevin

an ulterior motive to ﬁnd his wife's killer. Nothing is as

This movie delves into the mental trauma parents

simple as it seems as there are various complexities in

undergo when raising a problematic child. Kevin, the

the case, each of which are vital to the storyline and a

titular character is a sociopath with an obsession with

revelation at the end that is utterly mind-blowing.

death. His condition alienates both himself and those

Shutter Island is absolutely immersing in every way

around him and eventually leads to an inevitable

from its stellar cinematography and its haunting score

disaster.

to its capable actors.

Rating:

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Rating:

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1 A Beautiful Mind A Beautiful Mind is a biographical ﬁlm about John Nash, the renowned Nobel Laureate. It follows him throughout the span of his academic career, showing us his successes, defeats and the compromises he had to make due to his mental illness. John is a paranoid schizophrenic who experiences both auditory and visual hallucinations. A Beautiful Mind is a beautiful movie indeed with a refreshing and realistic portrayal of mental illness. Rating:

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Amsul Digest | 2017

MEDICAL PUNS Compiled by

Adefolalu Oluwatoyosi 600L WHILE STAYING IN GOOD health may be no laughing matter, some people ﬁnd the lighter side of medicine with puns. From word play on body parts to poking fun at the medical profession, medical puns are a healthy way to have fun. Remember, they say laughter is the best medicine!

When you get a bladder infection - urine

In medical school he worried about passing

trouble!!!

as a surgeon, but he eventually made the cut.

I tried to look up impotence on the Internet, but nothing came up.

The rise of the orthopedic doctor depends on the fall of the patients!

Hospitals are I.V. league institutions. The doctor couldn't transfer the organs I felt super exhausted after giving blood. It's

because he didn't have the guts to do it.

such a draining procedure. Why is an eye doctor like a teacher? They The painter was hospitalized due to too many

both test the pupils!

strokes. Nurses are patient people My wife is feeling better after getting her appendix removed. Unfortunately, she will never

I will tell you the jokes about germs but I

be able to reference this chapter of her life.

don't want you to spread them around

Yesterday I accidentally swallowed some food

A couple of blood cells met and fell in love,

coloring. The doctor says I'm OK, but I feel like

their relationship was all in vein.

I've dyed a little inside. You will never see two skeletons ﬁght each Recommended ﬁctitious medical books -

other because they simply don't have the

“Opening Blocked Arteries" by Angie O'Plasty

guts

“Cardiac Arrest" by V. Fibb and A. Systole "Chest Pain" by Ann Jyna "Dangerous Arrhythmias" by Vee Tacke-Cahdia "A Shocking Experience" by Dee Fibrillator "Blood Pressure Regulation" by Angie O'Tensin "Vomiting" by Emma Cis "Jaundice" by Billy Rubin

Amsul Digest | 2017

WHAT 2017 HAS TAUGHT ME ABOUT

MENTAL HEALTH NGINI CHINAZOM 200L

There are a few things that would have gone

World Health Organization themed the World

through your mind while reading the title of this

Health day “Depression: Let's Talk” and so the

article:

nations of the world, including Nigeria, were about

1. Mental illness again? I thought we had moved on from that. 2. This is probably one of those cliché depression articles. 3. I should read this and try to form “woke” on social issues. Well I obviously don't know what you may have been thinking so I'll just get on with it then… I remember coming across a tweet at the end of

doing the most to ﬁght depression. There were health talks, walks, checks, movies, top rated series. Thankfully, a lot of this is still going on. Amidst all these, I feel like it would have been impossible not to pick a couple of lessons on the topic of mental health. At least I did: 1. Mental health is just as important as physical health. 2. Mental illnesses are not race speciﬁc. This

last year(2016) which read “What are Nigerians

means that while certain races may be more

doing about mental illnesses?”

predisposed to certain conditions, it does not

This question rang in my head continuously as I had

make that condition exclusive to the race.

had a similar discussion with a family member prior

3. The witches are not at fault. Mental illnesses

to that time. What was even more shocking were the replies. People replied with: 1. Nothing. 2. Believing we're immune to any type of mental illness. 3. Blaming them on the witches in the village (most shocking but most honest at the time).

are usually as a result of stress, hormonal imbalances, genes… an endless list of factors. 4. There is so much stigma attached to mental illnesses and this prevents a lot of victims from coming forward about their problems. It's crazy when you consider the fact that with all the rallies, movies, tv series and even fashion lines

It came as a huge shock on March 19 when a

aimed at raising awareness on mental health issues,

Nigerian citizen took a leap off the Third Mainland

there are still those that are less informed or not

bridge to his death. His wasn't the ﬁrst suicide the

informed at all. There are still so many myths and so

country was seeing but for some reason it was the

much misinformation going round. We as members

most talked about in a very long time. A week later

of the society have a duty to work through the

and social media was up and buzzing with talk of

stigma attached to certain conditions. Things can

mental health, depression, showing love,

only get better when we all make a conscious effort.

stigmatization. It had become a trend to tweet

Also, for those of us that happen to be more

anything raising awareness on mental illnesses… we

informed on the subject, tell someone to tell

had ﬁnally stopped blaming the witches and had

someone. The more information people have, the

started taking the situation head on.

better. Slowly but surely, we'll ﬁnally be able to

As though it was all part of a plan set in motion, the

attain a mentally stable and safe community.

Amsul Digest | 2017

HEALTH WEEK AWARENESS

COOKING COMPETITION

QUIZ COMPETITION

MISS AMSUL PAGEANT

DINNER & AWARDS NIGHT

INTER-CLASS PROJECT

SYMPOSIUM

SCIENTIFIC CONFERENCE