A Nigerian woman identified on X (formerly Twitter) as @temmy_omoileri has come under fire after revealing that three of her children are living with sickle cell disease.
The mother of four had taken to the platform to seek advice, writing:
“I Need information for sickel cell anemia. 3 of my kids got sickel cell disease. They all wear glasses. Literally we all wear glasses. So, my 3rd boy has serious vision issues and unfortunately the specialist haven’t been able to understand why. He’s seen different specialist. Even with glasses he can barely see. This is giving me some silent concerns as it’s well understood that the medical practitioners here in Canada doesn’t have enough information or treatment plans for sickel cell as compared to Africa and Europe. This is what I’m told, it could be wrong. I will appreciate any information thats legit to help him.”
Her post quickly went viral, drawing mixed reactions, with many users expressing shock and anger over her revelation.
She was queried about the circumstances of her situation and how it had managed to escalate to such a point.
One user, @ImmaJF, asked:
“I have questions. Was there a mistake with you and/or your husband’s genotyping before marriage? If yes, Were the 3 diagnosed after the birth of the third child or was any of them born after one or two had already been diagnosed?”
Responding, the woman said she and her husband never checked their genotypes before marriage.
“None of us checked but I knew I was AS. We both didn’t know until baby 4 was born in Canada. Thanks for asking. God bless you.”
Her explanation did little to calm public outrage, as many accused her and her husband of negligence.
User @kingnerov wrote:
“Not to sound insensitive, but you and your husband deserve to be locked up.”
Another user, @OloriofOlories, said:
“You’re very cruel to have done such to 3 children. You could have easily stoped at one if was even a mistake but you went on to have 3! Knowing the risk, the pain and unfair life of illness you’re bring them into.
You and your partner are very wicked.”
@chiefofstaff also weighed in, stating:
“I will always support harsh legal penalties for parents who knowingly bring children into the world with sickle cell. If you were genuinely unaware at first, what stopped you after the first affected child? Carrying on means choosing more children to suffer. That is wickedness.”
Another comment by @diiinma read:
“I have an aunty that had 7 kids, only 2 are alive today, some of them even grew to be adults in their 20s before they passed, I pity her cos she had these kids in an era where they didn’t know better, but you ma’am are a very wicked soul.”
Similarly, @ray_ofnothing wrote:
“‘You’re strong’ everywhere, meanwhile, three children who should never have been in this situation are enduring excruciating pains, probably all their lives!
Not one, not two — three children!
According to her, doctor advised to abort the last one, but she didn’t.
You can choose to show her grace if you want, but this is pure cruelty!”
Echoing the same sentiment, @datspecialgirl added:
“People are commending her that she’s strong forgetting that she and her partner literally put those Little lives in sever pain and danger. Na wa.”
The viral thread has since sparked renewed debate on genotype awareness, and parental responsibility.
