More on agbo and malaria

Our malaria seems to be s l o w l y abating. Yesterday morning I felt hot and tired, imagining the parasites to be dancing in my bloodstream. But the feeling gradually wore off and spent the rest of the day taking it easy, watching an Eric Rohmer film in the evening. This is the first time I've had malaria and gone the agbo-herbal route.

Rather than feeling bombed out by the drugs, its a slower process, where one is still aware of the cyclical attack patterns of the parasite. We have been taking two types of agbo, a gin-based concotion that you take by the thimbleful, bought from Lagos, as well as a homemade gloup made by boiling various leaves (neem, orange, pawpaw, guava, mango) in water for hours. Both are very bitter to the taste.

Our maid and the drivers all take agbo when they are sick with malaria (they cannot afford the drugs). I wonder if agbo could be formalised/formulated into an official recipe? Our doctor came this morning (he's a malariologist) and gave us B12 jabs. As vegans, we need to have these every 2-3 months anyway. What many people don't know is that when you have malaria and are taking drugs, you should have a B12 jab as well, otherwise the drugs are less effective.