4.4 Daily Lived Experiences
4.4.3 Physical Challenges
87 you that it’s because you don’t have food to eat in your hometown, that is
why you are here.
(Single, 22 years old)
Some people go on to say that if our parents had the kind of money we are charging, we would have stayed with them in the northern region and not come to Accra to suffer.
(FDG 2, single 20 years old)
The uncertainty of the precise destination when carrying goods for a male client seems to be a stressor as there have been reports of women being abducted or kidnapped. These do not only pose a physical danger but also impact on their psychological health negatively. The following quotes explain their concerns:
There are some people who are in search of people. They will deceive you to carry a load and when you do, they will take you to a certain house. It’s like they are spiritualists who will not allow you to leave the house. We have seen some of these things.
(Married, 25 years old)
Due to stories that we have heard about people being adopted. I get scared when I follow a man to a distance place. I always pray to come back safely.
(Single, 22 years old)
88 We face dangers in the work. At the roadside, a motorbike or car can hit
you. Someone can get hit and she will get injured or she will die. The riders don’t stop when they hit you. If you’re lucky and nothing happens to you then that’s good. Sometimes, we organize and take some money from the rider and give to the victim to treat him/herself.
(Single, 22 years old)
With regards to falling due to weight of load and fatigue being a danger associated with the work of Kayayei, the participants explained that sometimes due to the weight of the load, distance covered with the type of load and efforts to avoid getting knocked down, they lose their balance and fall. These falls sometimes lead to muscle strain that results in pain and wounds which impact negatively on their ability to work. Direct quotations are as follow:
There are times when the load gets so heavy that one even falls with the load. If something bad happens to the load in the process, the owner asks us to pay for the damages.
(Married, 25 years old)
We get really tired carrying heavy loads along long distances, but they are normal. Our problem is getting knocked down by vehicles. Some people get fractured and some even died through this.
(Single, 18 years old)
My body could ache such that I could not work for about three months.
Motor bikes and cars could knock a person down and drivers or users will ask the victim whether he/she has eyes.
(Married, 29 years old)
The Kayayei also referred to the physical health-related challenges that they experience daily.
The physical health concerns by the Kayayei are primarily body pains, and falls leading to injuries and overall physical health challenges. With regard to body pains, it was shown that most of the participants experience pains in the neck, backache, legs and joints as a result of the strenuous work of carrying heavy loads, climbing footbridges and walking long distances with such loads. A 22-year-old single Kayayei stated “Sometimes the load can make one fall and break one’s leg. Sometimes, the fall also causes pain in my chest”. Furthermore, another
89 Kayayei, 20-year-old single Kayayei narrated “I get very weak as a result of working. I feel pains in my legs, backbone, thighs, and arms”.
Concerning falls leading to injury, the Kayayei narrated that they either fall and injure themselves due to the heaviness of the load they carry, or they are at times pushed by motorcycles or vehicles causing them injuries. Some of their views are captured in the following quote:
The work is very risky. Sometimes you could carry something and fall.
Last week for instance, I fell into the in gutter and injured myself.
(Single, 22 years old)
The participants also expressed frustration at the effect of the work on their overall physical health. Some of them stated that the difficult nature of the work can make them so sick to the extent that they will be absent from work for months or their strength will be reduced making it difficult work. They consequently attribute this to the negative physical health outcomes such as chest pains and difficulty to sleep. The following quotes summarise their views:
For me, it’s my chest that’s paining. More than three (3) weeks in the last month I have not come to work because of my chest pain. It makes it very difficult for me to breath. It’s like something is pressed on my heart when I try to breath.
(Single, 22 years old)
We get very tired after work ….. Last Monday for instance, I didn’t go to work because I was sick.
(Married, 33 years old)
There are times that we get sick and tired and don’t go to work for two months. When someone sees us in that situation and the person has pity on us, he/she gives us money to buy medication. Some nights I vomit some yellow substances.
(Single, 20 years old)
Others are however able to continue with the work after a health scare. The Kayayei work seems to gradually weaken the physical health of the participants, especially the older ones.
They seem not to have a choice but to continue working. This is how one participant put it:
90 I feel pains in my chest whenever I carry loads. I cannot carry from here
to Makola anymore. Now when I get to Makola, I have to rest for about an hour before I will have more energy to carry another load.
(Married, 40 years old)
Most of the participants noted that due to the physical nature of the Kayayei business and the physical pain they experience frequently, they often resort to self-medication to cope with the pain. These are some of the quotes used to explain their situation:
I get tired from work to the extent where I sometimes cannot wake up from bed.
The only thing that can enable me work to the following day is the use of drugs.
The work sometimes makes me very dizzy.
(SDG 1, Married, 20 years old)
Currently, I have chest pains. I was given a medicine that I put on fire and used the smoke over the area. It started last year.
(Married, 26 years old)
The work is risky because the loads we carry make us get ill sometimes.
We lose our strengths sometimes and if you don’t use medicine, you might not be able to get strength for the next day’s work.
(Single, 22 years old)