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SATURDAY Vanguard, AUGUST 3, 2019—23
Lagos housewives speak out:
Family planning is our life saver...
By Chioma Obinna and Gabriel Olawale
Each year in Nigeria, according to the Guttmacher
report 2017, 61,000 women die from complications
of birth and abortion or miscarriage. The report also notes
that out of 1.3 million abortions in 2018, 85 percent are
estimated to occur under unsafe conditions. Several
reports have shown that most of these deaths and
complications can be prevented through safe sex.
Saturday Vanguard health crew writes that women in
some parts of Lagos are now adopting safer sex through
contraception for a healthy family.
At the premises of the Ita-Elewa Primary Healthcare
Centre in Ikorodu was large number of women waiting
at the family planning clinic. For these women it is safer
sex or no sex. These women who were carrying their
babies of different ages were waiting patiently for the
family planning provider who attends to not less than 50
women a day.
It was interesting interacting with some of the women
numbering over 100 at the clinic as they took turns to
narrate their stories to Saturday Vanguard. Majority of
the women confessed that their decision to take up family
planning was to prevent unintended pregnancy.
Unwanted pregnancy forced me to take up family
planning – Basirat For Basirat Bakare, 34, the decision
to take the family planning was not
easy but an experience she
described as heartbroken recorded
her to change her decision. She
recounted how her reluctant to take
up family planning leads to
unplanned pregnancy which she
eventually aborted.
“Six months after my first child, I
became pregnant. I was not happy
because any time we had sex and I
ask my husband whether he
released on me, he will say no. But
when I became pregnant, we were
both unhappy and we can’t tell
anybody so we later terminated the
pregnancy.
“Three years later, we had our
second child and my husband was
using a condom as a means of
prevention. But after our third born,
my husband said he was not that too
comfortable with condom as it did
not enable him to enjoy sex very
well.
“My mother-in-law used to talk
about family planning, so I
discoursed with my husband to take
up the family planning method that
will enable him to enjoy me very
well because he loves skin to skin
intercourse.
•Basirat Bakare
“So immediately after I had my
third child, I opted for Jadelle year. What is the essence of the child
implants which are five years you give birth to that they don’t have
because my husband said he didn’t sound education?
want child again.
I gave birth to 5 children out of
Basirat, however, encouraged ignorance—Medinat
mothers to have the number of Medinat Ajomagberin, 47, mother of
children they can cater for, “I was six, said the fear of side effects
born into a polygamous family informed her delaying to take up
where nobody was interested in my family planning. She had five children
career so I didn’t go to school. I as a result.
suffer for my lack of education and I “Our plan was to have three children,
don’t want such to happen to my but due to negative information about
children.
family planning, I was scared, but
“The school my children are going when I had my fifth children I couldn’t
now cost us about N370, 000 per imagine myself getting pregnant
term and they have three terms in a again.
“So I came to the family planning
clinic to take up a method, and ever
since I took up a method two years
ago, I haven’t experienced any
challenge. I regretted not visiting the
clinic earlier; maybe I wouldn’t have
had up to five children.
I don’t listen to negative
information about family planning—
Shitu
Basirat is not alone, Mrs Shitu
Imole-Ayo, 29, a fashion designer and
mother of three was on withdrawal
method before, but due to its
unreliability, she had a discussion
with her husband about family
planning and the method that would
make them enjoy
sex better.
“So I opted for
Jadelle to space my
children but
recently I removed
it and I am now on
injection.
“Before I
embraced family
planning, I heard
n e g a t i v e
information about
it, but I didn’t let
that distract me. I
carried out the
entire test I was
Family
planning
advocate
My mother-in-law
used to talk about
family planning, so I
discoursed with my
husband to take up
the family planning
method that
asked to do before they gave me the
one that is suitable for me. They also
told me that in case I have any
complaints I should feel free to come
back and am impressed with their
friendly service.
“I embrace family planning to give
my children a better life and I now
enjoy sex better without fear. The
service at Ita Elewa PHC was free.
Unplanned pregnancy almost took
my life - Comfort
For Comfort Usman 30, a mother of
two, who gave birth through
Caesarean Section, CS recounted how
she nearly lost her life due to
inadequate spacing, “I got pregnant
six weeks after my first child, I didn’t
expect it because the doctor warned
me that I need to stay for at least two
years before getting pregnant as my
first child was through CS.
“But thank God I was able to deliver
the second child through CS as well
which nearly took my life. After that
experience, the doctor said I should
embrace family planning if I want to
live a healthy life.
“I discussed with my husband and
he was in support of it. I am using
the tablet and comfortable with it for
now. To make sure I keep up with the
drugs, I set alarm on every gadget at
home to wake up at 10 pm. When am
through with childbearing I will go
for a longer lasting method.
Speaking about her experience in
providing service to women of
reproductive age at Ita Elewa PHC,
during an activity organised by the
Media Advocacy Working Group,
MAWG, a family planning Manager,
Mrs Adeyanju Rotimi with a decade
experience said that the majority of
their clients are always in a hurry to
access service and go.
“We run a daily family planning
clinic from Monday to Friday, and our
major challenge is lack of space
because our clinic is not conducive.
We want our counselling room to be
separated from the procedure and
toilet.
“We don’t usually experience stock
out, NGO used to complement the
Ministry of health in the area of
consumables and commodities. In
area attendance, on a
monthly basis, we use to
have 150 to 200 clients and
on some occasion, we record
a higher number than that.
“I started providing family
programme service in 2008,
it’s something I enjoy doing
and we have mobilisers that
makes our work easier. They
do outreach on a monthly
basis. Our clients are always
in a hurry, but what I do is
to first calm them down
before counselling and later
send them for investigation.
“Few of our clients use to complain of
fatness while some complained of
spotting but during my initial
counselling, I use to tell them that
about little changes they are likely to
experience but in case of any contrary
they should come back to the clinic.
“Family planning can only make you
gain little weight while the fatness was
as a result of the peace of mind they
have with their husband. I do advise
my client to try and eat balance diet.