Mrs. Felicia is a 40 year old mother in Nassarrawo community of Yola North LG in Adamawa State. She is a petty trader married to an unemployed man. This makes it very difficult for her to fend for her 10 children. She had many unplanned pregnancies in the past due to lack of knowledge of modern family planning methods.
A visit by a Women’s Health Project Inter-Personal Communication (IPC) conductor to her home changed her life. The discussion she had with the IPC conductor was really an eye opener for her as she had never practiced any child spacing method before. She took particular interest in the Intra-uterine contraceptive device (IUCD) and made up her mind to visit a Women’s Health Project (WHP) franchise facility.
It was during her visit to the facility that a trained Family Planning (FP) provider met her and had a discussion on various types of FP methods. This is her story in her own words:
“One woman come give me card, say make I come do family planning for here. Me, na dat (rubber) wey dem dey put for womb I want o, because I hear say e dey reach 12 years for woman body. Na 10 children I get and my husband no dey fit feed us again sef, I dey suffer well well that is why I wan put dis rubber.” When asked how long she wants to use the IUD, she answered, “I want to put that rubber (for long). I no know sey this kind family planning dey since I for don do am because my children no get gap at all.”
After counselling and insertion of the IUD, a very happy and contented Mrs Felicia had this to say; “I dey happy well well now, because I no go fear say I go get belle again and I go tell other women about this kind of family planning so that them go come do am too. I thank una well well o, make una try go inside village go talk to the women for there because dem need to hear about this family planning o.”
Mrs Felicia returned home, a very happy woman and enthused that she will be an advocate for IUD in her community, she also advised that programmes should try and reach out to other women like her in the rural areas.
