Jamila (37) with her youngest, in Jigawa state
Jamila (37) has eight children and is living in Mako Gangare, a hard-to-reach community in Jigawa State. Jamila could not afford to send her children to school, and the family did not have enough disposable income to ensure they were well-fed and nourished. Jamila felt desperate. Her husband felt like he wasn’t doing enough as the head of the family.
Jamila’s husband had heard about family planning and encouraged Jamila to seek out services, so she could space her births; he didnʼt want his wife to suffer again during and after childbirth, while still caring for her children.
But Jamila was afraid to try family planning. She was worried about side effects, as one of her co-wives had experienced them when she used the pill. Additionally, she was worried she may not be able to self-inject as she had never done it before.
Hauwa'u Abdulhamid, a Lafiya Sister working in a clinic nearby Jamilaʼs village, went to Jamilaʼs community for an outreach. There, she sat down with Jamila, discussed different family planning methods and counselled Jamila patiently on her different options. She assuaged Jamilaʼs fears, reminding her that if other women could safely self-inject, so could she. Jamilaʼs confidence increased and she decided to try to self-inject with DMPA-SC.
Now, Jamila is happy to say that her health has improved. She is working with other women in her community on minding their children, growing food and rearing their cows. She is no longer afraid of family planning or getting pregnant, she can focus on her wellbeing and participate more actively in her community.