¿Y Entonces...?

Today I returned to the Casa Materna with one of the nurses to give a charla about family planning. Two of the ladies that were there the week before were still going strong and were joined by 3 other pregnant women and one who just gave birth yesterday. She is staying in the Casa until tomorrow when she is getting her tubes tied.

They all seemed to take in the presentation and gained knowledge on the subject. They asked if I am married and have kids and I told them no, and I am using family planning.  At first I wasn’t sure if that was “ok” to share, but later on I asked the nurse and she said they like to hear those kinds of things so they don’t have pena (embarrassment) to admit they are planning.

I also reiterated the fact that no matter what method they were using, it is always important to use a condom because that is the only method that prevents HIV and other STIs. I told this to the new mother as well, even though she is getting the sterilization operation tomorrow; even though she can’t technically get pregnant, she still has the possibility of contracting new STIs and it is important to always use the condom.

For a 23 year old female being single without a husband or kids is almost unheard of here and they were surprised. Then they started asking if I had a boyfriend. I told them no, again, and they all started asking what kind of guys I like so they can set me up with some Nica men. Um…right, we’ll get back to that one! Ha ha.

We all laughed and had a good time. Like I previously mentioned, I’m going to start going to the Casa at least once a week and give more charlas, as well as just hanging out and being with them. They like hanging out and talking to people, especially foreigners, so I’m very excited to be more present there.