Kenyans say no to motherhood and yes to sterilization

While Nelly Naisula Syonka can remember that she has never wanted children, and with an irreversible decision, Kenya, 28, made sure that she never pregnant.

Last October, he took the definitive step of undergoing sterilization procedure known as tubal ligation, permanently closing the maternity door.

“I feel released,” the The organizational development expert tells the BBC, and adds that he has assured that his future is now his.

The operation avoids pregnancy by blocking a woman’s fallopian tubes and sometimes she is known as “ties the tubes.”

Between 2020 and 2023, approximately 16,000 women in the Eastern Africa country underwent tubal ligation, according to the Kenyan Ministry of Health.

However, it is not clear how many of these women had no children at the time of the procedure.

However, Dr. Nelly Bosire says that the type of women who advanced in search of sterilization in Kenya is changing.

“Traditionally, the most common candidates for tubal ligation were women who already had several children,” said Nairobi headquarters to the BBC.

“But now, we are seeing more women with fewer children who opt for the procedure.”

Sterilization is only recommended for women who are sure they don’t want to have biological children in the future, since reversal is difficult.

“Doctors do not usually encourage tubal ligation because the success rate of a reversal is very poor,” said Dr. Bosire.

Despite coming from a large family, Sironka said she never felt pressured to begin her, although social norms in Kenya place women’s expectation to have children.

She accredits her father with her position when he encouraged her to concentrate on education, and gave her a love for reading.

The books of feminist authors such as Toni Morrison, Angela Davis and Bell Hooks were revelation.

“I interacted with life stories of women who did not present children,” said Sironka, who is now the head of feminist operations of Kenya, an organization that works to end gender violence.

“It made me realize that a life like this was possible.”

He had contemplated sterilization for years, but decided to move on after saving money for the operation and finding himself in a stable job that allowed him to take a free time.

They cost him 30,000 Chelines from Kenya (£ 190; $ 230) in a private hospital.

Mrs. Syonka felt that women’s rights were being eroded worldwide, especially because women in the United States lost constitutional right to abortion in 2022, which also influenced their decision.

He feared that a woman’s right to control her own body could be eroded elsewhere, and that she should do the procedure while she could still.

“Within Africa and the United States, there has been an increase in fascism and authoritarian regimes, a perfect example of such is Kenya,” he argued.

When he told his family, he did not surprise them, since he had always been very vocal about his desire for a child free of children.

And as for appointments and relationships?

“I’m still thinking about that,” he said with a shoulder shrink.

And Mrs. Syonka is not alone in choosing a life free of children, challenging the traditional expectations of femininity.

In social networks, there are those who speak openly about their choice of not having children and suffering sterilization.

Among them is Mushoni Gitau, interior designer and Podcast.

She shared her tubal ligation trip on a 30 -minute YouTube video last March, explaining her decision to have the procedure.

“I think the first time I articulated … (which) I didn’t want to have children, I was about 10 years old,” he told the BBC.

His mother was very pregnant at that time, and a random question about his future appeared in the conversation.

“I saw a possible couple. I saw traveling. I just saw children,” he said.

Like Mrs. Syonka, Mrs. Gitau’s decision was promoted by a strong conviction of living life in her own terms.

After trying contraceptive pills, which said it gave him nausea, he looked for a more permanent solution.

When he first approached a doctor about tubal ligation at the age of 23, he found resistance.

They gave him what seemed like a sermon about how children were a blessing from God.

“He asked me: ‘What happens if I know someone who wants children?'” He said.

The doctor seemed to have more consideration for an “imaginary person” instead of the real patient sitting in front of him, he said.

Mrs. Gitau said the dismissal was “heartbreaking.” It was another decade before his wish was finally awarded.

Dr. Bosire points out that a significant challenge in Kenya is to get doctors to change their mentality and really appreciate the right of a patient to make decisions about their health.

“This relates to our culture, where people believe it is not normal for women to want a tubal ligation,” he said.

Another gynecologist from Kenya, Dr. Kireki Omar, admitted that the issue was a debate between colleagues and in medical circles.

“It is still not conclusive,” he told the BBC.

But Mrs. Gitau was not deterred and last year approached another doctor, this time in a non -governmental organization that provides family planning services.

She was armed with a list of bullet reasons to support her decision and felt relieved to discover that there was no rejection: “The doctor was very friendly.”

Currently single, he lives happily with his decision, which he feels he gives him control over his own life.

The 34 -year -old woman is also happy with the reaction to her video, and relieved that there has not been an important reaction.

She says that most people online have been encouraging her, which has seen her trust grow.

“Women can contribute to the world in many other ways,” he said.

“It doesn’t have to be raising a complete human being. I am grateful to live in a generation where the choice is one thing.”