“I am from Somalia, I have five kids. I have been here in Australia for a while. When I was pregnant and moved to Europe, I stayed there for a while, I actually lived in a small town and they only have one doctor. I don’t know, I thought everybody is the same. And when she visit me, she asked me too many question, how you can have a baby and how you can do it with your husband, something like that. And I look at her and I said and I cannot speak the language properly and I called someone who know the language to explain more information. And she told me “you need big medical attention because we can’t do this in small town.” I didn’t know it was a big deal at that time and she was worried how I can have the baby so they send me to the big hospital in the city.

Everybody come because they were surprised because the hospital they don’t know and they called someone who know and everybody come and they look at me and I thought something had happen to the baby but it’s not, they worry about myself. And they ask me if I can be opened before having the baby and I think about the pain and it was too much for me and culturally it’s a little bit difficult for me. You have to call someone you know. The people if they educate before, it will not happen. That three months I have to wait, so finally, I have the baby. But she advised to me, she stitched me back and I have a lot of problem going to the toilet and too many things so I am stressed out because there was no one there for me like friend or family or whatever. So, it’s too many things. I feel shame and I thought what is happening and a lot of things going on in my mind, and the language I cannot understand, and the lady explain to me and I am so upset. But the lady she told me nothing to upset, this is how it is. Now it is easy, I got five kids, so no problem.”

This story is from Breaking the chains, FPQ (True) Audio CD.