This is the story of Katlego, who recently had an ectopic pregnancy. I came across her story on Facebook, where she had a poster encouraging people to join and share her group for women who've had ectopic pregnancies. I was both in awe and impressed that she had gone through this tragic occurrence in her life and yet she somehow found the strength to try and help other women.

I asked her if she had known prior to her own diagnosis, what an ectopic pregnancy is and she said: "No, I did not. It was a foreign word to me." Like many other women, I too was clueless. Despite this, I still reached out to hear Katlego's story and then proceeded to do some research on my own. We had a Q&A so if you'd like to find out more about her experience read further below. 

"My family and partner at the time were supportive. It was an emotionally daunting roller coaster ride but everyone was present to hold my hand. I think my parents should write a survival guide as to how they were able to see me go through so much because I do not imagine it was an easy journey. There were times my mom would have to bathe me because I would not be able to do such a simple task myself. God bless them, really."

Definitely! It is so sad how females are deemed as ‘less woman’ if she is unable to

conceive but as black women, we are not educated enough about the things that could go wrong with

our reproductive system. Seeing a gynae needs to become the norm. Not only when we are pregnant but

regular checks up so we are aware of our health.

Sigh! I firstly suggest that women, who are on contraceptives, make sure that they are on the right type for their bodies because I have heard of too many horror stories on how some contraceptives form ovarian cysts (This happened to me and someone I know closely). But I also recommend that women go see a gynecologist at least twice a year to make sure they are in the green light should they want to conceive. I would like to add that it took seeing about 3-4 different Dr’s before my pregnancy was noticed to be ectopic which I found alarming so I hope women will be able to find the best medical attention and avoid my experience. For women who have gone through an ectopic pregnancy, it is an emotionally taxing experience and I highly urge women to join support groups like the one I have started(MSCBSSK- My Story Could Be Someone’s Survival Kit) or seek any form of mental help. It is not an easy journey to walk alone.

It's apparent that not only do we lack knowledge about our reproductive organs as black South African women, we might also be unknowingly using contraceptives that may harm us a few months/years down the line. More needs to be done in educating women of colour (and all women) about their vaginal health and normal GP's should encourage and normalise visits to the gynae.