New to Timor-Leste’s capital, Dili, Florinda (31) reached out to her neighbour for help to come to the closest Community Health Centre for a family planning method. The two women spend their days selling snacks outside of the school their children attend together.
“I was tired of the mountains” Florinda said. Florinda and her four children are now living with her older sister. For the time being her husband still lives near Mt Ramelau, the country’s highest mountain, and raises cows for a living. “He’s going to join us in Dili” said Florinda. “He heard information about the implant and encouraged me to get one, saying otherwise it will be difficult for him to find enough money”.
Hesitant at first, Florinda received encouragement from her friends. “They told me the implant was better. They said you only have to come back once to take it out in 3, 4, or 5 years, depending on what you want”.
One of Marie Stopes Timor-Leste’s trained midwives provided Florinda with an implant at the Ministry of Health Community Health Centre. This outreach support work is made possible with the support of the Australian Government in Timor-Leste.
“I’m really happy” Florinda said of the service, “the midwives were really great, and I wasn’t scared”. When asked if she thought she’d give the same advice to other women now that she had an implant herself, “I’ll tell my friends” she said with a smile.