GETTING PREGNANT AT SCHOOL WAS A NIGHTMARE

My name is Niyonizeye Sophia (Not my original name), I am 18 years old and I come from a family of seven children, four little girls and two little brothers. I have my mother, but my father left us when I was young. Starting school, the sole dream was to graduate from high school, change the life of my mother, and become a great woman. My entire focus was on studying and excelling because I am smart in class. All my dreams were dashed the day I found out I was pregnant.

In senior four, all of my friends had boyfriends, so they pushed me to have one too. I did not ask anyone about it, I just felt peer pressure and got a boyfriend too. From then on, I started to perform poorly in class, but my mother did not know the reason for the bad performance. I slowly lost weight and by the end of the year, I knew that I was pregnant; it was like a nightmare to me.

When I told the person responsible for my pregnancy, he said he would look after me, but he did not have any money either because he was still a student. A few days later, he ran away from the village and left me to suffer alone with the pregnancy. I was scared to go home and my mom did not know where I was for a month. After a month I decided to go back home because life was hard for me, and I went to bed hungry many nights. I thought they would kill me when I came home.

Mama did not say anything but there were tears in her eyes. She welcomed me and showed me motherly love, even though I was wrong; she took care of me until I gave birth safely.

Since then I have experienced many difficulties, especially in raising my child since my father left us. I did not have a chance to go back to school because my sponsor could not support me anymore. I cannot get good paying jobs because I do not have an education. I was affected mentally; I felt like I would never be able to be in a relationship anymore because I thought all men were bad.

My advice to young girls is to focus on your dreams, avoid peer pressure and avoid early sex because that is what brought me to the life I live today. Working hard and being a great woman is good for showing society that women are also capable and can contribute to change.

Parents also have to be open and tell their children about the dangers of early sex because girls and boys do not know the truth about these things so they need guidance. I will take care of my baby and will never make the same mistake again because my journey taught me a good lesson. Let us all fight together against teenage pregnancy in our country and around the world.