Mazar E Sharif— My name is Lailuma and I’m 27 years old. I’m married and a housewife. I have four children although I have been pregnant seven times. There are lots of difficulties during pregnancy for a woman. Foot pain, back pain, and maybe you don’t have any medicine or food to feed a child in your womb.
I have four children by Allah’s willingness. It’s enough for us, although I have not done anything so far to prevent pregnancy.
During my pregnancy I was healthy and fit and when I visited the doctor, she did not tell me anything special, except she prescribed me some medicine.
I live in a small family with only my children and my husband. Every family is different. There is no right number of children. If a man has many wives, the number of his children will be many. Many men are unappeasable; even when they have seven or eight wives.
When an Afghan man gets married he doesn’t think about the future number of children. They should think about these things before getting married.
By Lailuma as told to Nilofar
Dear Lailuma: Thank you for your wise words and clear observations. We all need to think about the future of our families, and what kind of lives we can create for our children, especially as we work to increase their number. I appreciate you sharing your experiences and your wisdom with us. Thank you, Nilofar, for helping Lailuma to do so. Stacy
Hello, Lailuma — Thank you for telling us your thoughts about families. I wish that all Afghan women could choose how many children to have. I send you wishes for a good life for yourself and your children.