Trigger warning / “A Part of Me” campaign:

This story could contain potentially sensitive and/or triggering material, especially for victims of female genital mutilation. Please remember to check in with yourself as you read and to stop reading if it gets too overwhelming.

I was in primary school when I was circumcised.
I already knew about it,
Because my cousins had it done to them before me.
I thought it was a good thing,
And that it would mean that I was now a woman.
I knew where they were taking me.
I knew what was going to happen.
But I didn’t know how it was going to be done.

I went to a hospital,
In a remote area.
There were a lot of girls waiting for their turn,
And I was one of them.
I went in,
And they gave me a local anesthetic.
They spread my legs,
And there was a man standing there.
It was the worst feeling,
Seeing those people watching me.
I didn’t know the consequences,
Until I got married.

Until this day,
I’m scared of spreading open my legs.
I’ve been married for five years.
I’ve never felt any sort of pleasure during intercourse.
It hurts,
And doesn’t feel good.
It has made me hate sex,
my body,
And myself.
Then one day my husband said to me,
“You’re frigid,
And not like other women.
Don’t blame me if I cheat on you.”