MRKH syndrome: 'Di day I know say dem born me and I no get vagina'

Na one question from her doctor about menstruation make Julian Peter wey be 29 years old know say dem born her without womb, cervix or vagina.

Twelve years afta she sabi dis her health condition, she share her tori wit BBC Anne Ngugi.

Dem born me wit one condition wey dem call Mayer-Rokitansky-Küster-Hauser syndrome (MRKH), where di pesin no go get womb or vagina, and e fit be just one kidney di pesin get.

Woman wey get MRKH no dey see her periods.

I discover say I get di syndrome wen I be 17 years old, dat time I be student.

I bin go hospital as I get problem wit my legs wey dey always swell up. Di first tin di doctor ask me na wen I see my period last? Me wey no know as period take dey do pesin.

Dem do scan and di first tin wey show be say my reproductive tract dey close from outside. I do operation to open am but di operation fail.

I do anoda scan, dat one show say I no get uterus or vagina. Na there dem bin diagnose me wit MRKH.

I cry di first day, di second and third day before I move on.

I be only 17 and I still be small girl but wetin dey my mind nah how I go take go back school.

My mama follow me go hospital and di tin wey doctor tok shock her. Many questions dey her mind to ask, na so she come dey tink say who she offend.

'Dem fit tok wetin dem like'

One pesin tell me say make I go somewhere make dem pray for me.

Anoda pesin say na because I come from Ukambani [one area wey dey linked to witches] some say my grandmamma get hand for di mata.

Dem fit tok wetin dem like, di koko na how e take affect me. If to say I dey hear dia own, I for done begin dey reason say wetin dem dey tok na true.

'I no wan do operation'

As I don study biology before, I understand wetin doctor mean dat first time.

I tell my mama say I neva ready for di operation as I wan go school first complete my education.

Ten years afta, I go di hospital and di operation dey successful.

Di kain MRKH wey I get mean say I no get vagina, I no get womb and na only one kidney I get.

My life dey normal as di disease no dey affect how I wan take live myself.

But for some pipo, e dey give dem emotional disturbance and dem suppose see psychologists wey go help dem accept di condition.

Wen you sabi di effect of di condition, you no go get choice but to forget say you wan born.

I don do four scans and dey no see ovaries, say dem wan remove eggs do IVF sef no dey possible.

To realise say you no be like oda women dey difficult but you just need accept am and find pesin you fit follow tok.

I don meet many pipo for dis Kenya wey we get dis same condition and we dey share our experience. I don accept my condition tey-tey and I dey ok wit am.

How you take explain to your partner?

I don dey for relationships. But I no dey let things go too far before I let di pesin know about my condition.

If dem want gree dem go gree. But you know, human beings go always be human beings.

Many pipo wey I tell free me. Some even say I dey lie and wan use style pursue dem.

Right now I no dey relationship.

If na because of sex, I do surgery for 2018 wey go make am possible but I neva ready to have sex and I no ready marry. If time reach to born we go adopt.

E carry me at least 10 years to decide say I wan share my story with public.

Pipo dey wey no sabi wetin be MRKH, I wan raise awareness.

First of all, I dey advise parents wey get children wey get dis kain condition say make dem no gree to do operation wen di child still small.

Do di operation wen di child don grow so dem fit understand because di procedure dey hard and long.

Advice to parents

E dey painful and your child fit no understand wetin dey happun.

As a parent, do your research, so dat wen your daughter know di condition, you go fit help her fight di stigma she go face.

I get support group and I don hear many pipo tori.

Some don marry and their in-laws no allow dem rest. One woman dey wey her in-laws tok say she be man.

So we listen and encourage. Wetin dey important na to help each other because dis journey sometimes dey difficult.