Doris Root talks about female condoms
Doris Root, 40 years old, is married and mother of four children.
Owner Hairdressing Salon
Bamenda, Cameroon, November 2, 2010
Every day there is sex, it is true isn’t it? It is natural! That is what I tell my girls. As you are growing you are entering the world of sex. So you have to know the advantages and disadvantages of sex. If you go for sex you have to know your weapon. Don’t go for sex just like that. You have to protect yourself.
How did you learn about the female condom?
I learnt from the female condom from ACMS. They came and took us on training. They explained me all the advantages of the female condom. There was also a woman doctor present. She explained us all about the female body and from that I now understand what is in me. I first heard about the female condom eight years ago, when I was pregnant. The doctor introduced it, but I never knew how to use it. It was not this type. They tried to promote it but it never really came out. So I am thanking ACMS for taking me on the training and for helping other people, me, my own children and my girls. We are dealing with children that don’t have parents to educate them on sex matters. I think they have done a great job for women.
What happened eight years ago, where you not interested?
No, I heard it on the television but it was not something close to me.
Do you promote the female condom, and how?
I promote the female condom by using it myself with my husband, he loves it. We were used to prudence, the male condom. I have four children. I always did my own protection with the male condom. But since I sell the female condom, one day, when we had no male condom in the house, my husband told me to use the female condom. And since that moment we started using it regularly, my husband appreciated it. My son of 24 is a peer educator in my company. He is a matured boy so I told him, if you don’t want to use a male condom, you can introduce the female condom to your girlfriends.
I also introduced the female condom to my daughter of 22. I cannot say if she goes for sex or not. She is in university. I am not telling her to go for sex, but if she will, she has something to protect herself. It is safer to insert your own condom, knowing that you are safe. I am happy with the female condom especially because I am a mother of grown up children.
What do you say to promote the female condom?
I tell women that if you carry a baby you should not, just not give sex to your husband. Because than they have to play games outside. So I tell her that I have something to introduce to her husbands for birth control. I show her how to use it and how to present it to her husband because she will need negotiating skills. I tell her to take it like a game and play with the husband. Then she can ask him to try it.
When I meet teenagers I talk about unwanted pregnancies. But mostly I introduce the female condom to ‘free girls’ When I know she does sex for business, I talk about HIV/Aids and other diseases. I tell her it is not something to be ashamed of, but that she has to protect herself. Men feel very free inside, sometimes they don’t even know it.
Do men also buy the female condom?
Yes, one of my customers, she introduced it to her boyfriend. Now her boyfriend comes to buy it. The boy loves it.
Are the sales increasing?
Yes, the demand is increasing. But the problem is the price. The male condom is only 25 CFC, the female condom 100 CFC. I try to convince people by explaining that the female condom is made from more material. And I say them that a ring costs money, haha.
How many do you sell?
Around 100 condoms per month.
Do you have regular customers?
Yes, they come back to do their hair. But I don’t tell them to only come and buy the female condom in my place. I also go around on the market to promote. Then I introduce them to my colleagues because my place could be far from them.
What women buy the female condom?
Young students but also women from my age. I especially talk to women in or close to their menopause. Pregnancies come when you don’t expect it.
Do you get a lot of questions from customers?
Well, at first they thought it could go into the vagina and get lost. But thoughts can be changed. Sometimes I give them a free sample to make them try and so they come to understand that this is not true. And when girls say “aaaaah, why is it so big?” I say, “is the head of a child not big?” Men are always satisfied. They feel free in it. They say the ring tickles them.
Do your friends use the female condom?
My customers are my friends. I have a friend from Duala. She also has a beauty shop. She came to visit me, she saw all the posters and now she wants to have it too. She asked me if she could go to a meeting from ACMS. I told her to go in Douala, because there they teach in French.
Was it difficult to introduce the female condom to your husband?
Any house has its own methods. My marriage is 50/50. We have respect for each other. To introduce the female condom to my husband was as introducing the contract with ACMS to my husband. He was the one who asked me to use it. He likes it.
If women have problems with the female condom it is not because of the product but it is because they don’t know how to introduce it to their husband. It depends on their individual approach. That’s why we are training these girls. Women are shy.
Most important is talking to men. Men men men. Men have the power! Here in Bamenda it is not like Europe. There are very few marriages based on friendship, like mine. The women are always doomed to their husband. Women have no voice. If a man says, hey I want sex; the women will do it, even if she is not safe. Luckily the female condom can be inserted 8 hours before sex. So if this happens she can just say, come papa, enter...
