With sex, pregnancy scares are inevitable. It starts with your period playing hide-and-seek and then moments of telling God it’s the last time you’ll have sex in your life. Only for your period to stroll in and you’re right back where you started. In this article, seven Nigerian women share their pregnancy scare stories.

1. “I couldn’t tell the doctor I hadn’t seen my period for a month”

— Alissa* 27

The last one I had happened was in January 2021. It wasn’t funny at all. I already missed my period in December, so my mind was racing and doing calculations in my head. Like how na? I couldn’t keep anything down. My belly was hurting and I felt so weak. I was experiencing everything a pregnant woman would be expected to go through. With the way I was behaving, even my boss suggested getting a pregnancy test. I was freaking out inside.

If people were already noticing the signs, I didn’t have a choice. I finally went to the hospital. After telling the doctor all my symptoms, the first thing he asked was, “When last did you see your period?” Omo, I froze. I couldn’t tell him it had been a month. I didn’t want to accept the reality of what I could possibly find out. So, I told him I had my period a few days ago. Maybe it was how nervous I looked, but he wasn’t convinced. He suggested a pregnancy test. I went straight to panic mode. All I could think was, “God abeg!” How would I explain this to my parents? 

I dragged myself to the lab and I waited in the reception for the test. After what felt like years, the results finally arrived. I opened the envelope immediately. At least if I was going to faint, it was better to be at the hospital. It turned out to be malaria, typhoid and a lot of stress. I’ve been celibate since then.

2. “Nigerians can never mind their business”

— Olivia* 21

To keep it short, malaria is a bastard. I didn’t see my period for three whole months. My neighbours kept saying I looked different. It was either, “Oh, why are your breasts fuller?” “Your nose is getting big o,” and, “Are we expecting?” Nigerians can be so infuriating. I was so uncomfortable in my skin. I couldn’t even sit down for long because my legs were swollen. I didn’t go to the hospital for a pregnancy test though, because I was too scared. All I used were the test strips and it was negative. I got some malaria drugs and by the second dose, my period showed up. At the time, I was 20.

RELATED: 7 Things That Go Through Your Mind When You Have a Pregnancy Scare

3. “I ate my way through the pregnancy scare”

— Tina*, 25

I only used to have sex during my safe period, but one day started feeling weird, having mad cravings and I was always hungry. I kept bulldozing my way through food: rice, chocolate, doughnuts — anything I could find. Then I noticed my period didn’t come. A week went by, and then a month. I started doing my mental calculations. When I thought about it, I realised the last time I had mad sex, I’d thought it happened during my safe period, but it may have been during ovulation. I almost died. But I was too scared to take a pregnancy test yet. Thankfully, by the next month, my period came back. I waited it out and by the next month, it came.

4. “I felt like the baby was hiding”

— Brenda* 27

My periods are irregular. So I try not to take my chances, but pregnancy scare dey reach everybody side. In December 2020, my period was 25 days late. Mehn, I didn’t want to be dealing with a pandemic and a baby. I decided to take a home test. It was negative but my mind wasn’t settled. I felt like the baby was hiding. I even called the soon-to-be baby daddy and he just went, “Brenda, what is your problem?” Of course, I changed it for him. Being a mum wasn’t on the agenda at that time. I was barely taking care of myself, talk less of a baby.

After all the tears and gnashing of teeth, my period strolled in ten days later. I was so embarrassed. I was 25 at the time. Now, I’m 27 and having another pregnancy scare. My cycle has been on for 43 days and I’m 12 days late. I’ve taken a test and it came out negative. So, fingers crossed.

5. “IUDs are not for me”

— Queen* 30

Birth controls like IUDs freak me out. After watching a friend add weight and experience painful periods using them, I decided to stick with condoms. If I wasn’t using a condom, then I’d use Postinor-2 tablets. Sometimes, the pills messed up my cycle. I’d miss my period for one or two months, but I knew it happened because of the pills. In 2019, I had my longest wait — four months. The scary part was the pregnancy-like symptoms I experienced during that time. 

My boobs grew very large; I had weird cravings for junk food like shawarma even though I felt bloated all the time. On some days, I’d stare at my reflection in the mirror and cry. When I was done sulking, I decided to take a home pregnancy test. I tested four times and everything was negative. I kept wallowing wraps upon wraps of shawarma for the next three months. I still didn’t see my period. I gave up. One random morning, in September 2019, I woke to my stained shorts. Nobody told me to thank Jesus.

RELATED: 5 Nigerian Women Talk About Using IUDs

6. “I’d only been having sex for three months”

— Linda* 23

I started having sex only last year [2021]. It was mostly unprotected, but I wasn’t bothered because the guy I was sleeping with, never came inside me. When he ejaculated, it was from a blowjob. Either way, I thought I was good. Three months went by and my periods were right on time. But in February 2022, my period was eight days late. When I told the guy I was sleeping with, he asked me to chill for a bit. I didn’t know who else to tell.

I felt slightly ashamed to admit it to my female friends. Maybe it was the part about having sex or that it was unprotected sex. When I couldn’t take the stress, I eventually opened up to my housemate. That’s when she went on about pre-cum and the possibility of getting pregnant. I was overwhelmed.

After that conversation, I went straight to the lab. I hated the fact that we couldn’t just tick the test we wanted on a paper. The attendant literally made me say what I was there for. I felt like crying. While I waited for the test, I sat down picturing my whole life fade away. “So I won’t go to school again,” I thought. When they finally called me to collect the result, I snatched the envelope and raced outside. I opened it up on the street and nobody could have been happier than me after seeing that it was negative.

I sha lied to the guy I was sleeping with and my roommate that I was pregnant. They deserved to suffer for a few hours too. I was happy.

7. “After I got my period, I was relieved and horny”

— Danielle* 24

I’ve always had irregular periods. A doctor already assured me it was normal so I wasn’t bothered. In 2021, I got scared that I might be pregnant because it was the longest hide-and-seek my period had ever played. The last sex I had wasn’t unprotected. I kept replaying the moment in my mind. Did the condom come off? I didn’t use a condom at all?” Usually, I have anxiety so I was practically losing my mind. The worst part was that I skipped my pregnancy pill. 

Next, I was very sick— I had a high temperature, tender breasts and irritated by any smell — and spent a lot of time googling the symptoms. The answers all pointed to pregnancy. After two months, I took a pregnancy test; it was negative. I was still sceptical so I kept begging God for one more chance. If I was truly not pregnant, I promised to stay celibate.

A week later, I got my period. I was both relieved and horny. In less than a week, I was back in the streets.

ALSO READ: “How Do I Tell My Parents I’ve Fallen Pregnant Out of Wedlock?”