Tin Tin to launch programme for expectant mothers

Tin Tin to launch programme for expectant mothers

Tinopona “Tin Tin’’ Katsande-Chigariro

Nothando Ndhlovu
AFTER confirming that she is now married and has a bun in the oven and probably inspired by the development, renowned actress Tinopona Katsande-Chigariro, affectionately known as Tin Tin, has started working on a television programme, First Steps that seeks to educate first-time pregnant women on what to expect.
The former ZiFM Stereo presenter said in an interview with Sunday Leisure that she was working on several projects but singled out the talk show for expectant mum called First Steps, which was inspired by her current situation.

“When you get pregnant, your body starts to do its own thing and it is quite overwhelming sometimes. Unotoshaya kuti zvirikumbofamba sei. So many questions arise and you just want to share and confide in others going through the same thing. It helps you go through each stage knowing you are not alone. That is why I came up with the show.”

“First Steps is my first production. As the presenter and director/producer of the show, I will be working both behind the scenes and in front of the camera,” said the expectant mother.

“In the previous productions I have done over the years, I was always in front of the camera as an actor but more recently I started broadening my horizons and attending workshops and apprenticeships on directing and producing television productions,” she said.

First Steps will air on ZBCtv as well as on DStv.
According to Tin Tin, the 13-episode series is educative, informative and entertaining. She added that it is packed with laughter and will be an interactive platform for new mums to share experiences as they demystify and decode the myths of child bearing, particularly in the Zimbabwean context. The main concept of the programme is cultural and traditional practices versus science and medicine.

“First Steps mainly targets first-time mothers like me. It is an informative, educative and entertaining programme that will offer the viewer an interactive platform to share experiences, offer and receive advice and above all demystify the myths that so often surround the birth and rearing of a new born baby,” she said.

The actress said she was excited about her pregnancy as she had been told by doctors that she could not conceive. She came out in the open and revealed that she was suffering from endometriosis which causes infertility. She added that by coming out in the open, she wanted to inspire and perhaps save a life in the process.

“Last year I went public with the revelation that I had been told by doctors that medically it was impossible for me to conceive due to the aggressive nature of the condition called endometriosis, which is often misinterpreted by Zimbabweans as jeko/isilumo, which in English is a bad monthly period pain,” she said.

“Endometriosis is a whole different condition all together. After I received my miracle (for indeed this is what it is), I began my arduous journey of nine months and the anxieties began,” she added.

She sparked rumours that she was pregnant with a Facebook post which reads, “God wants to bless me with this child but I have to endure the nine long arduous months of pregnancy (plus these damn endometriosis fibroids). God wanted to bless me with a loving husband but I had to get out of my comfort zone, sacrifice comfort and convenience, open my heart to love and be loved, invest time in the relationship, lose a few friends and disappoint some family members along the way.”

She has since confirmed that she is both pregnant and married with numerous Facebook status posts as well as pictures showing off her baby bump and hubby Virimai Chigariro.

Tin Tin is in her third trimester and she is very happy and content.
“I am absolutely loving carrying this child. It’s still very taxing but I’m embracing it all the same,” she said happily.

“My first and second trimesters were marred with pain, tears and discomfort because I have eight degenerative fibroids that are growing with the baby and this keeps me in and out of antenatal hospitals in Harare and Pretoria.

“Many times I thought I would lose the baby but doctors, family, friends and my dear husband kept me hopeful because it’s so easy to lose hope in times like that,” said an emotional Tin Tin.

The actress discovered that she was pregnant when she went for a scan with her husband to find out where the fibroids were located as well as their size. Little did they know that there was a pleasant surprise waiting.

“My husband and I wanted to see where the fibroids were located so that I could have a surgery to remove them. At the sixth fibroid, the technician said the baby was doing fine.

“My husband got very angry as he thought it was a bad joke and I told the technician that I wasn’t pregnant and I could not have children because of the fibroids. He then went silent and switched on the sound which allowed us to hear our baby’s heartbeat,” she narrated.

The couple immediately phoned her gynaecologist, who confirmed that she was pregnant after seeing the scan.
“We cried together with my gynaecologist who said: ‘Tinopona, this is your miracle’,” she added.

“As a first time mum-to-be, I now know the anxieties and even frustrations that tag along with the bliss of expecting a child. Everyone around you genuinely wants the best for you and they obviously believe what they are saying is the best.

“Unfortunately some of the advice clashes especially when one is based on traditional or cultural practice while the other is a scientific approach. It can all get quite confusing and even stressful so the show First Steps will aim to broaden our horizons by analysing both options and allowing mothers to make informed decisions,” she added.

She said the show will cover a broad spectrum of topics pertaining to early child rearing in a Zimbabwean context. A resident gynaecologist will be on the show and periodically a paediatrician and traditional practitioner. The paediatrician and traditional practitioner will feature on some episodes in order to answer queries that viewers might have concerning the topic being discussed on that particular episode.

The expectant mother encouraged other women facing the same problem not to give up.
“As someone who was diagnosed with endometriosis, I have a story to tell and I pray that my testimony will inspire other Zimbabwean women who have been told the same thing and are struggling to have children to never give up.

Instead they should keep their focus on living a healthy life, with a healthy mind and body and above all else remain steadfast in prayer for I am living proof that God’s love is unconditional and He is faithful. We just have to trust Him completely,” she said.

Tin Tin said she is keeping her child’s gender a secret as she wants it to be a surprise.