Crouching in a trench on the front lines in eastern Ukraine, Olena felt the ovulation app on her phone buzz.
¡°I realized that I really needed to be at home making a baby, not sitting in this trench,¡± recalled Olena, a combat medic. But that wasn¡¯t an immediate option, and her desire to start a family was as strong as her need to serve.
After about six months of trying ¡ª navigating appointments with fertility doctors around her limited leave ¡ª ¡°it finally happened,¡± said Olena, who like other women interviewed for this article requested that only her first name be used for reasons of military protocol. She got pregnant, but continued to serve.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.