MANAGUA, Nicaragua On a warm day in June, at the start of the rainy season, Ixelis waits outside of Managuas German Nicaraguan Hospital. She is homeless, and several months pregnant. The 21-year-old has been waiting for several hours to see what the doctors will tell her.

Ixelis is addicted to drugs. She has a gentle smile and her pregnant belly shows from underneath her short-sleeve shirt. She already has two children and is desperately hoping for an abortion so she wont need to give birth to a third in the near future.

I know its illegal, she said of her desire to seek out an abortion, but I have a 5-year-old girl and a 3-year-old boy to take care of already.

As a single mother raising two children on the streets of Managua, without an abortion, Ixelis, who asked that her full name not be used for fear of legal repercussions, knows the already difficult task of feeding her children will become even more trying. The problem is, the laws in this country are uncompromisingly rigid when it comes to situations like hers. Women with unwanted pregnancies must instead pin their hopes on a far more uncertain and unorthodox solution.

Earlier that morning, an ultrasound showed that the fetus growing inside of Ixelis has no chance of surviving on its own, a suspected result of drug use during her pregnancy. It has no arms, feet or cranium and its heart is compromised. But because Nicaragua has a total ban on any form of abortion, Ixelis will have to carry the fetus until she either gives birth or until its heart stops beating completely.