PERIOD QUEEN. YOU TELL ‘EM

Done by: Leisha Bhandari

 I still remember that one time I went to the mall with my friends. I was carrying a small bag with my phone, wallet, and a pad inside, because, well, I was on my period. When I opened my bag, my friends burst out laughing. No, I wasn’t embarrassed, not one bit, because there is absolutely nothing to be embarrassed about. But I was disappointed, to see fellow women laugh at the fact that I was carrying a pad in my bag. Women all over the world know what it feels like to have their period. Yet, menstruation is a widely stigmatized issue. It is that one topic that people are always reluctant to bring up in daily conversations and large scale political debates. In a recent study, 62% of women and 59% of men described it as "embarrassing to talk about."
In Indonesia, intercourse is forbidden during menstruation. Menstrual isolation is a common practice in India, Nepal, and Bali. The menstruating girl is not allowed in the kitchen or to enter the house. In some tribes, there are special huts where women are confined during their periods. During this time, she is also not allowed to do activities like drawing, singing, or stitching. The menstruating girl is secluded from her friends and a goat is slaughtered in South Africa. She must cover her head with a blanket and hide till sunset. In Afghanistan, it is believed that during her periods, women should not take a bath or shower because they may become ‘gazag’ i.e., infertile. Many young women don’t have access to any type of sanitary pad, which causes them to miss school and to be 70% more likely to have reproductive tract infections. The stigma of the period is quite real, even in the United States. When other health and medical equipment are not taxed, the 'tampon tax' is levied on menstrual resources, which goes on to show how many people think menstrual products aren't a necessity. Even in the Arizona jail system, they once limited the female inmates to only 12 menstrual pads every month.
All these rules, stigmas, taboos for a completely natural biological function. What exactly should be done? This stigma mainly arises from the lack of education and it is this lack of knowledge that humiliates women in many countries when they are on their periods. Many non-governmental organisations, one of them being, Femme International are promoting outreach campaigns to educate women about their menstrual wellbeing as well as to inform men that menstruation does not render women impure or unfit for regular activities such as praying, learning, cooking etc. It is extremely important to talk about menstruation with many people, even if they are getting visibly uncomfortable, because at the end of the day periods are completely natural and it will affect them in the future, directly or indirectly. Women's health issues should be treated with the respect they deserve. Let’s all work towards destigmatizing periods and make this place a little better for us, women.