Do you remember the first time you got periods? I was 10 years old;
fortunately, it was summer vacation and a few days before my 10 the
birthday. But HORRIFYING! To see my undies all bloody red and
scared to tell my Mom. But why do we feel it’s okay to talk about
period with our mothers and female friends but not fathers, brothers
and male friends? The taboo. The moment we get our first period,
we are taught to ‘hide’ this ‘problem’ from everyone, to keep it a
secret.
Last year, I came across these two books on Period: “It’s About
Bloody Time. Period.” by Emma Barnett and “Period Power.” by
Maisie Hill. (I actually loved the usage of period as pun in both the
titles!) The former is shattering the period taboos across the world
while the latter is an attempt to educate us more about our bodies,
menstrual cycle and health. We women already feel uncomfortable
during periods followed by cramps, cravings and mood swings, etc.
But at schools, colleges or workplaces, it is next to visiting Hell for us.
Why? Because of our reluctancy and hesitation to talk about periods
with friends and co-workers most of the time and the backlash filled
with misogynist comments.
In her book, Emma Barnett shares what saddened her the most
during her research. She talked about the Sabarimala temple
protests in Kerala by Hindu women in 2018. Hindu women of the
menstruating age were banned from entering the sacred temple
because they were considered “impure”. While most women are still
fighting against the phobia and hatred for menstruating, many
women who don’t have medical access to health and hygiene
problems struggle as well.
Barnett says, “Periods need to come out of the darkness because of
the potential benefits to women’s health around the world. But the
cultural benefits of smashing the period taboo would be major and
just as important.”
In her Introduction, Masie Hill talks about the necessity to make
conversations about our period experiences, “the more we talk
about our experiences and issues, the less they can be ignored.” She
also said why Sex Education should talk more about period where we
are told that we have a right to know about our bodies. This is a
“sure-fire way to eradicate the shame that many of us have been
made to feel about our-usually very healthy and very normal-bodily
functions.” I believe this taboo can be permanently eradicated if we
women talk about it with everyone around us, once they see how
normal we are to talk about it and do not consider it shameful, they
will also eventually understand why it is absolutely normal and
natural.
There’s a native American saying that,
At her first bleed a woman meets her power
During her bleeding years she practices it
At menopause she becomes it
Recently, I read that Zomato introduced Period Leaves of 10 days a
year for women. This is the kind of changes that conversations bring.
And for that, I will suggest these books to be read one after the
other; first understand how your body works during period by
reading “Period Power.” and then exterminate the cultural period
taboos by reading “It’s About Bloody Time. Period.”
-Aayushi Jain