Written in collaboration with PeriodSoc for Women’s Health week
You may be asking yourself, is period taboo really still an issue in the 21st century? Surely by now we as a society have realised that shaming people who menstruate is not only harmful but also illogical? Well unfortunately the answer to your question is yes, period stigma is still a massive problem both globally and in the UK.
Most if not all of us who menstruate have seen this from our own personal experiences growing up. You’re taught to hide your period (sneaking to the toilet with period products, living in terror of having a leak in public, sanitary towel commercials with blue liquid I could go on). This is not helped by the lack of coverage in media such as movies and TV where periods are rarely mentioned let alone shown. There are so many messages both small and large that tell people who menstruate that their bleeding is something shameful and disgusting that should be hidden from view.
THE taboo
In 2017 a Plan International UK study took a sample of 1000 girls of from ages 14-21. The study showed that 48% of girls in the UK were embarrassed by their periods. Only one in five (22%) girls feel comfortable discussing their period with their teacher. Almost three quarters (71%) of girls admitted that they have felt embarrassed buying sanitary products. These statistics are shocking and do not reflect well on our society and its attitude to menstruation.
Not only does taboo around periods affect the mental health of those who bleed but also their physical health can be severely compromised when society refuses to speak about this very important biological process. A direct example of how unhealthy period stigma can be is the diagnosis of period problems (or rather lack of diagnosis!). Take endometriosis: 1 in 10 women in the UK have endometriosis and 10% of women worldwide have it but somehow in the UK it takes on average 7.5 years from the onset of symptoms to get a diagnosis. In America the National Health Institute spends $35 per year for every person with type 2 diabetes on research and less than $1 per year on endo research per woman battling the condition. This is totally unacceptable and all because we are not taught how to spot symptoms and nobody wants to talk about the condition due to period stigma.
And I’ve only mentioned some of the facts from the UK and America, I’m not even going in detail about other countries where cultural norms and toilet facilities are even more damaging to those that menstruate. The facts about global period taboo are endless, tragic and rarely mentioned by governments.
So, What can we do about this massive problem?
First thing’s first, let’s normalise talking about periods! Ask questions if you don’t know something, listen carefully and kindly when someone tells you their story and if you menstruate talk about it if you feel comfortable. We can also put pressure on our government to actually act to make periods part of the conversation in a more constructive and positive way. Sign petitions (there’s one going round at the moment about getting period product manufacturers to put the constituents of their products on the packaging so we actually know what we’re putting in our bodies), go on marches if you can and educate yourself so you are aware of the issue (and can then educate others). Together we can beat menstrual shame we just need to act!
This piece is part of a themed Women’s Health Week run by Her Campus Bristol