It’s no secret that females get monthly periods. So why do we treat it like it’s one? I remember how I used to be when it came to having my period. I felt embarrassed. I would hide my tampons/pads while on my way to the restroom so no one would see that I had it. I would feel guilty if my cramps were too intense to perform my daily activities. I would become angry with myself when my hormonal changes would make me irritable or gloomy. It wasn’t until I was nineteen years old and had had my period for a total of eight years that I asked myself: Why? Why did I feel bad for something that was in my nature and part of being a woman? Why did I beat myself up for something I could not help or change?
I was asking myself this question because the more I thought about it, the more I realized that it really did not make any sense. I should not beat myself up and I should not feel bad. Having a period is a biological sign that I am healthy and that my body is doing its job. It is a biological sign that someday I can choose whether or not to have children. The hormonal changes I feel during my period happen to almost everyone. Females everywhere go through the same thing I go through. So why should I act as if it only happens to me?
I realized that my feelings of shame started when I was in a middle school health class. My health teacher talked about periods as if they were unnatural and something to worry about getting. The way the people around me treated menstruation only reinforced this belief of mine that it was something to be ashamed of. I believe this is due to society’s idea of menstruation. Society treats periods as if it is something girls are supposed to keep a secret. This causes it to be something to not be fully talked about or even something to be made fun of over. I remember a lot of bullying in my middle school was over periods and which girls were having it and which girls were not. Early bloomers (me included) were teased and treated as if they were gross or different in some way.
I also remember that I would have so much anxiety when I would have to go out and buy tampons or pads. I would always wait until my mom would go to the store to buy them for me. I would hate the feeling of being in that aisle and I would hate the risk of others seeing me purchase these items, especially someone I knew. I would also hate asking to go to the bathroom at school and having to take my purse with me which was holding my pads and tampons. I felt like all eyes were on me and everyone knew why I was taking my purse with me when in reality, the likelihood was that no one really noticed. I would get scared if someone saw a tampon sticking out of my purse or pocket.
There should be no reason that I or other girls should feel this way. There should be no reason that girls are growing up feeling as if menstruation is something to be ashamed of, be scared of, or feel disgusted about. Instead, I think it is something that needs to be talked more about so that girls feel as if they are not alone, and so they are not afraid to ask what is and what is not normal for their health. It is very natural and something almost all females share with each other. I do not hide my pads or tampons on my way to the bathroom anymore. I do not care who sees me buy these products. I am not afraid to say that I menstruate. Menstruation does not make us weak or whiney, instead, I think it makes us very strong. I am proud to be a woman, and you should too. Do not feel any shame. Darling, you’re badass. Don’t let a period or anyone else tell you otherwise.
HCXO, Kasidy