WHAT IS MENSTRUATION
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WHAT IS MENSTRUATION? Menstruation is a biological process which starts when a girl hits puberty. It is a cycle of 5-10 days which every woman goes through every month. Woman bleeds through vagina with pieces of uterine wall in the form of clots. Menstruation is often called as Periods in day to day life. Women/girls go through major hormonal changes before and after periods. It is painful, full of discomfort, mood swings, bloating, itching around the area, headache and few women also feel like throwing up. MENSTRUATION: A Social Stigma Women has to face social stigmas such as ban on entering kitchen, temples & other places during her menstruation because they are considered as impure. Talking about it in public or even with boyfriends/husbands/fathers/brothers is uncomfortable for girls/women. They are even hesitant to buy sanitary napkins on their own. We are forced to hide blood stains from boys/men because they would make fun of it as they have zero knowledge about this. All in all it is not easy for a girl/woman to express herself around this period as this has become a taboo. One question to everybody out there – Is menstruation considered as taboo because it is through a private part of a 2 growing girl? If, yes. Then why don’t you hide a baby that comes out from the same place. The hypocrisy of our society has no answers.
MATTER OF CONCERN Being a woman, it fills my heart with hurt & anger that boys/men are totally ignorant of menstruation. However they fail to understand that their origin is from menstruation itself. Boys/men feel disgusting while talking about it as they have been told that periods are messy & something to be ashamed of. But they are the same people who love to fantasize women’s bodies. Isn’t this hurtful & disrespectful? Men have totally failed to acknowledge that a woman deserves to be loved mentally & emotionally, not just physically. We are not machines after all. In our society, boys are often excluded from talks regarding menstruation and reproduction. In fact, in school too, they are not supposed to attend seminars on menstruation. They are scolded by their parents for asking questions regarding menstruation. So, out of curiosity they try to gather information from sources which are 99% incorrect & unrealistic. They have no one to discuss about this openly when they want to explore & are never told exactly what menstruation is all about or how a girl feels, during this period. We kept facts hidden from them and as a result they have developed this mindset over the time & assume that it is not a boy’s problem & they don’t have to be bothered about it. Not including boys/men into the conversation is causing increasing insensitivity & disrespect towards girls/women, so most of the women don’t receive love, pampering & support that she needs during these times. This is creating a huge gap between two genders specially husband-wife relationship. Not connecting on a deeper level with your partner is one of the prime reasons of broken marriages today. Because a true woman takes full notice of how her partner is treating her emotionally & mentally. Physicality is important but secondary for her. TEAM WORK- let’s make the change happen. Men & Women are warp & weft of this world. The world could only flourish with love, support & efforts of both the genders. And what we are doing, is dividing them on the basis of their problems & choices. As a result Men don’t understand women & visa-versa. How are we going to bring harmony & solutions by differentiating the two main components of the world? There is a need to be more sensitive and being respectful towards girls/women. Not only towards sisters, daughters, girlfriends, etc but also your partner. This environment can be created only by educating boys/men about menstruation and the problems surrounding it. Feeling empathetic towards women will be the first step towards changing their mindsets. Providing them with knowledge will start from our homes, especially middle class families. It can be challenging for girls/women to include the male members of their families to this conversation but not impossible. At first they may make fun of you and also rigidly oppose this idea but that’s the thing about bringing a change, you have to keep trying till it’s done. The results will not be seen over night. Below is the chain how educating boys/men can change everything: Educating boys/men Creating women friendly environment Open discussion between boys & girls Empathy & support towards menstruation related problems Removal of Social stigmas related to menstruation Increasing love & respect between genders. Team work & harmony in the world Let’s join our hands and create a world where menstruation is not a social stigma anymore rather considered a blessing to have. Educate two boys/men within your reach and they will educate two more boys/men. The chain will continue and one day you will see a revolutionary change but, remember CHARITY BEGINS AT HOME |
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Jigyasa Raina, Born & brought in Delhi. She is running an e-commerce clothing brand, J.K. BELLA. Holds degree in Fashion design. Her interests besides designing are in sketching, content creation, music and reading motivational & inspirational books. She speaks her mind openly on issues which need attention of the society as a whole. She is on her journey of self discovery and has enormous zest for life. |
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