Periods:- Your body's monthly visitor. But no matter how many times that visitor stops by, menstruation /periods remain a taboo topic around the globe.
Few days back I came across this particular video which conveyed a message that we women no more be ashamed of saying and accepting that we get our periods every month.
As a matter of fact, many women who are in their periods are not allowed to be in the kitchen or attend ritual practices, according to a 2016 Hindustan Times.
According to The Wire, many don't believe periods to be natural, while others consider them dirty.
This reminds me of my personal experience that I'm sharing with you all. Somewhere in the early 1990's. When I was about to get my periods for the first time or should I say that my mother felt the need to educate me about periods, that I too will be facing in the near future, she (my mother) took the help of my father. As she knew that with the word bleeding, I would panic. As we all say that a father is the super hero for her daughter it kind of was the same for me too at that time. My father said don't worry it won't pain and we are there with you, it's no big deal. Innocent me, I trusted him then, I thought it ended there but, then my mother's words followed "don't tell anyone. Okay?" Although I didn't understand what was the reason then but, as an obedient child I said "okay." Soon the day came, I got my first period.
People who menstruate have long been taught to be ashamed of or keep silent about their periods.
My dadi who was then 70+ years (father's mother) stayed with us, she was a witness to this situation. My dadi was the eldest among her siblings and even bed ridden, that's why her brothers and sisters with their entire family often visited us. You can say a full family get-together of 20-25 people in our house. She was witness to my mom's words as well "don't tell anyone" Still there came an announcement from her adjusting her dupatta pallu (Stole) over her head "Listen everyone I want you all to know that my youngest granddaughter (pointing towards me) has started getting her periods!" I was stunned and confused as everyone started looking at me, probably for two reasons, one was it a co-incidence that I was standing in the middle or is it the announcement that made me the centre of attention? Later, I realized people are congratulating us. This whole situation for me at that age was so very difficult to understand.
Somewhere in the later part of the day I asked my dadi "why did you make that announcement? Mummy had asked me not to tell anyone anything about it." She replied like a typical mother-in-law "Oh your mother doesn't know anything. It is definitely time to celebrate as, you have stepped into the process of turning into a woman from a small girl."
Although I only understood her words but today, I realized the importance of her words. She was a woman who was much more modernized in her thoughts as per her age and era.
Globally, the stigma of menstruation is perpetrated by the cultural taboos, discrimination, lack of education, silence and period poverty (the inability to get access to/afford feminine hygiene products).
Sometimes I wonder if my dadi would have been alive today, she would definitely be a role model for modernization and women empowerment.
Being a mother to sons, I have made up my mind to educate them about menstruation with same modernization so that the future generations are no longer taught to be ashamed of or keep silent about menstruation/periods or what ever you name it.
