I'll never forget, one summer as a camp counsellor, having to explain to one of my campers about how to put on a sanitary pad because she'd gotten her first period. I'll never forget the confusion that slowly turned into fear as we called her mum who was hours away. And I'll never forget how that fear turned into comfort as she listened to her mother's soothing voice or the voices of her fellow campers telling her that they too had periods. And slowly, in the midst of stomach cramps, confusion, sweat, tears and sanitary pads, was a sort of relief.
She was not alone. This terrifying experience was in fact a shared experience for all of us.
We celebrated as a cabin and had a Moon Party with chocolate and ice-cream as we talked about periods and the girls swapped advice and stories.
I share this story because I think its a memory of a period in which I remember actually celebrating periods. It is not my own but it did help me to eventually honour/take care of my body.
Unfortunately, there is still a lot of shame and confusion surrounding periods and that is why I wanted to do this episode with Esther. I wanted to have this conversation in hopes that it helps take away the confusion and normalise a very normal bodily function.
We bleed. We stain sheets and our favourite trousers. We eat ice-cream. We scream for tampons in the public toilets and three women come to our aid. We bloat. We period poop. We bleed.
In the messiness and hormones and confusion, there is laughter, knowledge, blood clots and relief to be found.
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Research & Resources Mentioned:
Period Power: Harness Your Hormones and Get Your Cycle Working For You - Maisie Hill (Waterstones)