Periods. An apparent taboo subject we just aren’t supposed to talk about.
After reading Adrienne’s, from The Sunday Girl, post about Period Poverty I couldn’t not have my say on the matter. I was shocked and outraged by what I read in her post and by what I saw on the news recently.
Incase you didn’t see it on the news or read about it, young woman in Britain from low income families are skipping school as they do not have appropriate sanitary protection during their period. What. the. hell.
Periods are not something that anyone female looks forward too.
At the end of the day it’s not just the worry of bleeding during your period, its the cramps, sickness, back-pain, mood swings, increase in bad skin and generally feeling terrible that come with a period. The thought that some people have to worry about not having enough protection during that time makes me feel sick. It’s bad enough worrying about the possibility of a smell or if you have leaked.
As a ‘solution’ these young woman have been forced to use toilet roll (which I can only imagine is horrendously uncomfortable) or to use sanitary towels/tampons for WAY longer than is deemed safe or healthy (use these for longer than recommended can cause health problems in itself). It is incredibly scary and alarming what these young woman are putting themselves through during their periods. I mean I just can’t imagine the mess, anxiety and shame they face or could be experiencing.
Yes, sometimes a woman can be caught of guard if her period has come early but this is a totally different matter. We are talking days without changing sanitary towels or days going without anything to help them get through their period.
Did you know that sanitary towels are still taxed as a luxury product?
TRUST ME, periods are not luxury (and if you think they are, I am happy to sit down and tell you exactly why they aren’t) and I fully believe that sanitary towels and tampons should be offered for free to those who can’t afford it as well as in schools so no young woman has to miss out on her education because mother nature called.
Thanks to Adrienne’s blog post I was made aware of some UK and international charities that help those who can not afford to buy sanitary products. An example of some of these amazing charities are:
Freedom4Girls – Raising funds and products for young ladies in both Kenya and the UK.
The Homeless Period – Helping women who are homeless and without sanitary protection.
Bloody Good Period – Collecting all forms of sanitary protection for asylum seekers, refugees and anyone who is need and can’t offer such products.
Flow Aid – Sourcing sanitary products for homeless women.
No woman should be embarrassed by her period, nor should she miss work or school because of one. This must end NOW.
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