We, women, go through a monthly cycle of ‘misery and torment’ called menstruation or a period. It’s an adventure that begins at an exceptionally youthful age, essentially teenage, and goes on till we are past our grown-up life. Many women recall their first period, and for some, it is an unforgettable experience. Mine was nothing exciting or exceptional but I still remember the exact moment since that was the moment I “turned into a lady”. I became a woman.
It wasn’t a moment of panic or fear for me as most girls experience but was rather surprising or one could say embarrassing too. My mother knew I was already close to the age of adolescence and would start menstruating sooner or later, so when I told her about the terrible pain I had been going through around my abdomen, she opened up to me about events and changes that might occur if she was right about the cramps. But even with a full understanding of what was happening, it was at that moment that I suddenly became self-conscious about my body.
I often consider myself lucky and blessed to have been born into a family where I have been provided with adequate knowledge and privilege of maintenance of hygiene during menstruation. Many young girls don’t even have the luxury of using sanitary pads and are forced to use a cloth and then reuse it during the next cycle thus making them vulnerable to infections which may sometimes be serious and life-threatening. This is generally due to embarrassment, poverty, lack of awareness and education, and many more such major reasons.
No matter what or how you refer it; ‘That time of the month’, ‘The season of Niagara Falls’, ‘A visit from Aunt Flow’, ‘The red badge of courage', ‘Code Red’ or the aptest euphemism ‘THE CURSE’, it is still bloody, terror-stricken, and can leave you lying in front of the TV/laptop all day while munching on everything you can get your hands on. Yes, I am still talking about periods, not a horror/thriller drama. From uncontrollable emotions to uncontrollable cramps, we still manage to get through with the week without dying and I believe we do not receive enough credit for our survival summit. Instead, we are deemed to be crazy, over-reacting, and whatnot.
I was amazed by the number of menstruation euphemisms that have existed over the generations. I’ve admittedly used many different terms throughout the years and while all of them are pretty clever and entertaining to use, they can also be dangerous as they reinforce the idea that your period or menstrual cycle is something to be ashamed and embarrassed about or something that ought to be hidden from others.
We are all familiar with how forbidden this topic still is. We need to feel comfortable discussing periods. This is important in light of the fact that periods keep on being used as justification for why women cannot participate at an equal level to their male counterparts or even hold positions of power. There are many reasons to criticize someone but having a period is certainly not one of them.
Author – Nikita Bhardwaj, Illustrated by – Harnoor Virdi
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