Menstruation - why it’s time to end the stigma and increase visibility. Period.

If you menstruate…

• How many times have you hidden a tampon up your sleeve when you go to the loo in the office (exacerbated by the lack of pockets in women’s clothing 😡)? 
• How many times have you whispered to a colleague/friend “Don’t suppose you’ve got a tampon or pad please!?” so that other people don’t hear?
• How many times have you felt like crap psychologically & physically but felt like it wasn’t acceptable to tell colleagues that it’s probably because you’re on your period?
• How many times have you wished it was acceptable to wear a ‘Please give me a seat, I’ve got period pains’ badge on public transport?

For as long as I can remember, periods have been talked about in hushed tones, taught only to girls in schools, been considered something about which degrading jokes can be made and represented inaccurately in society (blue liquid in adverts anyone!?). All of this has contributed to creating a stigma around periods, resulting in people who menstruate feeling ashamed, dirty and embarrassed about something which is entirely natural.

And the stigma in most of Europe is nothing compared to the stigma faced by people who menstruate in other parts of the world. How many times have you been banished to a mud hut with no running water for the duration of your period?

In the Gender Equality Community at Kaluza we believe that it’s time to end the stigma around menstruation. We want to educate people about the effect this stigma has on the environment & people’s lives and therefore improve their experiences in the workplace and beyond.

So, what sorts of effects does this stigma have on the lives of those who menstruate?

Disclaimer: this is not a comprehensive list, we plan to write more blog posts in the near future about other things relating to periods.

Health impact

Having a stigma around periods means that many people who menstruate put off going to the GP when their period doesn’t seem quite right. This can result in late diagnosis of conditions such as endometriosis (more on that later), polycystic ovarian syndrome, menopause and some types of gynaecological cancers.

When they do finally go to see their GP, they can often not be believed, their problems shrugged off or prescribed the pill as a ‘solve-all’. The pill may well help with painful or heavy periods, but it comes with a whole host of other delightful side effects (mood swings, weight gain, depression to name but a few).

In some cases this can mean that people who menstruate are putting up with excruciatingly painful periods for much longer than necessary, affecting their work, relationships & the quality of their lives. In other cases it can affect their fertility and in the worst cases it can lead to people dying far too early.

Talking of excruciatingly painful periods, a Data Analyst at Kaluza has written an account of her recent experience of going to the GP about her periods. It’s truly shocking, but unfortunately not unusual 😢.

I've always had really painful periods, and it was only when I was comparing stories with my other girlfriends I realised my experience was not normal - for example, going through a whole packet of painkillers in two days to feel some semblance of normality, or (when painkillers aren't available) retching and fainting because of the intense pain. A few months ago I called the GP to discuss my symptoms and see what my options were in terms of looking for an underlying cause. Instead, my GP said 'Well, what do you want me to do about it?', then told me my options were to either go on hormonal birth control or get a coil. 

Obviously, having periods this painful affects all parts of my life. I actively plan events around my cycle, and often feel very anxious on the run up to my period as I know I'll be woken up in the middle of the night if I don't take painkillers before I sleep, which then affects my sleep quality and my productivity at work the next day.  And that's not to even mention the possible health implications down the line! 

So here's to hoping another GP is more helpful and willing to help me find a diagnosis, and if you read this and find yourself identifying with me and my painful periods, I wish you luck on your journey to find a diagnosis 💜

Endometriosis

I am very fortunate not to be one of the 1 in 10 women who suffers from Endometriosis, so I asked Hannah Biggs, our People Engagement Partner, who recently got diagnosed to talk a bit about her experience. Thank you so much for sharing this with us, it’s so important for raising awareness and reducing the shame associated with periods.

Around 6 months ago, and after several scans and appointments, I was told - accidentally (more on that later) - I had Endometriosis. Endometriosis is a long-term condition where tissue grows in other places, such as the ovaries and fallopian tubes. In my case, it causes my left ovary to attach to my uterus. At its best, it causes extremely painful periods and fatigue, at its worst, it causes continuous debilitating pain, problems with your bowels, infertility and more. I count myself lucky to be on the mild end of the spectrum which is 2-3 days of painful cramping and fatigue every, single month. 

Endometriosis is wildly under-recognised, under-diagnosed, and under-treated, with most women (including myself) being told that we’re overreacting and just “having a bad period”. It took me around 2 years to get diagnosed - and that’s very quick compared to the average time of 8 years. This was partly due to my incessant badgering because I knew that something wasn’t right, and partly due to my previous cervical health history (thank heavens for smear tests!).

I clearly remember the moment I knew that I was experiencing more than just period pain. I was walking over a bridge in Hackney on my way to dinner and out of nowhere it felt like someone had stabbed a knife into my abdomen - and I’m not exaggerating - I folded over like a deck chair. And this was the start of my painful journey. 

I had 4 or 5 scans in total before I was diagnosed and was repeatedly told that “everything looked fine” - until one of my last scans. During that scan the sonographer casually said something along the lines of “you’ve got some sticking on your left side”, to which I replied “what does that mean?!” This is when she proceeded to tell me that it had come up in previous scans, she was surprised no-one had told me and that it’s likely to be Endometriosis. I had never even heard of it until this point - which is the exact problem.

When it’s eventually diagnosed the main ways of managing it are through painkillers and getting the extra tissue cut out through surgery, and because it grows back, there’s no long term treatment or cure. It continuously impacts day to day life, including work, and because there’s very little awareness around it this causes 40% of women with the condition to worry about losing their job as they don’t think their employer will understand (I’m fortunate that this absolutely hasn’t been the case for me.) I can only hope that in the future Endometriosis gets the awareness it needs, and that women like me get the acknowledgement and support they deserve when dealing with this condition. 

Thank you so much Hannah, I can’t wait for the medical world to start treating conditions that affect people who menstruate with the attention they deserve 🙄.

Period poverty

Again, I felt like I wouldn’t have done writing about period poverty justice as I am fortunate enough to have never experienced it. Alice Mortlock, a manager in our Analytics team, has kindly shared her experience from childhood. I found reading her account very humbling. Thank you Alice for sharing your story and raising awareness.

I was fortunate that when I had my first period my Mum had warned me all about it. I wasn’t shocked or scared, I was in the know! What I wasn’t prepared for was the sinking realisation that my family all had to make sacrifices any time that I had my period so that we could afford to buy me some period products.

I grew up in a house where we lived penny to penny, so taking me down to the shops to buy pads meant a big rethink of this week’s food shop. We couldn’t afford the more “fancy” types of products (like on the TV adverts where someone rings out a pad and nothing comes out) so I had to make do with a 39p pack of 10. These things were like huge bricks of cotton wool and pretty much useless, trust me. Their uselessness was exacerbated by the fact that I wanted to make them last as long as possible, I didn’t want my Mum to have to figure out where she could claw back that 39p from again, and I didn’t want anyone at home to eat less well just because of me. Inevitably this led to me getting creative with some toilet roll to try to get through my period, and it did not always work! I spent too many lessons at school worrying that when I got up to leave I’d have left behind an ‘embarrassing’ stain when I should have been focusing on my education.

I wish I could say that I am the only kid that ever had to do that but sadly it is far from the truth. A shocking 1 in 10 young people who menstruate in the UK cannot afford period products. That’s 1 in 10 kids who, thanks to the shame and stigma around periods, are silently wondering if they have managed to get through another lesson at school without anyone noticing what’s happening. Or worse, 1 in 10 kids who miss out on some of their education because they can’t afford period products so don’t feel like they can go to school. Such a natural and fundamental part of human life should not be holding people who menstruate back from living their lives and grabbing opportunities by the ovaries (as opposed to balls).

Environmental impact

A less commonly thought of impact of the stigma around periods is on the environment. Did you know that regular tampons can take 500-1000 years to decompose!? Reusable period products are becoming more popular, but because they tend to require cleaning of some kind, many people who menstruate shy away from using them due to thinking that menstrual blood is dirty, and therefore not wanting to touch it. Or not wanting their partner/family to see them sanitising their menstrual cup in boiling water in the kitchen, or feeling embarrassed rinsing them out in public if the toilets are cubicles without sinks.

So if the social, educational and health impacts weren’t enough to want to end the stigma around periods, do it for the environment 👍

If you want to learn more…

• Why can't we talk about periods (TED talk)
• 28ish Days Later  (podcast)
• Period Power (book)
• It’s about bloody time. Period. (book)
• Periods in space (article)
• One third of young women & girls in UK can’t access free period products (article)