Menstruation is a topic which everybody has read or heard of but it is also a topic which is not as talked about as it should be. In a conservative society like Indian it is still considered a taboo to talk about menstruation and there's a lot of stigma around menstruation. Instead of treating menstruation as a normal bodily function which plays a huge role in the reproductive health of women's it is either considered a taboo or a sacred thing. Both the extremes prevent the right information to flow among young women. In this blog I'm going to talk about the experiences I've had around menstruation and how these experiences pushed me to take some action in a personal capacity.
I got to know that there's something called menstruation in my biology class in the 9th standard. I clearly remember that day, I had a unit test of science and my elder sister (I'll refer her as 'di' from now on) was taking my viva. She asked me the definition of menstruation, after telling her the definition and everything I said I know women's have this problem (my bird brain thought it was some kind of disease which every women suffers from) and I offered her my Cadburry Rum & Raisin chocolate, mind you that's my favorite chocolate to this day. Her gaze at me softened and she had this little smile on her face. We both enjoyed the chocolate together. Nonetheless, this gesture of mine did not stop her from absolutely thrashing and KOing me in the chemistry viva. I've learned a lot from my di and having empathy towards women especially during menstruation is one of those lessons.
Second incident is one of the two incidents which shook me to my core. I had the front row seat in seeing how negative aura and stigma around mensuration can effect someone both physically and emotionally. This incident happened write after I completed 12th standard. I had JEE exam and me and my mom were going to the railway station from the test center. There was this other lady who was sharing the auto with us.
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