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It’s not that big deal. Period.
By Claire Ward
Every girl knows the pain of that dreaded time of the month. Aunt Flow, the Crimson Wave, Shark Week, Code Red, Bloody Mary, Leak Week, TOTM. No matter what you call it, it’s still a period.
Accompanied by cramping, bloating, mood swings, acne, appetite changes, muscle aches, backaches, headaches, trouble sleeping, and trouble with concentration, the worst week of the month ensues at the end of your cycle. Every woman, or 49.6% of the world’s population, experiences it during her life. So, why is it seen as such a taboo, unspeakable occurrence?
Just recently, I walked down the hall to the ladies room. I passed friends in the hallway, returning smiles and greetings, and receiving weird stares. I was carrying my little bag (containing feminine products) openly in my left hand. Both boys and girls gave me a look somewhere between disgust and shock. How could a girl walk through the hall showing very brazenly that she was on her period?
What is this, the rapture? Nope, not the rapture. Just a girl on her period who’s tired of feeling like she has to hide it.
Most girls tend to agree. Senior Brigit Hammond feels “[the shame] is dumb because it’s a part of nature that [girls] literally have no control over.” Every day about 40 percent of the school will be on, just ending, or starting their ride on the Crimson Wave. There should be no reason for them to hide it, nor be criticised for symptoms.
Premenstrual syndrome (PMS) is caused by the changing influx of hormones, and is used against women every day. Boys use it to make fun of girls. Any time a female classmate has a bad day and makes a grumpy comment, she will be asked sneeringly if she’s on her period.
Hammond states she “is sure [boys] would get a little cranky too” if they were suddenly bleeding. Even when boys are cranky, they aren’t asked if they’re riding the Crimson Wave.
The menstrual cycle is used as a tool to ridicule women for a wide range of things. Any woman with an opinion to voice can be seen as bossy. If she speaks up against this sexist double standard, she may be asked if she is on her period, if that is what’s causing her to be so “angry.”
Let’s not forget when Donald Trump accused Megyn Kelly, Fox News TV Personality, of having “blood coming out of her wherever” when she asked him questions he didn’t like at a presidential debate.
Women are sick of being told their hormones are controlling them. Choices girls make that may seem angry or fueled are because girls are angry and fueled. In a world full of double standards and inequality,
there’s plenty to be angered about.
Boys are fully allowed to be angry. They can express their emotions without hormones being mentioned. They can walk to the bathroom without shame. Girls want nothing but the same treatment. We shouldn’t be shaming for natural processes. Every one of us is alive because of periods. Period.
