Menstruation and the Society- A Teenager’s Analysis
For a girl, and later a woman, life throws numerous challenges at almost every point of time towards her.
A lot of challenges in a woman’s life are born out of social and cultural impositions, and others, that are natural, are given a social and cultural background.
From the Hindu religious text of Manusmriti to the English literary works of Shakespeare’s Hamlet and Charles Dickens’s A Tale of Two Cities, there is literary evidence that declares women to be controlled and made submissive to the male patriarch. The world, as it was hundreds of years ago, considered women to be an asset of the man, holding just as much value as his land, animals and crops.
In the modern world, the situation has dramatically changed for the better. Women have progressed to claim what should have been given to them naturally. In India, the fight for women’s rights was and still is, very different from that of the western world. In India, the brave women reformers and women’s rights activists had to battle the deeply settled patriarchy along with the closely mixed religious and cultural orthodox practices that were, and still are, a natural part of the Indian peoples.
The great Savitri Bai Phule and Pandita Ramabai Ranade, among many other brave women, are rightly considered to be the harbingers of the Indian women’s rights movement. They fought patriarchy that was embedded in every aspect in the life of an Indian woman- in her birth, her body, her mind, her marriage, and in the rarest cases, her education.
One such issue in India that still has widespread silence and purdah around it is ‘Menstruation’. This silence about a naturally occurring process in a woman’s body is evidence of the taboo that female sexual health and sexuality are considered to be. To delve deep into this topic, let us first learn about the phenomenon.
What is Menstruation?
Menstruation is the process of shedding the uterine lining which is accompanied by bleeding on a regular monthly basis in the female body. It begins in girls at the onset of puberty (teenage) around the age of 12–15 and ends with Menopause which occurs around the age of 45–50. The first “periods”, as they are referred to, are known as menarche and the last periods are known as menopause.
What is the reason behind Periods?
Menstruation occurs to mark the onset of puberty in a girl’s life, which also means that she is capable of reproduction. Every month her body is prepared for pregnancy. The uterus lining thickens for the embryo to get embedded after the egg is released from the ovaries. In the event of fertilization, the future fetus would rest here until childbirth. But if there is no such event, this uterus lining sheds off in the form of blood through the vagina.
Health issues related to menstruation
Regular periods are a sign that the female body is working normally and it is healthy. But, there are some symptoms that indicate the malfunctioning in a woman’s body which could cause serious problems.
Some of these symptoms are Painful cramps, Absent periods, Infrequent periods, Short or light periods, Frequent periods, Heavy or long periods. In any such case, a doctor should immediately be consulted. But, due to lack of information, girls are often unable to recognise any of these symptoms and end up suffering fatal consequences.
Myths and Taboos about Menstruation in the Indian Society
Despite centuries of work towards women’s social upliftment and empowerment by the likes of Phule and Ranade, in the present system, menstruation is still considered to be ‘impure’ and ‘dirty’. This taboo-impure-dirty definition of a natural biological process is being carried on by society as a cultural practice of the past.
The origin of this myth dates back to the Vedic times and is often linked to Indra’s ( a Hindu deity) slaying of Vritras, a demon. It has been written in the Vedas that the guilt of killing a Brahmana (the uppermost varna in the Hindu caste system) appears every month as the menstrual flow in women’s body, as women had taken upon themselves a part of Indra’s guilt.
A culture that disrupts a menstruating woman’s life
In India, women who are menstruating are not allowed to live a normal life as they are prohibited from performing several days to day chores. Many girls and women in rural and even urban India are restricted from entering temples for the fear of ruining the “puja” led by male brahmins.
They are also confined to offering prayers and touching holy books. They are prohibited from entering the kitchen- the “supposed” territory of the Indian woman. It is a widespread belief across rural and urban India that girls and women who are ovulating are impure, dirty and unhygienic, and anything they touch is contaminated.
Misconceptions about menstruation
The many misconceptions about menstruation such as its association with evil spirits lead to shame and embarrassment to any issue surrounding female sexual health. In some parts of India, women bury the clothes they used during their menstruation to prevent the “evil spirits” from using them. Some believe that menstrual blood is dangerous and can be maliciously used to cause harm using “Kala Jaadu” (black magic).
The misinformation and orthodox beliefs are so prevalent that it is alleged that a woman can use another woman’s menstrual blood to “impose will” on her husband. It is also believed that if a girl touches a cow while she is menstruating, the cow becomes infertile.
These beliefs are widely popular and faithfully practised in the majority of India. There is no scientific explanation and logic behind these beliefs, and yet a majority of the Indian population goes on to practice these amoral and discriminatory practices.
Amidst the primitive beliefs, archaic cultures, and extremely inhuman practices, the only individual that suffers the most is the woman. Her sexual health has been put behind a Lakshman Rekha of obscurity and ambiguity and there seems to be no escape from centuries-old traditions.
The taboo is costing girls and women a lot
Such practices take a serious toll on women’s health. They are not provided with the basic yet necessary medical equipment that is the ‘Sanitary Napkin’ and ‘Pad’. Sanitary pads are the most efficient tool to prevent any allergies and infections in a woman’s body while she menstruates.
An environment of shame and guilt has been built over the centuries about menstruating women. And as a result, today’s adolescent girls and women feel insecure, ashamed and stigmatised about menstruating. Even if they overcome this societal and familial shame to procure sanitary napkins, they feel embarrassed to buy them from pharmacy stores run by men.
Adverse effects on health
Another reason for young girls and women not using sanitary napkins and pads is its high cost. High cost and taxes on hygiene products make them unattainable for poor girls and women. This results in women using unhygienic ways to handle their menstrual blood flow like filling up old socks with cotton and old rags and using them to absorb blood.
This rather risks their health and increases the possibility of infections like Herpes and Hepatitis. Requests must be made to the government to reduce the cost of menstrual pads and make them easily accessible. Inspiration can be taken from countries such as New Zealand and Scotland which are amongst the first countries to provide sanitary products free in all schools, universities and colleges. Such models will ensure that proper sanitary accessories are provided to every single girl child and women.
Numbers say it all
A majority of adolescent girls and women in India remain unfamiliar with the Sanitary Napkin and have never even heard of it. The Indian Council for Medical Research’s 2011–12 report stated that only 38% of menstruating girls in India spoke to their mothers about menstruation. 70% of mothers didn’t know how to manage menstruation in a hygienic manner. The research also said that schools are also not that helpful as there are many schools that don’t educate their students about menstruation and sexual health.
The lack of knowledge is costing young girls and women their futures. It is a topic about which people are not too keen to talk about. They feel uncomfortable talking about sexual and reproductive health. These people don’t feel that there is any need of making teenage girls aware about sex education and menstruation.
Mounting challenges
A key issue that is associated with menstruation is the disposal of the sanitary waste generated in the process. The old practices dictate that women burn the already old, dirty and unhygienic cloth rag, used by women at the cost of endangering their lives, be burnt in utmost secrecy post its use in the process of menstruation. It is a huge problem that needs to be addressed urgently.
Data by government health organisations show that every month, 353 million women and adolescent girls across India use sanitary products and generate menstrual waste. In urban areas, girls and females dispose of the used sanitary napkins by flushing them in toilets or by throwing them normally in the trash with other waste. But in rural areas, women are still commanded to follow the old ritual of disposing of by burning or burying in secrecy, away from the eyes of people.
Way forward
So, proper steps should be initiated towards addressing the issue of sanitary waste disposal. Steps like special bins for menstrual waste and the use of incinerators are a few suggestions for adopting a healthier and hygienic approach for disposing of sanitary waste.
There is an urgent need for these reforms because it is high time to discard the centuries-old traditions that put the baseless customs and beliefs above the health, life and well-being of an actual living being.
Menstrual Health and Hygiene (MHH) must be an open topic, and information about menstrual hygiene and sanitary products must be accessible to every girl and woman. In fact, men should be educated about this issue too in order to create awareness among gender circles and divides about sexual and reproductive health.
Modern technology should be used by the government and respective authorities to create awareness about sexual health and menstruation. Applications and video-based platforms should be used to spread the message of discarding taboos and orthodox customs and embracing healthy ways to maintain hygiene in regards to the sexual health of women.
Thus, in this 21st century, we must look back to Savitribai Phule, Pandita Ramabai Ranade, Tarabai Shinde, Raja Ram Mohan Roy and all the great Indian reformers who dedicated their lives to uplift the poor, empower the women and give equal strength to every individual.
They abolished the inhumane Sati Pratha and other misogynistic practices; now it is our chance to abolish the stigmatisation of menstruation. Let us all embrace their teachings, and together we must fight to defeat the enemy that resides in the archaic and obsolete customs of the patriarchal society.
Views are the writer’s own and do not necessarily represent the viewpoint of Volunteers Collective.
Written by Samriddhi Sharma. Samriddhi is a class 10th student at Delhi Public School Ghaziabad Vasundhara and shares concerns about women’s rights and human rights.
