ON DAYS WHEN OUR BODIES BETRAY US: MENSTRUAL HEALTH AND THE SOCIETY

By Olu-Ojegbeje Lolade

It was a Friday evening. My friend, Esther and I were walking down the road as we discussed an upcoming event that required us leaving our homes. She complained that she could not go because the date for the event was the same date her period was expected to start. Her period comes with pain, so she would have loved to stay back at home for comfort. She then lamented how having her period would not be considered a good reason to miss the event. Then and there, I realized there was a problem.
Menstrual health is an important part of overall health but sadly, it is less talked about. Averagely, eight in ten women have painful periods (also called dysmenorrhea), which comes with other symptoms like lower back pain, nausea, diarrhea, headaches and mood swings. The pain differs in women and in worse cases, some get hospitalized.
While women have to deal with this natural pain, it is expected that they are allowed to get as much comfort as they can. But somehow, the pain is trivialized. For Esther, this is the reason she did not think having her period would be accepted as a good reason to take a break. The attitude of the society towards women during this period is not always favourable. There are persons who do not consider dysmenorrhea a good-enough reason to take breaks from school, work or an exam. Funmilayo says; “I had a test and I had cramps that day. I went to meet the lecturer if she could spare me and allow me write it another day; she said no that if I don’t write it then, I would not be able to write it again. I could not cope because the pain was so severe, so I decided to go home”. Unfortunately, she was not allowed to rewrite the test. Naz lamented how a teacher would not allow her go out of the class, even while her skirt had been stained.
Some persons even go on to give comments that are not helpful. Abigail says; I once told a guy whom I was supposed to go out with that I could not go because I didn’t feel too well. He asked if I was on my period and I replied in the positive. To my shock, he replied with a cold “and so ?”
This insensitivity towards women during this period is borne out of many reasons. The expectation that women should be used to this pain takes the lead. A large percentage of people, including women, expect that dysmenorrhea is something women should get used to, while forgetting that each one comes with different symptoms.

This does not erase the fact that there are genuine persons who look out for women during this period. The presence of these genuine persons does not also invalidate the presence of the insensitive ones. People experience and handle pain differently. Hence, there is a need for women to be allowed the comfort they deserve during this period. The society needs to understand this one fact.