I was in 8th grade when I first got my menstruation.
I did not know what “menstrual cycle” actually is; I simply had developed a rough idea about it after the whole class made a fuss about red stains on my best-friend’s skirt. They warned me that it’ll come to me. But I was too dreamy to believe that I could be subjected to something that appeared so “abnormal”.
Big surprise though- the cycle arrived. But I still did not know that a “cycle” is supposed to cycle and come back!
When my grandmother said that it will go away in 3 days, I started counting.
When it still stayed, my mother said that for some girls it stays for 5 days; I got into my counting business again.
And yes, this time it actually went away. I could finally run and jump around.
But as the days passed, and the wheel completed its circle, it came back. AGAIN!!
But why? I did not know!
Period. Menstrual cycle. Sanitary pads. Tampons. These are the terms that many girls only get to hear after they get their first experience of a process that is natural. My academic curriculum only ran a chapter on menstrual cycle in the 9th grade- a time when almost all the girls in my class had already had enough information about the cycle from various broken sources. Internet was also not so prevalent then to come at the rescue of curious girls.
Even today many girls might be living in a bubble that will burst as suddenly as mine did; without any prior knowledge or preparation. It’s high time that menstrual education be given a priority at schools.