«Many girls have their first menstruation without having received quality information»

According to the study ‘Menstrual literacy and experiences of menstruation in Spain‘ (‘Spanish menstrual literacy and experiences of menstruation’), published in the journal BMC Women’s Health in 2023, More than half of the women (56.1%) say they did not know how to physically manage the first time they got their period. Carried out by a team from the Higher Council for Scientific Research (CSIC) and the Polytechnic University of Valencia (UPV), 35.7% of the women surveyed acknowledged that they did not know very well what their period was when they got it for the first time. Additionally, the four most common emotions reported during first menstruation were shame (23%), worry (20%), fear (16%), and stress (15%). The authors conclude that menstrual education in Spain is still deficient.

However, the period is a symptom of health in the female body that also influences a woman’s brain activity, as revealed by a study recently published in ‘Nature‘, between the Pompeu de Fabra University (UPF) and the Paris-Lodron University of Salzburg.

Explaining what menstruation is to daughters, knowing how to deal with that first period or teaching minors that they do not have to feel ashamed are issues that should be explained at home. We talk about all this with Maria Nightmenstrual educator at Cyclo.

– Today we have access to a large amount of reliable information but… what do we still not know about the rule or what myths do we continue to perpetuate?

Fortunately, we have made a lot of progress in recent years in our knowledge of the menstrual cycle and, in general, women’s health. But this is not the case in all countries or in all cases. In Spain we have taken great steps in this regard, we have broken the taboo of speaking in public about menstruation and we have begun to consider it as the vital sign that it is, but there is still a long way to go. For example, many people still consider that it is normal for periods to hurtwhen this is not the case, or that by menstruating you cannot get pregnant, something that is not real either. Too many people still don’t know how the menstrual cycle works.

-In 2023, the CESIC and the Polytechnic University of Valencia carried out a study in which more than half of the women surveyed said that they did not know how to manage the first time they got their period. Why do we fail in health and menstrual education?

Of course, it is that Spain continues to fail in menstrual health. Many girls have their first menstruation without having received quality information, as indicated in this study that you cite and others like it. This lack of information and menstrual education has consequences at all levels. We receive super basic questions about the cycle and women’s bodies every day on our social networks. The key is that all people have access to quality information about the menstrual cycle from childhood, which is why we defend that this knowledge must be included in the basic curriculum, as established by the Sexual and reproductive health lawapproved in December 2022, something that is still not being fulfilled.

-How to manage that first time. I imagine it requires prior work, right?

The first menstruation – which is technically called menarche – is very important, to the extent that it marks the beginning of a cycle that lasts for many years. Of course requires prior training Because otherwise the girls get scared and lack the resources to manage the situation. It must be taken into account that it is not just bleeding, but rather it is a bio-psycho-social process. That is why it is also important that mothers, fathers, teachers and family members have updated information to offer boys and girls.

-What can mothers explain to their daughters? At an early age they are curious and ask you what that is when they see you with the pad or why you have blood. I imagine we have to talk about it because doing it for the first time on the day you get your period won’t be the most appropriate thing to do…

Exactly, if we wait until that day when they have their first bleeding to talk about menstruation we will be arriving late. The ideal is have a continuous conversation open from an early agelogically adapting the information to what boys and girls can understand based on their age. Let them know that they can ask whatever they want and normalize menstruation, for example by showing them the products that the adults in the family use or explaining how the cycle works. That mom is menstruating these days and that is why she may be a little more tired, that the blood that comes out of the vulva does not hurt, that this bleeding appears every month but only for a few days, that she uses this product or another to avoid staining, and that kind of stuff.

-And with children, should families explain it to them too?

Of course yes, that’s why in the previous answers we talked about boys and girls. Children are part of society, and as such they must understand what happens during the cycle. That is why it is important that menstrual education be done from a comprehensive point of view. Raising awareness about menstruation and related issues (endometriosis, PCOS, infertility…) is essential, for everyone. We want to promote a society aware of the menstrual cycle as a unique vital sign in each person.

-By the way, what should be the role of parents in this matter?

The Parents must also be involved in the education of boys and girlstherefore its role is also crucial. Normalizing talking about the menstrual cycle, teaching them what products can be used and being present in conversations is important for the normalization we are talking about, and to avoid taboos and false myths related to menstruation.

-Today we have different types of products at our disposal. Which would be most appropriate for a preteen who has just gotten her period?

We always say that the ideal is for all people to have quality information available so that they can choose the product that best suits them at every moment of their life. We do not like to recommend a single option, because each person is different, but in this case in preteens we believe that menstrual panties or cotton pads can be highly recommended. If you dare to try the menstrual cup, we have an option that is very soft and easy to put on and that is also colorful, very pretty.

-In minors with disabilities or with certain diagnosed conditions (autism, ADHD, etc.), what product may be more appropriate on menstruation days?

It is an interesting question that is rarely asked. In principle, the same ones that we would recommend for a preteen without those types of diagnosed conditions, such as menstrual panties, cotton pads or menstrual cups, if you dare. But you would have to know the situation of each of them well to know which option best suits you.

-Let’s talk about emotions. What’s happening these days?

It is completely normal that Throughout the different stages of the menstrual cycle we experience emotional changessince each stage has its own characteristics at a hormonal, physiological and emotional level. Although each person can experience it differently, it is common that in the menstrual phase you are referring to – the bleeding days – we notice that we are lower in mood and energy.

-Shame, shame, fear… Are there reasons to feel this way about having your period?

It shouldn’t be like this but unfortunately it still happens to many people. Menstruation is a perfectly normal physiological process that occurs to more than half of the population during about 40 years of our lives. It is a very important vital sign, which provides us with very valuable information about our state of health and our body, and as such it should be considered, not as something to be ashamed of.

-Is the rule always the same? As we get older, when there are pregnancies, for example, changes in diet… does it impact the cycle?

Our rule changes and evolves as we do it. It is a normal and usual process, which It varies depending on different internal and external factors and is different for each person.. For example, many teenagers start out having painful and irregular periods that then become smoother as the years go by; Some women take months or even years to recover their cycle after pregnancy and eating disorders, for example, can cause us to stop bleeding for a time, indicating that there are problems in our body that we need to address.

-Do you think that girls should be given more and better information at school?

Absolutely yes. As we said, we are supporters of include comprehensive and quality menstrual education in the basic educational curriculum. Having good menstrual education is essential and cannot depend on the good will of a specific teacher or an educator who gives talks.

-By the way, since you teach workshops in schools and institutes. What are the main doubts of girls?

They are many and very varied, in the end as we said we lack a lot of menstrual education. The questions that are most frequently asked in schools are usually related to the first menstruation, the products that can be used or whether it is normal for periods to hurt.