Menstruation

So, I'm in the middle of one of the worst periods I can ever remember. My body just up and decided, "Hey, let me double every symptom I've ever processed and let it loose at the same time! And why not make it last twice as long, too?" So I figure, why not write about menstruation? It's actually one of my favorite topics, and it isn't talked about near enough.


Menstruation is a natural occurrence in people, mostly women. That's right, I said women, not girls. There's a long period of time in our culture when we are neither children nor adults - they call us teenagers. There's not much inherently different between young adults and adults. Every year is another chance to gain new experiences, but that doesn't define what experiences you can encounter. I spent a few years around the ages of 14-16 wondering just when I would be 'allowed' to call myself a woman. I finally decided I was one, and I think any menstruating (or not) person should be able to decide whether to call oneself a girl, boy, woman or man.

As a woman, I'm proud of my menstruation. Not all are, but society goes a pretty long way to make people embarrassed of it. It's painful, it makes us less beautiful, not to mention less sexy, it's a nuisance. You can't go swimming or dance around in white clothes or even get through the day - at least, not without a bunch of products. Do you know about menstrual cups? They've been around for a long time, and they're incredible. Reusable silicone (or latex) cups that are quite comfortable and easy to use, though they have a steep learning curve. Why haven't you heard of them? Because they don't make as much money as the tampon companies, who pay to advertise only their products in magazines. There's a cultural taboo on menstrual blood - it's somehow less clean, and so, clearly, a reusable cup would be disgusting. I've had friends tell me that they're okay with blood art - that is, someone painting with a blood based paint. However they're NOT okay with menstrual blood art. Why the double standard?

I haven't even touched on mood and being a bitch, yet. My PMS tends to make me really sad and prone to panic, exaggerating things like natural disasters and minor hiccups in plans. However, it doesn't really change me that much, and when I realize that it's the hormones, I can reason myself out of whatever I'm crying over. Hormones don't change the fact that I have reasons in my life to stress and cry. For most women, whatever sets her off on her period is something that legitimately irritates her. When a woman is being a bitch, people just chalk it up to PMS instead of fixing the problem. Well, I can be even more of a bitch when I'm not menstruating than when I am, is it the hormones? No, it's because I have reasons to be a bitch.

In my mind, menstruation should be something openly talked about, generally seen as positive (death isn't pretty, but both it and menstruation are necessary for life as we know it), and not used as an excuse for behavior. It has its negative side effects, but those shouldn't be lumped together and written off as some anomaly in life. It's a legitimate part of our lives.