28th May - World Menstrual Hygiene Day
My mother wouldn’t let me hand her prayer mat. Without knowing why, shame and guilt settled in my mind
By: Golsom Azada
In memory of all the girls who experienced their first period with fear and shame!
In memory of all the women who silently endure pain, fading into silence and stillness!
In memory of the society that still refuses to talk about menstruation!
In memory of breaking the silence, awareness, awakening, health justice, and human dignity!
We need such a day not only to commemorate but to bring about change. Change in beliefs, policies, language, culture, and their approach to the female body. Facts and menstruation are not something to be ashamed of. Menstruation is a part of life itself.
On May 28, 2014, the world first commemorated 28th May - World Menstrual Hygiene Day with exhibitions, workshops, speeches, and marches. This day was chosen for meaningful reasons in the global calendar: the menstrual cycle typically lasts about 28 days, and women menstruate for about 5 days a month; May is also the fifth month of the year.
But do we really need such a day?
The answer to this question lies in the lives of millions of women around the world, women who struggle with painful realities, social stereotypes, and imposed silences against a completely natural biological process. Menstruation is the periodic shedding of the uterus lining, a process regulated by hormones and a sign of women’s physical health. However, in many societies, this biological fact is still shrouded in shame, discrimination, and harmful beliefs.
According to research published in the Critical Guide to Menstrual Studies (2020), menstrual blood is neither impure nor contaminated; rather, it is part of a natural and healthy bodily process. This blood is a mixture of uterine tissue and the body’s natural secretions, which have been distorted and demeaned only in the cultural context.
In Afghanistan, talking about menstruation is still a taboo. Menstruation is not seen as a natural state but as a flaw, a misfortune, or even a disgrace. This view not only harms women psychologically but also endangers their physical and mental health.
The first time I got my period, I was not very young, and thankfully, I had some basic information. But no one had prepared me for the cultural and family reactions. My mother wouldn’t let me hand her prayer mat. Without knowing why, shame and guilt settled in my mind. Years later, I realized that this feeling didn’t come from menstruation itself but from the way society viewed it.
The pain was intense from the start. Sometimes, my bones burned, my body became numb, and I almost fainted. But I didn’t even dare to raise my voice. This was a woman’s secret, a secret that men shouldn’t know about. Once, in a pharmacy, I screamed in pain, and a midwife put her hand in my mouth to silence me. I was suffocating and lost consciousness. At that moment, death seemed easier than letting anyone know what I was going through.
Each month, one week of my life was spent in pain; that meant three months of my year were spent in agony. My studies and work would fall behind, but if I said I was in pain, others would mockingly say, “How embarrassing! Does anyone suffer because of a period?” And I was once again condemned to silence. Sometimes, the women in the neighborhood would talk about the past: “When we got our period, we weren’t allowed to touch anything in the house. They locked us in a room, and they would bring us bread and water there.” These words would break my heart. Gradually, I came to understand that menstruation is not a sin. This blood is not impure. On the contrary, it is one of the most natural phenomena of the human female body.
Yet, society remains captive to outdated beliefs. In many areas, women are not allowed to enter mosques during their period because they are considered “unclean.” However, there is no scientific evidence to support the idea that menstrual blood is impure. Menstrual blood, like all blood in the body, is natural and clean. So, there is no reason for a woman to handle household items carefully or pretend to perform prayers or fasting. No woman is at fault for the nature of her body, but why the fault for silence that leads to it being labeled as dirty?
