The toxic myths about "MENSTRUATION"

I'm not sure, but I believe I was in grade 5 or 6 when I got my first period, and our school hadn't gave us much  knowledge about menstruation . However, I was aware that menstruation exists, and that when we have one, we must use a component called a "PAD" to ignore the bloodstain on our clothing.  

 Well, unlike many of my friends or many girls here in Nepal, I didn't go through a lot when I first had my period. Nothing really changed for me; I wasn't told "I could not really do this or that," neither was I locked in a room for days. I had no idea these problems existed until one of my friends told me she had to leave her house for five days during her first period, and I was puzzled. She also mentioned that she wasn't allowed to see Sun, including male family members, which puzzled me again. Possibly because I wasn't told to so, I felt I was hearing a story that belongs to some other world. However, this sparked my curiosity, and I began to wonder why Is there such a thing as a "culture" about menstruation?

 

I've met a lot of people who have been through this up to now, and hearing their stories gives me the chills. When they first had their period, some of them were just ten years old and had to spend the whole five days in a dark room or even a cave, and some of them were not even given enough nutrition, which is essential during menstruation. 

We hear stuff like "we are the generation of the twenty-first century"  but when it comes to changing a poor society, no one really speaks up. I believe that just because you haven't had to deal with problems like leaving your comfort zone for days without a care or not being able to enter your kitchen for days doesn't mean that these stuff aren't issues.

However I  do believe that certain people are stepping forward to make a difference, but  I've seen a lot of people ready to knock them down, and here the fun fact is   that the majority of them are women. While reading a post about Menstruation in Nepal, I came across a comment that said, "Leave them alone, it's neither our concern nor our problem to solve," and the comment was passed  by a girl.

 If I had never been through those dark rooms and was able to enter the kitchen or any other part of my house during the next few days, it doesn't mean I wouldn't consider it a problem for anyone, because I know that this is a real problem which is disturbing people's health physically, mentally, and emotionally and I strongly believe that it needs to stop. When pads, tampons, or menstruation cups didn't even exist and it would be unsanitary to eat and stay in a room where there are several drops of blood around, not entering the kitchen and other rooms during cycles made more sense. However, staying true to the same culture now makes no sense.  Many women suffer from depression as a result of this practice. Apart from snake bites, reports of sexual harassment and even murder have been reported while staying true to this toxic tradition followed during menstruation. 

 

I'd like to bring up a myth that I find ridiculous in this context. One of my relatives told me  "if we touched plants during our menstrual periods, the plants will die and we'll be cursed". I ran on to my mother, who chuckled and encouraged me to give that a try. I was nervous at first, but I tried it, and guess what, it didn't die. 

We all know about another ridiculous menstruation culture that exists in most Nepalese households. People who adopt this culture with unease and fear of being crucified are seen. Many girls are not permitted to attend ceremonies, rituals, or celebrations during menstruation, as you might have guessed, and this is the biggest misconception that we need to dispel. Believe me, I have never skipped a festival event due to menstruation, and I don't think I'm cursed.

I consider myself lucky to have such a wonderful mother who has always taught me  not to believe in these toxic myths which play a huge role in breaking your confidence down and if you are one of me who hasn't gone through this toxic culture, please don't ignore this as if this doesn't exist and this is not a real problem because this is a real problem. Because of this culture, there are girls in this very same world of ours who feel ignored, embarrassed, and excluded.

We must all understand that "menstruation is a blessing granted to women by nature and it's not impure in any sense," but some people behave as if women are cursed throughout this stage. In such an era where we have been openly thinking about women's empowerment, how do we expect it to succeed if we continue to believe in toxic myths?

Thank you for taking the time to read this. I hope it has shifted the narrow-minded view of most people who believe and spread toxic theories about menstruation, even if only by 1%.