A process of vaginal bleeding in women that happens every month is Menstruation or Period. This bleeding has one part of blood and another part of tissues from the uterus. Periods occur in every lady except pregnant women or women who have begun with her menopause.
In India women in menstruation or period are considered impure and to date, in a few communities’ women are made to follow some rules. Women are not allowed to enter the kitchen, and many religious restrictions are forced. I personally believe menstruation is a natural thing in every woman’s life. Why do we have to treat her differently when she is on periods? Unfortunately, we still have many taboos and misbeliefs related to menstruation. We need to end these stigmas associated with periods. We should understand what women need during the menstruation phase and make that make her comfortable.
Here are some common myths about periods in India.
Myth: You shouldn’t wash your hair during your period.
Fact: In India, it is always been said that women shouldn’t take a head bath during periods. There is no study to prove this statement. It is perfectly fine to take bath during periods, in fact, taking a warm water bath relieves the cramping pain. It is also a hygiene practice
Myth: If you miss your period, you are pregnant
Fact: We always come to the conclusion a woman is pregnant if her periods are late or if she misses her period for a month. This is not true in all cases. Hormonal imbalances, unhealthy diet, any kind of illness, sometime stress or even excessive weight can also be the reason for missed or late periods.
Myth: Premenstrual Syndrome is not real
Fact: Few women go through some different feelings before periods like bloating, headaches, mood change, feeling low, not feeling to do anything, etc. Few women also face cramps. These all are because of hormonal changes. On average 90% of women face these premenstrual syndromes. MiDL(Mood in Daily Life) has proved that women’s moods are influenced by hormones before menstruation.
Myth: Period blood is dirty .
Fact: We cannot mention the blood as impure just because it is coming out of the vagina. The blood that a women discharge during the period is less concentrated and has fewer blood cells than normal blood, uterine tissues, mucus lining, and bacteria. People in some part of the country also says that women are impure during the menstruation period. It’s a stigma that we have to break for our younger generation.
Myth: You cannot enter the kitchen while you are on periods.
Fact: There some Hindu communities prohibit women from entering the kitchen and cooking while on their period. The actual reason with which this was said in earlier days is women need rest from the household chores so she was asked not to enter the kitchen and work instead to take a rest on those days.
To wrap up: Not only these but we have many other stigmas and superstitious things related to menstruation. We must understand the process, we must understand what woman go through while she is on periods, we must understand periods help us stay young and healthy, we must learn how can we break these taboos and accept periods as a part of normal life.