Just a couple of months ago I held up this huge sign to catch attention at the re:publica in Berlin. Big sign and big words. The reaction from the bubble has been positive. Of course. People love. People support. People share. That's great. That's the bubble.
Quite sad is the fact that it is 2024 and we still have to hold up signs to gather attention towards a topic half of our population will experience at some point, and this topic has been here since people exist. Otherwise, anyone would.
Whenever I talk to people about menstruation, there is usually a very particular plot happening. Most of them know that menstruation exists and that women might be supported in it. They also heard about different products to use during menstruation, but when it comes to the topic of how those products work and what might be inside, the knowledge gets immediately thinner. You might think this is a problem whenever I talk to men, but unfortunately, it is not.
Mostly in those conversations whenever it comes to what's inside of period products, this is already the first big shocking moment: biocides, TSS, heavy metals - what? The surprise is real; the surprise gets deep. If then I go further and start talking about period poverty in all its details, people are completely lost. They did not hear about it, they don't know what it is, they could have never imagined that this is a problem.
Well, it is. Same as women who have to function during their menstruation like any other day of their cycle. Women who think it is normal to have crazy cramps, but still put something super toxic inside of them. Women who are not allowed to touch the food of the family while they are on their period. Girls who have to stay in shelters during their menstruation, and get raped while doing so. Anybody who does not have access to menstruation products, can't go to school and is forced to put leaves or mud or whatever they can find inside of their underwear. Girls who kill themselves after being massively bullied at school for bleeding accidentally through their skirts.
If I could, I would glue my sign on my forehead to create awareness wherever I go. Because that's what we need. That's what is completely overdue. And of course, you would be more than welcome to join us in this.
