PERIODS: THE RED BLOT

How many of you can openly speak about periods and take care of the females in your life? Why do most of us feel uncomfortable to talk about it? Even in 2023, why are women being restricted based on the day of the month? How many of the men out there know about menstruation and menstruation hygiene? It's one of the biggest taboos of Indian society which has & is resulting in numerous deaths across the nation, as you read this.

Menstruation, biologically, is just a metabolic process that results in vaginal bleeding in women of phases between puberty and menopause. It is as natural as any other metabolic process our body engages in like urination, digestion, respiration etc. Menstruation occurs because the women's body makes itself ready for accepting a male sperm to fertilise the egg (ovum) and produce a baby. But, if the fertilization doesn't happen, all the necessary changes that the body has went through to make a habitable environment for the fertilization will be discharged from the body, in the form of blood. See? There's nothing gross about it, right? It is a normal biological process. In spiritual terms, it is a sacred process that indicates that a woman's body was ready for conceiving a baby. There's nothing flagrant or ugly about it. Over decades, it has been something unspoken of, or is discussed in secrecy in several households. Numerous people even refrain from discussing anything related to it because of discomfort and the disgust they feel.

It is believed that during old days, since the girls with periods experience medium to extreme pain, they are offered more rest in generally undisturbed areas of our homes, like other rooms, so that they shouldn't be disturbed. It is an act of caring. That was how the family showed the woman that they care about her and her well being. But, over time, we managed to remember the deeds but not the reason behind it. As generations progressed, people forgot that the entire purpose of keeping the woman in a secluded place is to offer her some rest and solace. Instead, they started treating it as something unconsecrated.

The measures of care transitioned into deeds of punishment.