Period Shaming: Awareness and Prevention

Period Shaming” has unfortunately become a derogatory term to express the indecencies of a woman having her period. In many countries, women do not have proper access to feminine hygiene products and are unable to dispose of them discretely. This increases the rate of cross-contamination, infection, and sadly, embarrassment.

• In India it is estimated that 23% of girls leave education when they start bleeding and because few women have access to sanitary products they use unhygienic items such as rags, sand or leaves instead. It is believed that 70% of all reproductive diseases in the country can be attributed to poor menstrual hygiene.

• Homeless women in Britain also often resort to using rags as sanitary pads because they do not have access to this basic necessity. The Homeless Period an online campaign is gaining traction for its petitioning of the Government, to give shelters an allowance to buy sanitary products to distribute, writes Emma Barnett in her Telegraph article, Periods aren’t shameful, but our attitudes to them are

Many young girls who enter the age of menstruation are uncomfortable with their bodies, making it embarrassing for them to be proactive about their health issues especially when it is hard to find informational resources that speak freely about acceptance.

Period shaming with very different outcomes have recently featured on social media;

• A photo was posted of a girl lying in bed; with a red stain “accident” on her pajamas and sheets. This was censored by Instagram, showing that periods are to be a silenced subject.

However, the story of Kiran Gandhi, is a prime example of how women can speak up and bring awareness.

• On the morning of her marathon run, Kiran Gandhi awoke to a surprise by Mother Nature. Gandhi decided to run 26.2-miles in the London marathon, “free-bleeding”. In an interview after the marathon, Kiran stated that she ran without using a sanitary product to raise awareness of women in other countries who are unable to access feminine products and are subject to period shaming by their culture. “I felt empowered” stated Gandhi. Her message is a triumph and loud declaration to end period shaming in all cultures. Woman Marathon Period No Tampon: A Run To End Shaming

As a woman owned company, Workplace Essentials values every woman’s right to accessible feminine hygiene products and to the availability of a safe and sanitary method of waste disposal.    By offering Feminine Hygiene Services that include Sanitary Disposal, which eliminates cross-contamination and the threat of exposure to potentially infectious waste, and Sanitary Napkin and Tampon Vending that provides easy access to products 24/7-  we have a strong, proactive presence in promoting solutions to these issues that are faced by women every day.

We hope that this message increases awareness of women’s health rights and the necessity of providing feminine products and sanitary disposal in all restrooms used by women in in all commercial sectors including corporations, education, and public facilities.

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