In the UK, the average woman will spend about £4,800 on period products in her lifetime.
Sanitary towels and tampons are still taxed as “luxury” “non-essential” products for women.
Did you know this?
It was news to me.
Think about what you could do with an extra £4,800…
You could get a lot of very nice holidays out of that.
Instead this money is dripping out of our bank accounts monthly to be replaced by a load of plastic with wings and applicators only to be promptly binned or flushed away.
Conversations about periods are definitely more frequent now than they were for my parents when they were my age.
But talking about periods is something that needs to happen more.
Men’s blood and gore in war films or horror movies is perfectly acceptable, but to even feature the colour red in an advert for sanitary towels is unnecessary, explicit and grim?
Women have had periods for as long as biology has existed.
And though I feel able to talk to my male and female friends about periods without it seeming like a big deal there is still so much unnecessary stigma associated with menstruation.
In Year 6, we had our dreaded sex and relationships day, where all the girls were taken into one room to talk about periods and babies, while the boys had their own talk separately.
To this day I have no clue what they boys talked about… Perhaps something to be raised in another blog…
I vividly remember my teacher recounting the story of when her period started and how she was forced to wear her friend’s jumper round her waist to hide the stain on her skirt as she had been totally unprepared.
Even as a grown woman, telling this story made her embarrassed and uncomfortable.
Periods aren’t disgusting or embarrassing.
I’ll agree, they’re a pain, but they shouldn’t be viewed in the negative light that they so often are.
Trying to predict when you might need to wear that cautionary pad and the sudden terror when you realise you’re at the gym with nothing on you and the tampon vending machine wants a whole pound before it will spit out your essentials, isn’t fun.
It isn’t fun reaching that time of the month and feeling limited to certain wardrobe choices because there are some things that simply aren’t worth the risk of wearing. (I’m not even going to start of white jeans…)
It isn’t fun waking up to blood stains and having to deal with the faff of changing ruined sheets, accompanied by a voice of shame and embarrassment in the back of your head.
It isn’t fun having to put up with the discomfort of pads rubbing on your inner thighs, agonising period cramps, hormones that have a mind of their own…
But all of these things are normal for so many. The little hiccups of life that we deal with, because what’s the use in complaining?
I went to a wedding in Madrid a few months ago, and I cannot begin to explain how amazing it was to see lined up next to the sinks – stacks of pads and tampons. I think there was even sanitizer and maybe some deodorant? All of the essentials and more.
That should be normal.
Not the nasty white machine clinging to the toilet wall demanding all your hard-scavenged change in order to give you what you need to deal with a thing you can't help.
As for “man periods”… I had a chat with a friend of mine in order to discuss thoughts about this post and she said men who tease that other men are on their “man period” either need to get their mate checked out for cancer or some form of STD.
Because menstruation isn’t just unjustified anger folks.
Let’s not treat periods like they’re just mood swings; I can manage to be angry quite easily without the input of my bleeding uterus.
Not all women respond to the changes of hormone levels in their bodies by lashing out or being unpleasant.
I think it is a very unifying thing that we share as a gender, but let’s not generalise by assuming the experience is identical for all.
As for when girls might be dealing with a little more pent up anger than usual thanks to our favourite H for Hormones, to paraphrase a friend of mine; you’d be fucked off too if after deciding not to get pregnant this month your uterus bled profusely for a week.
So lets cut each other some slack.
I don’t have to worry too much about that extra few pounds that disappear monthly, but for some, juggling with that, along with rent, food money and simply the cost of living is all too much.
I won’t even get into the issues homeless women must have to deal with affording period products.
It shouldn’t be an added financial struggle to get the supplies you need.
Then we have the eco products: moon cups, reusable fabric pads…
Initially more expensive than good old Tampax or Lil-lets but in the long run, more financially friendly.
Is it worth the hassle, having to wash these Earth friendly things rather than just being able to put the commercialised alternatives straight into the bin?
It’s unfair enough that we have to put up with this monthly irritant, so surely, we want to make dealing with it as straight forward and hassle free as possible. Not words associated with having to hand wash a reusable sanitary towel, I know…
Reusable menstrual products have been around for decades, but it’s the initially cheaper, 90% plastic ones that are far more damaging to the planet that need constant replacement on supermarket shelves.
But with the global temperature on the rise, we have to think about the little sacrifices we could make to limit the waste that either ends up in landfill or flushed into the oceans.
The debate about sustainable period products is a huge issue which I only want to brush upon now, but it needs to feel like more of a viable option to menstruating women.
It’s a decision which we should be more consciously making.
Menstruation in 2020 is something that has become much more normalised, but it’s still a monthly vulnerability for many. In a way it’s a shame we can’t physically share the experience with men, but honestly, I wouldn’t wish the inconvenience on anybody.
Instead what I wish is that we didn’t have to pay to prevent one of the most natural bodily processes dripping down our legs every four weeks.
Has this grossed you out enough yet?
We shouldn’t have to pay tax for biology.
In the March budget this year it was announced that from January 2021 there will be no tax on sanitary products. My question is, why on earth has it taken this long?
Periods are shit we have to deal with.
Some women have it really badly, while others get off without much pain.
But categorising our needs as a “luxury” is more than plain cheek. It’s ridiculous.
I believe sanitary products should be free for all.
Period.
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