Daisy Sjolseth
Before researching this issue, I knew very little to nothing about it. Although periods are a very big part of a woman's life, people don't normally realize that there is a giant demand for feminine products in the homeless and low income community. I know from my own experience of having four girls in my family that these products can be very expensive, especially if you add up the cost for multiple women in one family month after month. Besides just the cost, I realize that there is a very large stigma that comes with having a period. Most people, including myself, are embarrassed to pull out any feminine products during class to bring them to the bathroom, so we instead try to hide them in our sleeve or put them quickly in our pockets before we head to the restroom. There is always the worry of bleeding through your pants or having people smell the blood, but I don't exactly understand why. As I think about this issue more, I have begun to wonder why periods are considered so "taboo" because they are just one of our normal bodily functions. Throughout this project, I hope to reduce this stigma and help to provide help to any girls within our school system that needs it. Angela Garcia Up until recently, I hated my body. I hated the way this hung or how big that was or how small that other thing was. I have since then gained confidence in myself, and alongside that, I have learned to understand my body better and thus become more passionate about women’s health. As a young girl struggling through womanhood and figuring myself out, I learned to despise my body. I learned this from society, from ten year old boys who teased me, and from TV. I hated my periods because I had incredibly painful cramps and could never manage them perfectly. I hated that I didn’t look like the girls in magazines or on Disney Channel. Because I despised my own body so much, I just figured that every other woman hated theirs too. Then I learned of empowered women. I learned that there were women out there that didn’t hate their bodies, and after a while of wondering what their secret was to achieving that intimidating, powerful aura, I figured I’d start reading into what my body was all about. I read anatomy books, looked at diagrams, read blogs about periods and women’s health, and finally came to realize I could love my body too, once I knew more about myself. I believe every woman can learn to love their body. However, this process of self-acceptance needs to be introduced very early on, before girls get the idea that their bodies are repulsive and something to be ashamed of, which is an idea society tends to pressure onto girls. Women have always had incredibly strict expectations put onto them that have discouraged them from learning more about their bodies. Women are discouraged of exploring themselves and learning about their health because, unfortunately, society still labels the female anatomy as taboo. In order for women to become more intellectual, healthy, and empowered individuals, they should be taught about their bodies at an early age. By being educated about their bodies, they will be able to detect health problems much more efficiently as well as reduce the risk of unwanted pregnancy. The other part of our issue is the focus on the availability/accessibility of feminine hygiene products. A lot of women and girls do not have the resources to spend on feminine products every month and end up with serious health problems as a result of using alternative forms. These alternatives, such as mattress fabric and rags, are often times extremely unsanitary and pose an extreme risk to a woman’s health. This is a huge issue that occurs locally as well as globally. So, our group wants to implement a program where girls here at Austin High School have accessible feminine products readily available for them. We concluded that focusing on a local level can give us a more direct impact which will immediately help girls here at Austin High School. That is how we plan to make a difference. Natalie Bennett As a female, I am a begrudging participant in menstruation. The first time I got a period, I was in San Antonio with my dad and brother. I didn’t have any feminine hygiene products with me and my dad had left for work, so I ended up walking around the hotel and River Center mall alone, trying to manage an issue that I had no idea how to handle up until that point. The hotel store didn’t have anything and it was too early in the morning for the mall to be open, so I had to wait for about six hours until we got home to my mom--I didn’t tell my dad, because I was too embarrassed. Now, I am fortunate to have access to anything I need to combat the messy effects of my period, but I do not think everyone can say the same. Having spent that limited amount of time helpless to the effects of my period, I cannot even imagine what it is like to not be able to properly manage (via tampons, pads, etc.) a period for extended amounts of time. Resources to help girls manage their periods need to be available everywhere, but especially in schools, because periods cannot be paused for school. It is not fair to the women in our communities to ignore and fail to provide for menstruation on the basis of it being an inconvenience, because periods are not something we have any control over. I don’t know of anyone that would choose to have a period if given the choice. Schools that fail to provide feminine hygiene products do a disservice to girls by essentially confirming that their periods are taboo and something about which they should keep quiet and handle on their own. In an institution where we are expected to believe what we are taught, how is it fair to teach girls that their periods are something to be ashamed of? I hope that we are able to make it easier for the ladies in our community to take care of their menstrual cycles, whether or not they can afford to on their own. If, in the process, we could also normalize periods in the Austin High community, that would be superb, too. |