Menstruation Hygiene Management: A hurdle for Adolescent girls growing up in rural communities.

Growing up as a girl in a typical African traditional community setting with no access to the basic social and health care needs can be very daunting task for adolescent young girls. Community life is often characterized by farming activities for parents and schooling for young girls and boys whose parents can afford. Parents especially mothers often have the habit if gathering their children in the evening around the fireside in the kitchen where they tell them tales that are meant to be the pillars for moral uprightness. They teach us lessons relating to obedience to parents, teaching us how to grow up with good character to relate with our husbands when we get married.

Our mother dare not talk around sex let alone menstruation since they were issues we must not hear or talk about as adolescent girls. Our community schools did no good either since menstruation and sexual health was limited only to science students and most of all those who did biology at the Advanced Level.

The first information I had on menstruation was gotten informally from my childhood peer while we went to fetch wood. She said, 'I saw blood coming out of my elder sisters' private part while she was cooking; and we still ate the food she prepared.' I never had any other information from then on menstruation until I got to the secondary school.

While in the secondary school, I recalled the story she told me years back about blood flow when I was faced with the reality. I never knew when it would come, and suddenly someday while I went to the toilet, I witnessed a scenario that could only enable me flashback to the story my friend told me about her elder sister. It was happening to me live, and it was no longer a dream. While, I tried to clean it, it was only persistent, I was so scared, ran out of the toilet to a neighbor's' house and told her what I saw. She told me I was menstruating and I did not even understand what she meant by menstruating. This is the first time I learnt of the term MENSTRUATION! She told me to go and tell my mother. I was scared and I knew I dare not tell anyone else let alone my mother. I had never seen nor had any knowledge on sanitary pads and knew not what to do.

I was experiencing a transformation and change in my life, and I had not had any knowledge nor information that could help me manage the situation and to keep myself healthy. Since I did not share with my mother, I did not know what to use to prevent the period from flowing to my undies and to my dress. I had no knowledge on sanitary pads even toilet tissues that I later learnt could be used to trap the period as it flows, was a luxury and only girls from rich homes could afford it. I resorted on the second day to cut pieces of clothes to use in trapping the menstrual flow. Still without further knowledge from anybody, I later learnt that it was a monthly issue that required more of the pieces of old clothes. I got more and hid them tightly from anyone.

I was learning to manage my menstruation issues on my own. I went through many challenges coping with my period. Most often I was taken unawares by the menstrual flow, I had no knowledge on when the next menses was to come or to approximate in anticipation to be prepared for it. There was once a time my menstrual flow surprised me in the class. I felt some pains on my lower abdomen and did not know what it was, I thought it was stomach ache and it was so sharp and shortly after I began to experience the flow while in the class. I felt ashamed and embarrassed and was confused on what to do. I was stock to my bench and could not move or participate in the class fully and neither could I play or talk with boldness among my friends. My mind was preoccupied on how to prevent it from flowing to my uniform, so as not to be mocked or laughed at by my mates. An idea came to me to use paper and I tore a paper from my book, folded it and used as sanitary pad. This further restraint my movements in the class as I was afraid the paper may fall off and embarrass me before my friends especially boys. I had to seat tight and avoid any movements to save myself of any embarrassing situation where the paper may fall off.

My experience left a burden in my heart with a strong passion to contribute in educating, and to provide menstrual health kits to adolescent girls growing up in the rural communities to prepare them psychologically and physiologically for the onset of menstruation and thereof.

We need to empower girls to speak out and to break the culture of silence and taboos surrounding sex education and menstrual health in our communities and to cause a shift in behaviour and attitudes towards menstruation issues for adolescent girls.

How to Get Involved

Partner with me, provide health kits, sponsor events and campaigns, walk with me into these communities, volunteer your time to prepare gadgets, share among networks, support and donate to activities, share experiences, organize fundraising events and campaigns.