We’ve come some way in normalising the conversation around periods.
Period talks are currently being conducted in Delhi Government schools educating teenage girls about menstrual hygiene and busting myths related to it. ‘Break the bloody taboo’ is a campaign by the NGO ‘Sachhi Saheli’ educating teenage girls about the taboos related to menstruation. Nearly 72 Delhi government schools have been covered till now, claims Dr Surbhi Singh from Sachhi Saheli.
According to Menstrual Hygeine month for school girls’ data 2015 by UNESCO and Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), around 35% urban women are aware that the uterus is a source of menstrual bleeding. That percentage falls to 15-20% in slums. Only 40-50% school girls have excess to sanitary pads in India.
Conversations With Parents and the Idea of ‘Good and Bad Touch’
Conducting menstrual awareness talks in schools in such a scenario, therefore, was an immediate need.
Dr Surbhi Singh, a gynecologist, gets numerous queries related to touching the pickle, entering holy places, washing hair during periods, etc., from these girls. When I ask her how comfortable these girls are discussing such issues, she says:
If you try explaining things to them as an adult, they will never understand. But once you try to make them relate to you, tell them what you went through when you were their age – they’ll immediately feel more comfortable and cross-question!
The best part is that the talks also involve parents. They try to educate them on menstruation as separate from the myths that have been held in the family.
Parents often come to us and say that their kids had no questions when they started menstruating since they were taught to live with prevailing superstitions. But now, after our talks, they have both questions and their answers.Dr Surbhi Singh
Mrs Arvind Kaur, a biology teacher from Janki Devi Sarvodaya Kanya Vidhyalaya where recently the talks were conducted, speaks about how the talks not only educate students about menstrual hygiene but also makes them aware them about ‘Good touch and Bad touch’.
The girls that come to school from slum areas often speak about ‘bad touch’ at home from someone they know. These talks help build their understanding about what is right and what isn’t and help them understand how to feel.Mrs Arvind Kaur
Students are handed questionnaires in the beginning of the session – followed by a discussion after their results have been analysed. This is followed by the counsellors listening to the problems and directing the students and their parents on what should be done.
The talks have also been conducted in slum areas such as Shakur Basti. In the last week of March this year, they were even conducted in Tihar Jail by the NGO.
(Nikita Bishnoi is pursuing her Masters in ‘Convergent Journalism’ from AJKMCRC Jamia Millia Islamia. She is interested in sexuality, politics, data and social issues.)
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