Once upon a period

Cramps, anxiety, nausea and irritation - menstruation can be stressful all by itself. Now, add the anxiety of a pandemic to the mix. Coronavirus has unimaginably affected our lifestyle and well-being, including our menstrual health.

Menstrupedia, which acts as a one-stop guide to educate people around the world on menstruation, is now launching a writing contest to discuss this. Titled Periods in Pandemic, the contest encourages people to share their experiences and thoughts on how the present time has affected periods and what challenges have emerged for people around them through written pieces.

Aditi Gupta

While it is natural that girls who are close to attaining puberty are facing challenges with the period talk, many women are currently suffering from anxiety, too. From irregular periods and lack of access to menstrual hygiene products to the political debate around sanitary pads not being considered 'essential' and the barrage of fluctuating emotions periods bring, there are several aspects to menstruation.

"We are encouraging people to use art, creativity and writing to express themselves to engage in conversations that matter and help us embrace our bodies and break myths. We want to collect stories of menstruation warriors and educators who are witnessing a paradigm shift in conversations around periods and tackling crisis at the ground level through this contest, too," Aditi Gupta, co-founder, Menstrupedia, says.

To keep this period positivity movement going, send your entries, a small bio, your picture and your social media handles along with your entries.

Email write@menstrupedia.com (for entries; last date for submissions is July 17)

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