I was 14 when I had my first period. I was at school and when I stood up one of my friends rushed to me and asked me to sit back down. She told me that I had a big bloody circle on my behind. The girls that were sitting behind me had noticed it as well so they all came close and created a barrier, so that the boys wouldn’t see it. My friend gave me her jacket to tie around my waist and cover the blood.
I had to figure out how the whole thing worked. The all-knowing internet was not yet popular in Zim at the time. It took a couple of mistakes to realize that, for me, one pad was not enough for the whole day. Tampons were not an option because I was told that they would break my virginity. My fear or a broken virginity, which my future husband would not be pleased with on my wedding night, and would send me back home for, kept me away from tampons. I only dared to try tampons a year ago 15 years post first period, when the good old hymen was long long gone.
One of the biggest lessons I was taught was how periods were supposed to be kept a secret that males were NEVER allowed to hear about. This applied to 14-year old me and this still applies today in many settings. It took me a while to be able to talk to my husband about my period, and pains, and mood swings. Sharing this info with him over the years has got me thinking a lot about how periods should not be a secret. We should teach boys young and old about what it means.
A couple of periods points for your information guys:
Thanks for stopping by and reading about my first period.
