Menstrual Health Week

Octavia Tsibes
Cecilia Mathias and Josephine Hiskia

Duinesig joined the country at large in celebrating Menstrual Health Week. On 29 June our teachers Mrs Afrikaner, Mrs Haimbili and Mrs Kapher took the initiative to educate and share ways on how a girl should take care of herself during her menstrual cycle.

The discussion involved girls from all ages and we tackled topics such as teenage pregnancies, cancer associated with the cervix and most importantly hygiene.

Menstruation is a natural and regular occurrence that nearly all women of reproductive age experience. On average, a woman will have 450 menstrual cycles over approximately 38 years of her life.

Why is it important for girls to know about menstruation before their menarche? Girls need to learn about monthly periods before they reach puberty. Girls who have not been told about this can be scared when they start their first period. It is also important that a girl knows what to do when she starts menstruating; how she maintains hygiene and how she can take care of herself. This will help a girl not to feel scared or insecure.

Women and girls menstruate on average every four weeks. This can vary per girl or woman and it can therefore be helpful for them to keep track of their menstruation so they know when their next period will come. When girls just started menstruating, it may take two to three years to stabilize their cycle. This means it will be more difficult to predict when she will start bleeding.

The duration of a menstrual period can vary from girl to girl/ woman to woman. Bleeding usually lasts for four to five days, but anything between two and seven days is normal. In some cases, the length of the period can vary from month to month. This is often the cases for girls that just started menstruating. For example, in the first month, a girl’s period might last four days, and then the next month it could be six days.

Menstrual flow can vary from person to person. Usually, an entire period consists of a few to several spoonful of blood. The amount of the blood flow can range from light (=36.5 mL), medium ( >36.5 and =72.5 mL), or heavy ( >72.5

ml).

According to the Health Site, there are a number of ways including the use of sanitary napkins, tampons and menstrual cups to stay clean.

Change your pad / tampon regularly

This rule applies for even those days when you don’t have much bleeding, since this could lead to vaginal infections and skin rashes. The standard time to change a sanitary pad is once every six hours, while for a tampon is once every two hours.

Wash yourself regularly

This practice also tends to beat bad odour from the vaginal region in addition to washing away access blood.

Don’t use soaps or vaginal hygiene products

The vagina has its own cleaning mechanism. Washing it with soap can kill the good bacteria making way for infections. You can use soap on the external parts but do not use it inside your vagina or vulva.

Use the right washing technique

Always wash or clean the area in a motion that is from the vagina to the anus. Washing in the opposite direction can cause bacteria from the anus to lodge in the vagina, leading to infections.

Discard your used sanitary product properly

Wrapping sanitary pads before discarding ensures that the smell and infection is contained. It is imperative that you wash your hands well after you discard used napkins.

Use only one method of sanitation at a time

Using two pads or a tampon and a sanitary pad is bad because the two pads absorb the blood and you don’t see that they are completely used up you are unlikely to change at regular and healthy intervals. This can lead to rashes.

Always be prepared

It is important to have extra sanitary pads or tampons properly stored in a clean pouch.