Replacing Silence and Stigma

Shame around menstruation is learned. A girl is not born believing that her period is something to hide, that it makes her unclean, or that it is a subject that cannot be spoken about.

She learns this from the adults around her, from the way the subject is avoided, from the way she is told to be quiet about it, and from the teasing that follows when it is mentioned. If shame can be learned, it can be unlearned. Menstrual health education is the work of replacing silence and stigma with accurate information and open conversation, so that a girl can manage her period without carrying the weight of shame that has been placed on her.

We run sessions with girls and with boys. The sessions explain what menstruation is, why it happens, and why it is not something to be whispered about. The sessions with girls address what they are experiencing and what they need to know — how to manage their period, how to recognise when something is wrong, and how to ask for help when they need it. The sessions are delivered by female staff members or trained teachers, in settings where the girls feel comfortable asking questions, and in language that is appropriate to their age and understanding. The purpose is not to deliver information in a single sitting. It is to give the girls an understanding they can build on over time.

Our Approach

Sessions with boys

Sessions with Boys

How it works:

  • The sessions with boys are deliberate. A boy who does not know what menstruation is may tease girls about it. He may not understand why a girl has missed school, and he may assume it is because she is lazy rather than because she had no way to manage her period.
  • He may grow into an adult who treats the subject with contempt, or who leaves the management of menstruation entirely to women and girls, as though it were not his concern. When boys understand what menstruation is, they are less likely to tease, and girls are less likely to hide.
  • The sessions with boys are not about teaching boys to manage menstruation. They are about giving boys the understanding that allows them to be part of a community where menstruation is treated as ordinary.

The purpose of menstrual health education is that a girl can manage her period without shame, and that she can stay in school during the years when her period would otherwise be a reason to miss class. A girl who understands what is happening to her body, who knows that it is not something she needs to hide, and who knows where to go if she has questions or concerns is a girl who is better able to manage her period, and better able to stay in school. The education is not only about the girl. It is also about the community she lives in, and about the understanding that the community holds about what is normal and what is not. Changing that understanding is part of what the education is for.

Girls at a school where menstrual health is discussed openly

Menstrual health education replaces silence and stigma with accurate information and open conversation, so that a girl can manage her period without shame and stay in school.

Our commitment

Shame around menstruation is learned. If shame can be learned, it can be unlearned. Menstrual health education replaces silence and stigma with accurate information and open conversation.

Join us in ending menstrual shame

Help us give girls the understanding they need to manage their periods without shame, and to stay in school. Support our campaign, volunteer your time, or partner with us to deliver menstrual health education across Kenya.

Every action counts—only a willingness to act is required.

Contact us
A menstrual health education session

Replacing silence and stigma

Shame around menstruation is learned. A girl is not born believing that her period is something to hide, that it makes her unclean, or that it is a subject that cannot be spoken about.