For the past ten years, I have had a menstrual cycle once a week out of every month of the year. It has made my life more complicated and filled with pain than it should. I have pleaded that something would happen and for some reason, I wouldn't have to endure the cramps, back pain, headaches and everything else that comes with my once a month cycle. It ruins my life. And, I am sick of men telling me that I am overreacting or telling me not to talk about it at all.
Are men allowed to talk about how they don't feel good? Yes.
Are they allowed to talk about how they have a sore throat or stuffed nose? Yes.
Are they allowed to call out of work because they can't stop coughing? Yes.
If men are allowed to talk about their illness, so am I. A menstrual cycle may not seem like an illness to most, but to me and many other women around the world, it is. The technical term is dysmenorrhoea. Nearly 80% of women suffer period pain at least once throughout their lifetime. In this 80%, five to ten percent of these women have pain that is bad enough to disrupt their life. I know I did.
The first day of my cycle I always wind up in bed with a heating pad on my stomach unable to move from the discomfort I have. When I do move, I become dizzy, lightheaded and even begin to throw up. I have to leave work because I am literally unable to function. One menstrual cycle, I was working at my old job when I started and was unable to leave which left me standing in pain working a morning coffee rush at a fast-paced coffee shop. I was stuck on the espresso machine making drinks while crying my eyes out from the pain. How is that any different from someone who is throwing up from food poisoning?
It's not. I had to leave work earlier this week because I was unable to work through the pain I was going through and the nausea was so much that I had to leave my coworker to go to the bathroom every ten minutes.
Period pain is not a joke and it should not be taken as a light-hearted issue. I lost nearly a hundred dollars of my weekly check because of my period. My period prevented me from making money I need to survive. It is a disease, it's not Mother Nature. It's not beautiful and it's not being overdramatized. Women suffer. We need help and support.
I can't control when I get my monthly visitor and I can't control the pain it puts me through. Our jobs and careers should be helping us. We should not be denied hours at work because of something we can't control. We shouldn't be afraid of having to call out of work because of something we can't control. We shouldn't be having to lose out on money because of something we can't control.
We need to face the stigma surrounding menstrual cycles and support one another. Help society see that we are not in control of ours and there is so little we can do to prevent ourselves from the pain. We don't do this on purpose and, trust me, we don't enjoy it.
