Why all workplaces should have period products?

PERIOD SUCKS!!! If there was an unsubscribe button for periods, I wouldn't think twice to unsubscribe myself from the list. I would also love not to get monthly reminders on abdominal cramps, bloating, and acne. Don't even get me started with the acne! I was worried sick and constantly changing skincare products, just to realize it was all period's bad customer service. I got my first period when I was 12, and I should have been familiar with this whole Period thing in the past 1o years. Honestly, I still feel like I do not know enough about periods.

For the longest time, workplaces were solely occupied by men. But now even with women being engaged in the workforce, the current work system is still based on what suits male bodies and interests. Women are expected to go above and beyond in their workplace every single day, but has anything changed or been adapted to the needs of women?

I hope everyone in this 21st century already knows that women function differently from men and that we have different needs. And one of the many different needs is period products. A period is not just about bleeding, because it can also include:

• Poor concentration
• Depressed mood
• Physical and emotional pain
• Mood swings
• Insomnia

Periods are affected by various factors such as temperature, diet, stress, and medicines, and based on all these things it is also very common to have irregular periods. Imagine forgetting to take your pads with you at work because you didn't expect to get your period weeks earlier, and the next thing you notice is you suddenly got your period. It is perfectly natural and nothing to feel ashamed about, but it is very uncomfortable and stressful because now I have to worry about leaking before I can go purchase myself a period product or find a female coworker who can lend me something I can use. Sometimes even if I have enough period products, I can still over bleed. If I am too worried about over bleeding and leaking, how do you expect me to fully concentrate on the work I am doing? Ladies, tell me how many times you couldn't get up to go to meetings or even go to the cafeteria to get coffee because you're afraid to move in case something happens?! And it gets worse if you have menstrual-related conditions such as endometriosis, fibroids, polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), and so on. We wouldn't have to worry about any of these kinds of stuff if only all workplaces provided free period products. If there are period products at the workplace, then I can focus more on my work since I won't have to worry about running out of tampons, or figuring out the best time to get to the closest store to buy myself some tampons.

Most countries around the globe provide free menstrual products to women. Much like objectification, sexism also uses menstruation to marginalize women. Benevolent sexism implies that menstruation is a sign of womanhood and feminine fragility, and reinforces the stereotype that women's purpose in life is to bear children. But having menstrual products at work brings menstruation to light in the workplace. This unmasking of menstruation in public or workspaces might contribute to dismantling menstrual stigma, and may help educate people about menstruation since so many misconceptions circulate throughout the heteropatriarchal culture. Workplaces must consider stocking bathrooms or breakrooms with menstrual products, hot pads, and pain relievers.

If a company can spend money on fancy coffees and pizza parties, then they sure can do something to accommodate their female employees. And according to Kramer, it only costs $4.67 per woman, per year, to provide employees with the products they need. Some people might argue that having period products is a privilege that women will have and might not be fair toward males. Well, In short, anything you can do, I can do bleeding..... but that doesn't mean I should have to.

Instead of posting online about how much you care about your female employees or your female coworkers, how about empowering them to feel okay and safe about having their periods at work and providing them with period products such as tampons, pads, and even medicines that could help to ease period cramps at work.

Menstrutation is the only blood that is not born from violence, yet it's the one that disgusts you the most!

- Maia Schwartz