The first time I saw a sanitary pad was the day a menstrual hygiene company visited my school. I was ten years old, a scrawny JSS1 student, wide-eyed with curiosity. Our teacher walked in, smiling as she welcomed the visitors; women who came to talk to us about something important. Almost immediately, she asked all the boys to leave. They weren’t welcome.
At first, I was glad for a few minutes of peace without their teasing. But as I grew older, I started asking myself why. Why couldn’t boys learn about periods? Didn’t they have mothers and sisters at home? Why was menstruation treated like a secret?
Two years later, when I got my first period, the answer became clear: Stigma. The shame surrounding menstruation was overwhelming. We were taught to keep quiet about it, to whisper if we needed a pad, to avoid letting anyone, especially boys, find out. If they did, it became an ordeal, complete with teasing and embarrassment. But the most bizarre part of it all was how we treated pads.
We carried them like illegal contraband, hidden, smuggled, never to be seen. A basic necessity turned into something secretive, something we weren’t supposed to acknowledge, even though it was a natural part of our womanhood.
The Culture of Secrecy
In many cultures, including in Nigeria, menstruation is treated as something shameful, something to be concealed. Girls and women go to great lengths to hide their pads, fearing ridicule if they are seen carrying one. It becomes a whispered exchange, a discreet handoff in school hallways. Back then, if a girl needed a pad, she would quietly tell one friend, who would tell another, until someone had one to spare. It was then wrapped in layers of plastic or paper and smuggled back to her.
This culture of secrecy doesn’t just create shame; it also isolates girls and restricts their access to proper menstrual care.
The Consequences of Menstrual Stigma
The stigma surrounding menstruation has real consequences. Many girls miss school during their periods because they lack access to pads. Others turn to unsafe alternatives; rags, tissue paper, or old cloth that put them at risk of infections. Because menstrual health is rarely discussed openly, many people grow up misinformed, believing harmful myths that deepen the cycle of shame.
In some communities, menstruating individuals are still forbidden from entering religious spaces, cooking food, or even interacting with others. These outdated beliefs reinforce the idea that periods are something to be hidden instead of understood and supported.
Challenging the Stigma
Thankfully, the tide is beginning to turn. Advocacy groups and activists are working to break the silence around menstrual health, pushing for policies that make sanitary products more accessible and affordable. Schools, organizations, and individuals are slowly dismantling the shame that has long surrounded them.
Menstrual health is not just about hygiene; it is about dignity, education, and equality. Until society stops treating periods as shameful secrets and pads as something to be hidden, millions of girls and women will continue to suffer in silence.
It’s time to end the cycle of secrecy. Menstruation is not a taboo. It is a normal, natural part of life and it deserves to be treated that way.
Written By Victory Wekulom
Edited By Grace Isong Akpan
