For many women, the silence around periods begins very early. And sometimes that silence continues into adulthood.

I still remember getting my first period. I arrived home feeling unwell from a friend’s house. My auntie was visiting, and my mum turned to her and said “Yasmin’s become a woman today.” And that was it.

At school, we learned the biology of periods, but no one really spoke about the emotional experience of growing from a girl into a woman. No one asked:

Were you scared?

Confused?

Embarrassed?

Prepared?

No one spoke about the possibility that hormones could one day affect our mental health, our relationships, or how we experience ourselves — including struggles like PMDD that many women only discover once they’re already living through them. We were taught what periods were, but not always how deeply hormonal changes could affect us emotionally, mentally, physically, or relationally throughout our lives.

For something that affects such a huge part of women’s lives, periods are still often surrounded by silence, shame, discomfort, or minimising. I remember once mentioning my period to a close neighbour because I had the urge to keel over with cramps. She immediately looked uncomfortable and said, “Oh no, we don’t talk about that.”

Perhaps what’s still missing is a fuller conversation and education around hormones, emotions, and the lived experience of being in a female body.

What were you told when you got your first period?

Were you emotionally prepared — or just biologically informed?

These are questions worth asking ourselves at any age. Sometimes, having a space to explore what was never spoken about can bring a deeper understanding of ourselves and our experiences, and of how those experiences may continue to shape us today.