Menstrual health cannot remain a silent issue discussed only among women. It is a societal issue that requires collective responsibility. [iStockphoto]
As the world prepares to mark Menstrual Hygiene Day on May 28, I reflect on the journey we have walked as the Gender Violence Recovery Centre (GVRC). For over two decades, we have championed preventive healthcare, reproductive wellness, gender-based violence recovery and psychosocial support for women and girls across Kenya.
Menstrual health is one of the most overlooked public health issues affecting women and girls in our society today. Women are suffering in silence because society has normalized painful periods or dismissed reproductive health concerns as “just part of being a woman’’. I believe no girl or woman should suffer or miss school, work or daily responsibilities because of painful periods.
It's high time as society that we move the conversation beyond the distribution of sanitary towels and confront the deeper realities surrounding menstruation. For many years, I have observed that menstrual health affects far more than hygiene. It affects education, confidence, mental wellbeing, productivity, and ultimately the future of girls and women in our country.
