TestTalking to your daughter about menstruationTest

It seems like only yesterday that your daughter was playing with her Barbies and dolls. Today, she’s wearing braces, doing TikToks on her smartphone, wants you to drop her off two kilometers from home and, last night, you overheard her talking about the hottest boy in school with her friend. You’re (slightly) apprehensive about the arrival of her period and the time to talk about it.

Talking to your daughter about her period can be awkward at first. Feeling at ease with your own thoughts and feelings is one of the most difficult obstacles to overcome before having the famous discussion. In any case, it can be easier or harder from one household to another.

Here are a few tips to help you talk about menstruation without taboos:

1. Choose time and place

Invite your daughter to a private place where she feels safe to discuss it. As you can see, the idea is not to do it between 2 conversations or while you’re cleaning. Grab a cup of coffee and head for the park, a restaurant or a picnic in the garden.

Timing is also important. Take advantage of an occasion where the atmosphere is positive, and everyone is in a good mood. Ideally, you should take advantage of it when it opens up to you, so that you can give priority to listening and caring. Also share your experience of the first time you had yours.

By making the extra effort to find the right time and space, you’ll make her feel special and show her how much you care and want to help her during this exciting and somewhat confusing time.

2. Explain to your daughter how her body works

Most prejudices and false beliefs about menstruation are the result of a lack of information given to young girls about how their bodies work. Some girls don’t even know they’re getting their period. They neglect its existence. Parents therefore have an important role to play in informing their daughters about :

Cycle operation

Teach your daughter that her period is normal, healthy and does not harm her. Menstruation is a sign that your body is working properly and that you’re changing from a girl to a woman. Explain that menstruation is her body’s way of getting ready to have a baby… one day.

Depending on your daughter’s age, showing a diagram of the location of her ovaries, uterus and vagina can also help. This will give him a clearer idea of how the rules work.

Cycle time

Here’s some technical information we think is essential to pass on:

1. The average menstrual cycle lasts 28 days, but can occur every 21 to 35 days.
2. Menstruation generally lasts from 3 to 7 days.
3. Blood flow is greatest in the first few days and decreases towards the end.
4. At first, your daughter may not have her period every month, and that’s normal. Her menstrual cycle may take a few months to stabilize.
5. On average, the first menstrual period occurs at the age of 12. But it can vary from 8 to 15 years.
6. And a little fun fact to lighten the mood: it’s said that girls generally menstruate between 6 and 12 months after their mothers.

3. Talk about the different types of protection available

The best gift you can give your daughter is the opportunity to make an informed choice. To find out about all the options available to her, and to be informed! I myself didn’t discover menstrual panties until very late – if only I’d known about them sooner! There’s no such thing as “bad” protection, the aim being for her to choose the one that’s right for her. Here’s what’s on offer as we speak

Menstrual panties
Washable sanitary towels
The menstrual cup
The practice of instinctive flow
Disposable sanitary towels
Stamps
Biodegradable pads and tampons

Explain when to use one rather than the other. You can also help her build up an “emergency reserve” that she can keep with her to feel better prepared when her period arrives. Encourage her to keep a diary or download an app to teach her to keep track of her menstrual cycle and listen to her body.

In our opinion, menstrual briefs are the gentlest and safest way to enter your first period. Your daughter can have peace of mind all day long while at school, and won’t have to deal with changes, discomfort or odors.

In many cultures, parents would give the child a gift on the occasion of her first period, to celebrate her joyful passage into the world of women. Our Teen Kit could be one of them.

A final word of advice to close this article. Shame, myth and prejudice set in when we make menstruation a taboo subject. Let’s just talk about them naturally, as they are. Yes! It’s not always fun to have your own rules, but we can make them an ally rather than an enemy.

Anyway and whenever you do, good luck with your “discussion”.

NB: Talking menstruation with your daughter by offering her our kits for teens could be a great help. Find out more here.