First Period Stories from our Readers
It’s that time of the month again when we get to publish some of our reader’s first period stories. We appreciate everyone who sends us your story and look forward to hearing from more of you. We will always ask your permission before sharing your story.
Please be sure to share the stories with your daughter to let her know she is not alone in this step towards womanhood. Note that stories are not edited for grammar.
Ana’s Story
I can remember my first period experience like it was just yesterday even though it has been well over 18 years. My mother hadn’t talked to me about it. She was a single mother of four and working two jobs. I was left to fend for myself. I had to grow up too fast; thank God for my 2nd grade teacher who helped me out and gave me a quick but nourishing run down of what was really happening to me and why. Because at that moment in time I thought that there was something really wrong with me and I also thought that I had done something to cause my private parts to bleed. I was really really scared. And now 18 years later my own daughter is going through this and I have tried as much as I can to give her as much information and support that she needs so she isn’t as scared as I was. I hope I am doing well. Thank You for letting me share my story.
Luanns Story
One of my illnesses as a child (having a number of them) was my thyroid being underactive. I began taking medicine for it. My mother kept asking our doctor when I was going to start. He told her to let things be and it would come naturally. Finally, at 14, it happened. We were visiting my cousins in Tallahassee, FL and had gone swimming at a lake. I had to take my cousin to the bathroom because she was too little to go alone. I went too and noticed something brownish in my bathing suit. I thought maybe I had some diarrhea or something. When we got back to their house, I went in the bathroom to change and realized what it was. I stayed locked in the bathroom for almost 3 hours until my mother yelled at me through the door and I told her what had happened. She got some pads for me and I made it back home to TN. She told our next door neighbor about it and their oldest son told me ‘congratulations, you’re a woman now’! Talk about embarrassed! My mother didn’t talk to me and I didn’t ask, so I was pretty clueless. Now, at 47, I’ve already spoken to my 10 year old about it and am hoping to have better communication and understanding.