I’ve generally been very lucky with my menstrual cycle, and have rarely needed to take a day off, stay in bed, or cancel any plans because of pain. The only time I ever had any indication of what very painful periods might be like was when I thought I was having the worst menstrual cramps ever and I could barely move. It turned out instead, that I was pregnant, and it was likely to have been implantation pains!

As part of my research on the impact of the media and online activism on young people’s knowledge and perceptions of menstruation, I’ve had many interesting conversations about period pain with my teenaged participants. Some of the girls and non-binary participants discussed how menstrual pain impacted their concentration during lessons and exams. Many expressed that they did not know what level of menstrual pain is normal. Others had learned about period pain on social media or from googling symptoms but could not be sure whether this was accurate:

“I was googling about period pains. When I am not on my period, I still have a lot of pains. So I was googling it and it said, “you might have endometriosis”. I don’t think I do, I have no other symptoms. I googled what endometriosis is.”

Other participants, including the boys, gave examples of memes they had seen on social media about period pain. Some of the girls and non-binary students thought that these memes were a good way to encourage more open conversation about periods. Others, however, thought that they were misinforming men about the realities of menstrual pain and masking the fact that everyone experiences menstrual cramps differently.

So, to tackle this misinformation and young people’s lack of knowledge about period pain, what did my participants propose? Firstly, they wanted to receive accurate education about menstrual pain (preferably in primary school) so that they had a better idea of what level of pain is normal. They also emphasised that lessons should include boys so that they can better support their peers, friends and family members who menstruate. Secondly, they wished that the mainstream media and social media would represent menstruation in a more honest and inclusive way. For example, one girl said:

‘If the adverts showed women suffering from having these pains, then everyone would understand and therefore we’ve got more awareness that periods aren’t just easy breezy, like ‘oh I can go on the run because I am wearing a “tampon”’.

Finally, a handful of participants expressed that they were already actively trying to normalise open discussion about menstrual cramps and teach their male friends about the realities of menstrual pain. For these participants, speaking about period cramps is an easy way to reduce the stigma around menstruation in general.

Although they’re yet to be published in a book or journal article, these findings have already started to benefit women and other people who menstruate. I’ve drawn on them to co-create guidance on how to communicate effectively with young people about menstruation on social media (created with menstrual education and advocacy specialist, Acushla Young). They’ve also shaped my contributions to the British Standard Institute’s ground-breaking guidance: ‘BS 30416: Menstruation, Menstrual health and Menopause in the workplace – Guide’. They’re also informing my work with Sheffield City Council on their pioneering Period and Menopause Equality Charter.

If you’d like to learn more about what my young participants have to say about menstruation (and the activists I interviewed too!), you’ll have to wait until my book comes out – The Menstrual Movement in the Media: Reducing Stigma and Tackling Social Inequalities (forthcoming with Palgrave) or listen to the pip podcast!

Dr. Maria Tomlison is a lecturer in Public Communication and Gender at the University of Sheffield. Her current research examines the impact of the media and menstrual activism on young people’s attitudes towards the health and social issues around menstruation. She is using her findings to advise organisations on how they can use social media to communicate effectively with young people about menstruation. Her findings have also informed her work with the British Standards Institute, England’s Department for Education, and Sheffield City Council. She is the author of From Menstruation to the Menopause: The Female Fertility Cycle in Contemporary Women’s Writing in French (2021, Liverpool University Press) and is working on her forthcoming book The Menstrual Movement in the Media: Reducing Stigma and Tackling Social Inequalities (2024, Palgrave Macmillan, Open Access).