Project Advisor(s) (Students Only)

Dr. Carolyn Hough

Presentation Type (All Applicants)

Oral Presentation

Disciplines (All Applicants)

International Public Health | Women's Studies

Description, Abstract, or Artist's Statement

This research project looks to answer the question: How does menstrual stigma in rural and urban Bangladesh affect women’s access to menstrual health care?

The research question was borne from personal experiences with menstrual stigma and seeing it firsthand in many areas of Bangladesh. These firsthand experiences come from women whom I interviewed in urban and village locations in Bangladesh in 2017. The research question looks to explore how women feel about seeking help for or talking about their menstrual issues. In asking this question, I want to explore what is at stake for women due to the powerful presence of this menstrual stigma. Essentially, what is menstrual stigma forcing women to sacrifice, both physically and, as a result, emotionally?

This study is significant to both Public Health studies and Women’s Studies because it approaches the problem of a serious lack of health care through a cultural and religious lens. Women in many parts of South Asia have difficult lives and menstrual periods due to the stigma they face. Though the stigma is not talked about, women are aware of it nonetheless through things people have said and the way people have acted when the topic of menstruation has come up. There are subtle signs of discomfort, unwillingness to open up, and becoming incredibly silent when a man is nearby. I observed these actions while interview the women. They answered the questions quickly and didn’t seem to want to linger on the subject. It is clear that there the weight of menstrual stigma plays a role in their life even if it cannot be physically seen. More literary pieces will need to be researched to continue assessing how menstrual stigma affects a woman’s actions and words in regards to her period. Issues like lack of sex education, class differences, make perceptions of menstruation, and religious rules only push the stigma further. Ultimately, I wanted to show how menstrual stigma and lack of menstrual health care affect the inequality women face in South Asia. In order to find a way to help women who are struggling with menstrual health care, menstrual stigma needs to be addressed as something unreasonable and harmful.

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Honor's Capstone project

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The Real Period Stain: Menstrual Stigma and Its Pressures in South Asia

This research project looks to answer the question: How does menstrual stigma in rural and urban Bangladesh affect women’s access to menstrual health care?

The research question was borne from personal experiences with menstrual stigma and seeing it firsthand in many areas of Bangladesh. These firsthand experiences come from women whom I interviewed in urban and village locations in Bangladesh in 2017. The research question looks to explore how women feel about seeking help for or talking about their menstrual issues. In asking this question, I want to explore what is at stake for women due to the powerful presence of this menstrual stigma. Essentially, what is menstrual stigma forcing women to sacrifice, both physically and, as a result, emotionally?

This study is significant to both Public Health studies and Women’s Studies because it approaches the problem of a serious lack of health care through a cultural and religious lens. Women in many parts of South Asia have difficult lives and menstrual periods due to the stigma they face. Though the stigma is not talked about, women are aware of it nonetheless through things people have said and the way people have acted when the topic of menstruation has come up. There are subtle signs of discomfort, unwillingness to open up, and becoming incredibly silent when a man is nearby. I observed these actions while interview the women. They answered the questions quickly and didn’t seem to want to linger on the subject. It is clear that there the weight of menstrual stigma plays a role in their life even if it cannot be physically seen. More literary pieces will need to be researched to continue assessing how menstrual stigma affects a woman’s actions and words in regards to her period. Issues like lack of sex education, class differences, make perceptions of menstruation, and religious rules only push the stigma further. Ultimately, I wanted to show how menstrual stigma and lack of menstrual health care affect the inequality women face in South Asia. In order to find a way to help women who are struggling with menstrual health care, menstrual stigma needs to be addressed as something unreasonable and harmful.