Fear and shame leave girls struggling with periods

 UNFPA says that poor menstrual health undermines education, health and social participation, increasing infection risks. [Courtesy]

For many girls in Kenya, menstruation does not arrive as a natural milestone of growth. Instead, it enters their lives as a season of fear, confusion and deep shame.

The first bleed often comes wrapped in secrecy, physical discomfort, cultural stigma and conflicting guidance from adults who themselves were raised in silence. With accurate information scarce, girls are forced to navigate puberty guided by myths whispered among peers, half-truths passed down by relatives and an overwhelming sense that the changes in their bodies must be hidden.