Periods are a normal bodily function, experienced by about half of the world’s population every month. And yet, we still struggle to be upfront and have open conversations about how they affect our lives.

Period products, like pads and tampons, can be expensive and can put people under serious financial pressure. ‘Period poverty’ refers to the lack of access to what we consider to be the essentials, like sanitary products, period education or even proper bathrooms.

Plan International, a fantastic organisation that advocates for girls worldwide, tells us that almost half of the teenage in Ireland who have periods struggle to afford pads and tampons, even though they are not taxed here. In fact, many teenagers miss school every month because of it.

Hopefully, in the future, every school will have a bank of sanitary products that are readily available to anyone who needs them. This is something that you can start yourself, or you can get a group together and start a petition. You could start a pad- or tampon-donation-box, where those who can afford them drop them in for use by those who can’t.

We have so much to do, what with smashing glass ceilings, breaking boundaries, and kicking ass. No one should be left behind because they have a uterus.

To learn more about period poverty, here in Ireland and worldwide, check out www.plan.ie.

This article was taken from the book “You’ve Got This” written by our founder Tammy Darcy.

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