AMINA OMOIKE
Wednesday, May 28, 2025 was the date and Isolog College was the venue of an educative event to mark Menstrual Hygiene Day. I had the pleasure of speaking to almost 100 secondary school girls on the importance of menstrual hygiene and ways to overcome the challenges by 2030.
As a mother of two daughters (aged 14 and 10), I understand the challenges associated with the onset of menstruation and the fear and awkwardness felt during periods. So it is funny how a matter as critical as menstruation is often overlooked despite all the programmes and activities surrounding the girl child. Ideally, every girl between the ages of 9 and 16 will get her first period and enter a new phase of life – which if not handle properly – can led to many physical, mental and emotional problems for her and her reproductive health in the future.
This is where the issue of menstrual hygiene comes in. Menstrual hygiene is how a girl takes care of her body during her menstrual period. Menstrual hygiene helps the girl stay clean, healthy and confident during her period.
Infections like Urinary Tract Infections (UTIs) or vaginal infections, skin irritation and Toxic Shock Syndrome (TSS) can occur when the issue of menstrual hygiene is not taken seriously. Other issues like shame, anxiety, absenteeism from school, limited participation in activities (eg sports, fun activities and worship) can also occur.
One of the things I spoke about was the issue of ‘period poverty’. Period poverty is the lack of access to menstrual products (such as sanitary pads or tampons), sanitation facilities (like toilets and running water) and education needed for safe and respectable menstrual hygiene practices.
Presently in Nigeria, about 37 million girls suffer from period poverty and still use leaves, rags, newspapers and all sorts of materials during their periods! With the rising costs of sanitary pads, it is sad that more young girls might fall into this category. This is where the ‘Pad Me A Girl’ initiative has risen to the occasion by giving out free sanitary pads and menstrual packs to school girls and menstruating females in vulnerable communities. On the day, they also gave out free sanitary pads to females in IDP Camps in Benue and Abuja.
Speaking on the topic: Óvercoming challenges of menstrual hygiene in 2030’, I stated that the way to do this is using the A-P-S method. This stands for Awareness, Preparation and Support.
I told the girls that is important to keep educating themselves about menstruation, their menstrual cycles and menstrual hygiene through books, health talks and interactive sessions like this. I also encouraged them to ask questions from trusted female adults such as the mothers, aunties, teachers or health workers.
Then came the issue of preparation where the girls were encouraged to maintain good hygiene always, especially during their periods. I stressed that it was important to change their sanitary pads every four to six hours – whether their flow was heavy or not. Handwashing before and after changing the pads is important, as well as regular bathing and washing of their private parts with clean water.
I warned them about various products which claim to ‘clean’ the vagina. I explained that the vagina is self-cleaning organ created by God with its own unique smell and flora. Unnecessary use of products on it can alter the pH, leading to irritation and exposure to infections.
I also taught them to manage stress during their periods through mild exercises, eating healthy, avoiding junk food and avoiding shame. I told them that menstruation is a very natural part of being female and absolutely nothing to be ashamed of. There’s nothing unclean or abominable about menstruation!
It truly was an insightful session for them as well as it was for me.
Special thanks to the convener of the Pad Me A Girl initiative and CEO of Gatmash Media, Theresa Moses and all the sponsors.
