Editorial: The Problem with Periods

Oh, shoot... It’s that time of the month again. Well, I can’t text anyone, I left my phone with my teacher per the cell phone policy. I don’t have my backpack, and there’s nobody in the bathroom with me. My Smartpass only has a certain amount of time, and I’m sure I’ll go over it if I try to go to the nurse or Muskie Locker. Oh, wait! Here comes someone now! Oh... I don’t recognize their shoes. This is private to me, and I don’t want some random stranger to know about my bodily functions, even if most of everyone who goes to this bathroom gets one. 

Periods, you get one if you’re a person who was assigned female at birth. While it’s a natural function of the human body, it still may be an uncomfortable conversation for some, if not most. So why do we force AFAB (assigned female at birth) students to depend on another student or a staff member to provide what they need, when a lot of the time it would be preferred if they could just have quick and easy access to it themselves? At MHS, AFAB students don’t have a lot of options when it comes to this though. 

In light of the new service project being done by Muskie Voices that promotes free and easy access to various hygiene products in the restrooms at school, there’s a need to review what we already have in terms of options so that things can change for the better for AFAB students. What we are currently offered at the nurse’s office tends to range from cardboard inserters for tampons, which almost feel impossible to use, to either too thin or too big of a pad, which isn’t much for different flow types. While there is a broader range of products offered in the Muskie locker, the problem here is that it is currently not open, plus it is inaccessible without asking a staff member who has access to the locker first.

While there aren’t many options right now, there could be so many more options for those students if the time and care was to be put into helping them. 

One of those options would be putting better options and a wider range of options in the nurse's office so that there would be better products to choose from for a wider range of AFAB students who all have different flow types. We should no longer force them into one box or another when it is not as simple as just light or heavy flow types. This would also be useful as there is a decent level of privacy in it, as well as quick access to a bathroom if needed. 

Another option that should be available to students is the reopening of Muskie Locker, or at least for the time being housing these products such as pads and tampons in a more accessible spot, such as attendance, or student services. While this option is a bit less private, it still gives easier access to the students who need the products without seeking out a staff member who can give them access to the locker. 

One last option we could give, perhaps the best, is putting these products in bathrooms for free to address student needs. While there is a question of misuse, and if this would do more bad than good, if you pay attention to the problematic trends at MHS they usually stop after people realize it’s really not as funny as they first thought. Plus, the idea of a student taking more than they need in the moment is still serving a purpose: to provide for students' needs. A period doesn’t stop simply because an AFAB has left the campus. 

While AFAB students have some resources, it just isn’t enough. There is a need for a more private and self-sufficient way to access these products in time of an emergency, and if you agree with this stance you should show your support to Muskie Student Voices.