Painfully Relatable Period Memes For People Who Menstruate

When I got my period I was devastated. I tried to keep it a secret from my parents for as long as possible, wadding up toilet paper and placing it in my underwear like a crude sanitary napkin. That didn't work for long. Soon I was frantically checking my chair for stains, living in fear of getting busted and mocked by my classmates, who already thought I was a total weirdo because I wasn't allowed to wear bras. Middle school was…not my favorite time. Anyway. I was convinced that my parents would start treating me differently after I started menstruating. I'm not sure why that was so upsetting to me, maybe I wanted to avoid another marker of mortality.

Turns out that spilling the beans to my mom was probably one of the least uncomfortable aspects of "becoming a woman." As I got older, the mood swings and cramps intensified, I'd bloat until I weighed an extra 8 pounds, and sometimes I'd get so dizzy I'd almost faint. I've been far from alone in this struggle. While women love to complain to each other about being on the same cycle, and all the myriad joys that 3-7 days brings, sometimes it's easier to just quietly scroll through relatable period memes while in fetal position on your couch, as you clutch a hot water bottle and eat things you probably shouldn't.

Posted by Ada Elder