The Roadtrip & Period Pain

Aastha Bisht: The Pad Project Environmental Track Advisor

This is a road trip story, not necessarily a fun one. I felt shame.

The Context

This is a road trip story, not necessarily a fun one. I was traveling with my family members. We were going to our relative’s house, in a different state. It was a long drive and I wish I knew I would get my period. The worst part was I didn’t feel any pain, which led to me not realizing that my period had come. Yes, I was feeling a bit uncomfortable, but That’s what you feel on a long road trip.

The Accident

I was sleeping and just when we reached our destination, I felt a bit of relief, I stood up and saw my car seat was covered with blood stains. All my relief turned into devastation. I felt embarrassed, almost guilty for letting this happen as if I did it on purpose, and it was only me who could have prevented this. In a few minutes the pain kicked in, and the longer I thought about the stains, the pain grew. I tried everything to clean, water bottles, tissues, clothes, even sanitizer. But the stains were not ready to go.

The Reaction

I decided to tell my dad. “It’s okay, it will get cleaned” was his response. His words were the only thing which calmed me down. We stepped outside the car and it was very hot. We had to wait for our relatives to pick us up, and it was a long wait. There were chairs for us, but I decided not to sit because I didn’t want blood stains on the chair too.

The Lesson

Nearby there was a garden and I remember seeing red-colored flowers dance with the wind. It made me wonder about how ingrained the stereotype is in all of us. We blame ourselves and feel guilty about our bodies. I realized I was wrong for blaming myself instead of comforting myself.