Her First Period. Now What?
Your little girl has passed a major milestone. Now what?
This mom was so traumatized by getting her period, she later made a film about it. Get her tips for handling the arrival of your daughter’s monthly “gift.”
Whether you have been joyfully anticipating this moment for years or dreading it since you found out you were having a girl, the time has come. Menarche---the clinical term used to describe the first menstruation, or period. What should you do and say? Let's just say learning about menstruation was traumatic for me, filled with boring videos of house-sized images of fallopian tubes . As a filmmaker and mother, I decided that girls should not be afraid of getting their periods like I was so I made the film “A Period Piece”. A short award-winning comedy film about a girl afraid of getting her first period! Every girl should see this film and they will (as soon as Oprah calls me back!).
- Celebrate! Make it memorable, but please know your daughter, do not invite 100 tweens over for a jolly game of “pin the tail on the pad! “ If your daughter would enjoy flowers, a fancy dinner and getting all dressed up, try that. Whatever it is, make it a day that celebrates this new beginning and give her a card, journal, or a certificate you create. Initially it may be corny to her, but she will appreciate your efforts and thoughtfulness when she is a mother at least, LOL.
- Learning the Facts of Life. State the facts. No need to be too clinical, or whip out the 6 foot reproductive flip chart. Take it easy, but remember we live in a different world than the one we grew up in, and your daughter does need to know what sex is. Make the connection between periods, ovulation, sex and pregnancy.
- Period Etiquette. Make sure your daughter has a cutesy cosmetic bag to carry her period supplies in, such as pads, pantyliners, something for cramps , an extra pair of panties, and a travel size deodorant. Some women swear by feminine wipes. Be sure they do not have have chemicals or fragrances as those things could create vaginal irritations. Be Green! Try the brand Natracare, it is great for her body and the environment and they have a full line of sanitary products! Explain good hygiene and get her a calendar to begin charting her period, and tell her pantyliners are helpful to avoid accidents.
- Hello, you left out CRAMPS! Okay, I am a firm believer that cramps are related a lot to our diet so if we eat tons of fresh fruit and vegetables, drink plenty of water, exercise regularly, avoid processed and fast greasy, salty, sweet foods, not only can we reduce or eliminate cramps, we can also let her skip the gross pimples that everyone blames on puberty! Raspberry herbal tea and ginger tea are great for cramps, also hot showers or bath soaks and heating pads. Take pain relievers as a last resort, the last thing you want to do is condition your daughter to pop pills, empower her to have a healthy lifestyle that reduces cramps the natural way.
Leave a Comment
Leave a Comment
Follow Us
More from iVillage
Our Experts
-
Becca Ludlum
Becca Ludlum was born and raised in upstate New York and currently lives in Arizona with her sons... -
Melissa Chapman
Melissa Chapman blogs about her marriage and everything in between at marriedmysugardaddy.com, and... -
Sherry Davey
Sherry Davey is a mom and professional comedian and writer. She has two daughters aged 8 & 14...
Wow, you must have an empty life to even write anything about this! Every girl is going to get her period, so why make a big deal about it? It is a fact of life, get over it. People like you are the reason children overreact to everything and can't make decisions or take responsibility for themselves.
My mother took us to get our eared peirced when we got our periods, and i have repeated that tradition with my two daughters - its a wonder ful way to commemorate an importatn passage in life - one that is worth acknowledging and celebrating.
My mother took us to get our ears peirced when we got our periods, and i have repeated that traditon with my two daughters. Its a wonderful way to commemorate and celebrate an important passage in a woman's life.
My mother took us to get our ears peirced when we got out periods, and I have repeated that tradition with my two daughters. Its a wonderful way to commemorate and celebrate an important passage in a woman's life, and a growing-up moment.
I don't understand the need to 'commemorate' a girl's first period. It's a natural fact of life. If you had a son would you do the same thing when he had his first 'wet dream'? It's basically the same thing. By making something so natural into a celebration IMHO is wrong, it sends the wrong message. Reminds me of the recent episode of Community where Annie had a period fairy growing up and every time she had her period she'd find a dollar under her pillow. It seems that by making such a huge deal out of it you make it into something it's not, which is something 'special'. It's not special it's a natural part of life.
I recommend for all parents the books What is Happening to My Body, they have one for girls and one for boys. It explains everything in natural, matter of fact language. I've recommended it to friends and everyone has believed it was the best thing, I've given it out as gifts. With a result, and I have 2 daughters, when all these girls got their first periods, it was no big deal, my niece came in from playing outside went into the bathroom, did what had to be done and went back to playing with her friends. Later when her mother asked her why she had been in the bathroom so long the reply was very simple and straightforward, I just got my period. End of discussion. The same with my daughters no big deal, it's life. Now my 17 yo is on the pill for acne, we do not refer to it as birth control because that's not what it is, it is a hormone treatment use for her severe acne. But she is the envy of her friends as she now only gets her period every 3 months.
In the end I find this article ridiculous and weird.