The Benefits of Throwing Your Child a Period Party
Photo Source: The Period Store
Have you ever heard of a period party? It might sound familiar because this was a hot topic in the news a couple of years ago. In case you need a refresher, a period party is a celebration of someone getting their period for the first time. The party usually includes red decorations and a red and white cake with icing on top that congratulates the person or a menstrual product decoration. Unfortunately, the reactions that people had about period parties were not all positive. There were people that thought this was a stupid idea and a waste of time, some were disgusted, and others were just confused. I don’t think these people ever realized just how amazing and empowering a period party can be for young ones.
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One benefit of throwing a period party is that it can bring your family closer together. It shows the child how much you care about them and the important milestone they reached. It also shows them that you are a safe person to go to when they have any questions or need any advice regarding menstruation. They’ll get the sense that the conversation is normal and ongoing in the household.
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Another benefit of throwing a period party is that it is a great avenue for education. If you feel awkward about talking to the child about the mechanics of this natural biological process, this will definitely be a fun and lighthearted way to do so. Make up some fun games that teach the child about menstruation. It can be a trivia game where you ask questions like, “How long do you wait to change your tampon/pad?” Or you can give them an educational book about menstruation as a gift. Just make sure they know that if they don’t understand something, they can go to you for clarification. I think this is an amazing benefit of throwing a period party because children do not learn much about menstruation in school, unfortunately. In a survey commissioned by THINX & PERIOD, 79% of students across the U.S. feel that they need more in-depth education around menstrual health.
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Finally, a period party can be empowering for the child. Periods are still a taboo topic, hence, the people who had a disgusted reaction to people celebrating periods. The fact that something so celebratory surrounding periods exists shows that the needle is moving in the right direction. It may be moving very slow, but it is moving, nonetheless. Doing something like this for your child shows them that there is no shame about menstruation. In fact, it’ll teach them to be proud of a beautiful and natural part of themselves. They’ll always have the memories or photos to look back at in case they question its beauty in the future.
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While it is easy to dismiss a party like this because it seems silly or gross, you can’t take away the important message or lesson that a party like this teaches a child. In a world filled with nasty people that want to bring others down for such a natural biological function of the female body, why not do small things like this to build up our youth. Empower them so they can empower the ones that come after them.
Sources:
· THINX & PERIOD. (2019). State of the Period.
https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0795/1599/files/State-of-the-Period-white-paper_Thinx_PERIOD.pdf