Tag Your Taboo

Tag Your Taboo

A lack of education, money and social awareness means that what you and I take for granted ever day is blatantly missing from many women’s lives globally. Because it’s taboo

Although you may have access to all of the sanitary items you need when your period arrives, we’re sure you’ve experienced stigma. Have you hidden a pad up your sleeve on the way to the toilets at school? Coughed while ripping a tampon open in the cubicles? Struggled to have a conversation with your partner about periods because it’s such an uncomfortable topic for them?  

Bleeding is normal. It happens to so many of us. 

And at TABOO, we want to tackle global period poverty. 

 

So, we’re asking you to join us. Help us empower and support women around the world. Help us break the stigma. Because it’s normal and nothing to be ashamed of. 

Next time your period arrives, we’re asking you to shout it out. Loudly, proudly. We’re asking you to #TagYourTaboo! 

Your strength makes others stronger and when we work together we’re powerful. Together, anything is possible. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

STEPS YOU CAN TAKE TO TACKLE GLOBAL PERIOD POVERTY

  1. Take a photo of yourself when you have your period.
  2. Post it on Instagram. 
  3. Tag @taboosanitaryproducts over your uterus. 
  4. Add a stigma smashing caption. We’ve written a selection below if you feel like a quick copy and paste! 
  5. Use #tagyourtaboo to join the stigma-breaking community.
  6. That’s it. Period. 

STIGMA SMASHING CAPTIONS

Period Power. #tagyourtaboo 

Bleeding Love. #tagyourtaboo 

Bleeding is normal. Period. #tagyourtaboo 

Help me break the stigma around periods and tackle global period poverty. #tagyourtaboo 

Periods are the reason we exist, so why are we so ashamed to talk about them? #tagyourtaboo 

Hands up if you’ve ever coughed loudly while ripping open a pad or tampon in the toilet cubicle. Let’s scrap that! #tagyourtaboo 

Unashamed to say I’ve got my period. #tagyourtaboo

Half the world will experience periods in their lifetime. Let’s talk about them. #tagyourtaboo

Who else is tired of having to hide the pads and tampons at the bottom of my shopping trolley? Let’s break the stigma together! #tagyourtaboo  

If you’ve ever had to awkwardly and quietly explain to someone that you’ve got your period, this is for you. #tagyourtaboo 

Did you know 65% of women in Kenya cannot afford sanitary products? Let’s break the cycle and kick period poverty to the curb. #tagyourtaboo  

In Sierra Leone, 90% of the women and girls surveyed had never heard of a sanitary pad. That’s period poverty. We’re lucky enough to have access to the facilities and products needed, but many around the world are not so fortunate. In Sierra Leone, girls miss around 50 school days every year due to their period. Let’s tackle global period poverty. #tagyourtaboo  

Comments

  • Posted by Terri on

    Hi there,
    I LOVE that you are tackling GLOBAL period poverty — and it is for this reason I wanted to reach out to you.
    I am in Melbourne, and through Facebook I have many contacts in Africa, primarily in Uganda, Tanzania, Cameroon, and Nigeria. Recently, one of my connections, from an NGO called CDITanzania, asked me for help to get period products the young girls with disability who are supported by this NGO.
    I typically donate funds to the various NGOs I am connection with across these four main countries, and yet period poverty is just such a big issue.
    Is this something you could assist me with? I have already written to four companies today as I want to source a regular donation of monthly products while I work with another contact of mine in Ohio USA on a project focusing on helping African countries become economically stable.
    BIG focus, but we have to begin by easing some of the stresses, and period poverty is a major stress.
    I look forward to hearing from you.

    Many kind regards,
    Terri

  • Posted by Nicole Hills on

    I love your incredible efforts to break period poverty. It’s devastating in third world countries that women just simply don’t have access to what we take for granted. I watched an empowering documentary on the plight of an organisation in India in small rural villages. When girls had their period they had to stay home from school because they had no access to pads, the mess was just too much to manage at school. But what still surprises me to this day is the stigma in our own first world country. I’m a yoga teacher and in the Iyengar method I teach we’re encouraged to practice a separate yoga sequence when we have our periods. I show immense gratitude to Geeta Iyengar for paving the way and showing how women should practice through all stages of life. This is a time for going in, nurturing, and practicing postures that nourish the pelvis and abdomen. When I first started teaching I was always amazed when I’d ask at the start of every class i teach “Is anyone menstruating”. The room would go silent. Many students never ever seemed to menstruate over many years of attending my classes. The stigma and embarrassment is real. I post regularly to my socials and am an advocate for sharing postures that are healing for women during menstruation and menopause. A friend laughed at me when I recently posted that I was doing a menstruation practice to my Instagram page. She said “well at least everyone knows you’re menstruating” as if it was something that was laughable. I was shocked that in these modern times, with women having a louder voice than ever, that it would still seem taboo to share what is a very real and regular part of our experience. What women go thought every month needs to be shared. My favourite part of the book “The Red Tent” by Anita Diamant, set in biblical times, is how women nurtured each other. When someone was menstruating, they rested, and the other women took over the chores to allow for this healing time. Some women suffer terribly with their periods. Where are our red tents to support the sisterhood? I’ll keep doing what I can to shout from the rooftops when I’m menstruating and share the incredible work your organisation does.

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