Men & Menstruation – Are They Ready?

Can you picture President Trump at a “Menstrual Revival”? Probably not! What the famous Megyn Kelley incident showed is that men are “Trumped” by menstruation.

Surprisingly, not all men are made like Donald. Some, who own less than a fraction of what he does – have proven to posses the few assets he seems to lack: sensitivity, an open mind, and most of all an open heart. I had the joy of meeting two such men recently.

I was preparing to give a Menstrual Empowerment talk to a co-ed audience as part of a Vagina Monologues production. Though I typically speak to women, I decided not to dilute my message for the sake of men, come what may. I was ready for the guys to be angry, bored, or grossed out, but I never expected them to be touched…

I opened the evening asking for a show-of-hands from women in the audience who remembered the day of their first period. Almost 100% of women’s hands were up. “Now,” I continued, “raise your hands if you remember being celebrated on that day, honored and welcomed into womanhood?” The auditorium was silent. Two hands rose up tentatively. This was the sad picture I encounter everywhere in the world I ask this question.

The majority of women were never welcomed when we come of age, nor were our mothers, our grandmothers, or any woman in our recent lineage. Yet our ancestors’ lines stretch deep into the mist of times, where in every culture, and on every continent, girls grew up honored by their people, and celebrated when their first blood came. Menstruation was revered since it holds the key to the mystery of creating life.

This revelation comes as a shock to most contemporary women who experience menstruation as ‘nuisance’, ‘bother’ or ‘a curse’. Yet the shock turns into awe in no time, as women realize the unfathomable possibilities this opens for their own lives. If we can turn menstruation from our curse to our power — there is no stopping us!

But how would men handle such message?
I didn’t know what to expect…

At the end of the evening I was approached by a couple of men in their late fifties or early sixties. I was ready for a blast. Instead, they each shared how moved they were by my words, and especially by the ceremonial act in which I invited the audience to participate earlier. In it, women and men invoked the names of their mothers, grandmothers, great-grandmothers, and honored them for their years of monthly bleeding: invisible, unacknowledged, uncelebrated… Both men spoke to me about awakening to the lonely isolation in which their mothers bled monthly, for years — an aspect of their Moms they never thought of. They marveled at the new connection they experienced to their Mother’s Line, a connection they never had.

I was stunned.
Sharing my surprise with them, they were puzzled to hear I don’t speak to audiences of men. “We all need to hear this,” they exclaimed, “we all need to know the truth about menstruation!” Speechless, I went through a momentary mind-quake!

The time has come…

We, women, don’t need to wait until the last woman on Earth reclaims her Period Power! We don’t actually have time to wait till all women realize that menstruation is a time of “cutting through the bullshit.” We can’t be idle till each woman realizes that if she only listens when she bleeds – her intuition will guide her way, and if she only stops running around — she can tap into a depth of spirit she can’t access any other time of the month. There is no need to wait before we start sharing this empowering knowledge with the men in our midst: husbands, fathers, brothers, teachers, or any significant men in our lives…

It is time for men, not only women,
to reverse the cultural “curse” that was cast over menstruation!

It is time to shed the lie we have all been fed, and replace it with the truth about the spiritual power menstruation holds for women, as well as for the men in their lives. They are surprisingly ready for it!

So what do you say, women? Are you ready to go beyond reclaiming your Period Power, to shattering the myth of “the curse” for the men in your life, and see how the cookies crumble? The crumbs may well be seeds of consciousness falling on fertile ground…

If one man is moved by the message of empowerment that menstruation holds for women and girls who reclaim it, there is no way back! Offering Menstrual Empowerment to both women and men will do much more than blow minds and open eyes, it will ultimately change the world!

Why? Because sharing such knowledge will end the ignorance and fear of menstruation that lead to remarks like Donald Trump’s. Remarks that deepen the chasm between women and men.

A new bridge across this chasm will become the basic bond of support among equals. Strengthened by the knowledge of the power of menstruation, women and men will be able to tango by blending their individual rhythms, and making a beautiful dance of their lives, rather than fight over the music.

Read about one Boy’s initiative to support menstruating Girls

Leave a comment below:

How would You educate a Man or a Boy in your life about Menstruation?

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© DeAnna L’am