Our petition is about to reach its pivotal moment. I wanted to get in touch to thank you for helping us get this far and to ask you to help us with the final step and get menstrual wellbeing taught in schools.
Today, November 7th, is the deadline for feedback to the Government on the Sex & Relationship and PSHE curriculum review. Please help us show the Government how important this petition is – please share everywhere you can and encourage your friends, family and colleagues to sign.
We’ve reached over 21,000 signatures and had huge success with our #whatiwishilearned campaign. You’ve all shared so honestly and bravely. The feedback to our campaign has been staggering and your stories prove why this petition is so needed…
“I remember a time at school where I had bled through a super plus tampon as well as a maxi size sanitary towel. While I sat there in my blood, I nervously grabbed the attention of one of my teachers - who was male. Without saying a word, he grabbed a female teaching assistant to create a further impression that my menstruation was taboo. 10 years on in the workplace, my endometriosis often lands me in hospital. But when I call in, I am still given the impression that I need to speak to a female colleague. The apprehension to discuss my condition is partly the reason why it took me 8 years to be diagnosed with deep infiltrating endometriosis of the bowel and uterus. I will never be able to take back the hours of school I missed due to going home to wash myself and change.”
“I wish I had learned how debilitating, crippling and devastating to a woman's health stage 4 endometriosis could be (and how much of that persons life could be affected and ruined by it), before I got told how badly I had it, before I nearly bled to death, before I had to have an emergency hysterectomy at 28 just to survive the night. Instead I was taught how to put a condom on a banana.”
“I was recently diagnosed with adenomyosis but have been affected by it from a very young age. I didn’t even know it existed until I was diagnosed! I suffered from excruciating periods and heavy bleeding to the point that I would be unable to go into school. I had no idea what was happening with my body and felt so isolated, confused as to why I was experiencing so much pain in comparison to my friends.”
We’re submitting a report, full of your stories, to the Government. To make sure this report has as much impact as possible, we’re asking for your help. We want those in Government to really acknowledge that this is such an important issue by seeing the petition continue to grow in numbers and strength.
Please share the petition everywhere and anywhere you can. On Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and even Snapchat! With your friends and family, with your work colleagues. This petition affects everyone, especially the future generations. Here's the link again to share: https://www.change.org/p/ngibb-menstrualhealth
The average age to start a period is 9-11 years old. Yet 25% girls stated they didn’t know what to do when they started their period and 14% of girls didn’t know what was happening when they started (Plan International UK).
Our report calls for menstrual wellbeing to be taught in schools so that no child has to start their period without understanding menstruation, no teenager has to be shamed into silence, and no one has to suffer undiagnosed with menstrual related conditions, for many years and sometimes resulting in disability, because they haven’t been taught what’s normal.
Please help us make this a reality.
Thank you for your support.
Best wishes,
Alice, Endometriosis UK Trustee