Real Talk: That Time I Got My Period in Front of My Family

I knew what a period was. I’d just started 6th grade, and a few of my friends had told me they’d started their periods. I wondered what it’d be like when I would get mine. To be honest, I was kind of jealous that I hadn’t gotten mine yet. My friends acted like having your period initiated you into some secret club, and I couldn’t be a part of it yet.

I remember sitting on my couch one Sunday night with my family. We used to watch TV together on Sunday nights as a family, before my two older brothers and I had to go to bed, since we had school the next morning. My mom was sitting across the room on the love seat, and all of a sudden, she told me to go to the bathroom.

I was really confused as to why she was telling me to do this because it wasn’t like I had to go, so I told her no. She was looking a bit annoyed now, and she told me again, to go to the bathroom, this time in a much more stern voice. Finally, I marched to the bathroom, and she followed me in and closed the door.

She told me she could see I’d gotten my period, as I’d bled through my light pink pajama bottoms, which I’m sure my brothers and dad saw when I got up and went to the bathroom.

My mom went and got me some clean underwear and pajama bottoms, and she gave me a pad, and showed me how to put it on. She explained that I’d need to change it every few hours, and she gave me a bunch to put in my backpack to bring to school with me.

When I finally went back out to the living room where my brothers and dad were, I sat back down on the couch, a little bit embarrassed because they all knew that I’d started my period. Despite this, I couldn’t wait to get to school the next morning to tell my friends I finally got it!

-Anonymous, 21