Our Daughter's Bedrooms

Yes, as anticipated, graduate school is kicking my butt. I don't know how often I'll be able to post. But when I can, I will draw your attention to stuff I think is worthwhile. Like this new book by Joyce McFadden. It's called Our Daughter's Bedrooms. The book emerged from McFadden's mental health care practice. Following up on trends she was seeing among her patients, she launched the Women's Realities Study, in which she interviewed hundreds of women from 18 to 105. Three major themes (which will not surprise you) emerged from this study: masturbation, menstruation, and relationships with mothers. McFadden found that women's relationships with their mothers profoundly influenced the development of their sexuality: their self-confidence, their feelings about their bodies, and how they deal with challenges around sexuality and fertility throughout their lives. Her book discusses the development of sexuality within the context of the mother/daughter relationship and sets out a model for how we can nurture girls and raise healthy, confident women who are comfortable with themselves as sexual beings.

You can watch a video of McFadden discussing the book on her website (link above). And, if you're in NYC, you can catch her doing periodic speaking engagements. She'll be at Bluestockings on Tuesday, September 13th, at 7PM. Bluestockings is at 172 Allen Street at Stanton (on the Lower East Side). 

Another Awesome Blog

"re: Cycling is the new blog of the Society for Menstrual Cycle Research. re: Cycling is written by members of SMCR about all matters menstrual, especially sociocultural aspects of menstruation and new research about menstruation and women’s health. Currently, the bloggers are Chris Bobel, Associate Professor of Women’s Studies at University of Massachusetts-Boston; Giovanna Chesler, filmmaker and Assistant Professor of Communication Arts at Marymount Manhattan College; Chris Hitchcock, researcher at the Centre for Menstrual Cycle and Ovulation Research at the University of British Columbia; and Elizabeth Kissling, Professor of Women’s Studies and of Communication at Eastern Washington University. The new blog can be found at MenstruationResearch.org/blog.

The blog was developed as a way for the Society for Menstrual Cycle Research to discuss issues related to menstruation with a wider audience. Most posts on the site are open to public comment. We welcome readers and links from other feminist blogs."

From the Society for Menstrual Research.

Couple of Questions about Cycle Health

I answered a couple of questions from a student today, and it occurred to me that the answers might be of interest to other people, so I decided to post them. Note: I don't take random questions! I would love to work with you if you want to learn more about your cycles, but you do need to make an appointment with me. For more info on private consults & classroom instruction, please visit my website. 

On to the questions:

(Q1) The first day of my period is always REALLY painful. I always get it around dawn, and the cramps and nausea force me to stay in bed until at least noon. Should I see someone about this? 

(A1)  It doesn't sound as though you have anything seriously wrong. One day of bad cramps is not at all unusual, and I don't think you *need* to see anyone unless you want some treatment. If so, as always, you have two options: the Western approach, and the non-Western approach. The Western approach would basically be drugs (over the counter pain-killers etc). And I'm not against them. Especially for women who don't have insurance, and/or who can't afford non-Western care (which is usually not covered), painkillers can be a cheap and effective solution. You have to make sure you don't take them on an empty stomach and follow label directions carefully. Some need to be taken with food and/or water, some require you to not lie down for 30 minutes afterwards, never exceed the maximum dosage, etc. Heat is also very helpful, applied directly to your belly in the form of a heating pad or hot water bottle. Now in terms of non-Western treatments, there are many options. Acupuncture and/or herbs would be a good place to start. You might also look at the nutritional recommendations in Marilyn Shannon's book, Fertility Cycles and Nutrition. The nausea might be from the pain or it might be from something else. Ginger can be helpful with nausea, and can relieve cramps, too. You can brew up strong ginger "tea" from fresh ginger (or Alvita teabags) when you know your period is coming, and keep it in the fridge so you don't have to make it that morning. Lastly, while I think it's important to try to relieve pain and discomfort, Katie Singer emphasizes that we don't give ourselves a lot of room to have our periods these days. If you're feeling guilty or dysfunctional because you're staying in bed with cramps, try to let go of that. Use the time to read a lightweight book, focus on your breathing, and in general give yourself permission to have a little downtime. Stress makes cramps worse. 

(Q2) Between milk and soymilk, which one is better for your cycle?

(A2) I'm not a big fan of either cow or soymilk, for environmental, nutritional, and animal-rights reasons. If you're going to drink cow milk, make sure it's grass fed, organic milk from pastured cows. Don't drink commercial cow milk. If you're going to drink soymilk, I wouldn't drink a lot of it, as there is some evidence that large quantities of processed soy products might impact human fertility. (On the other hand, there is also evidence that soy foods are good for the heart, protect against cancer, etc.) But soy is kind of an environmental disaster, and I don't think the types & amounts of soy we eat are natural or good for us. There are lots of other milks available now. You can find milk made from almonds, hazelnuts, oats, and hemp. Read the labels and beware of sugar - some of them are loaded with it. Personally I'm a huge fan of Blue Diamond plain, unsweetened Almond Breeze. 

My Little Red Book

My Little Red Book is an anthology of stories about first periods, collected from women of all ages from around the world. The author/editor Rachel Kauder Nalebuff was 18 when she put the book together and the profits are being donated to charities promoting women's health and education. Buy it, read it, share it. Get this stuff out of the closet once and for all.

my little red book home page

review in NY Times

Sisters Are Doing It For Themselves

Think about some of thousands of things you probably take for granted:

-sanitary water to drink

-toilets

-ample food of infinite variety

-hot water in the shower, the shower itself 

The list is endless. Now add to the list (if you are a woman) the products you use for menstruation. Whether you have a real period (the result of ovulation, when cycles are unmediated by external hormones) or a fake one (withdrawal bleeding which results when you stop taking your pills or remove your ring or patch or whatever), chances are that you bleed about once a month, and when you do, you use pads or tampons or a reusable cup or something sanitary and cheap that you take completely for granted. Imagine being so poor that you had nothing with which to catch your flow, and little access to water for washing clothes and rags. What would you do? Would you go to school, or work? Now you understand (intellectually) the plight of millions of women around the world. An innovative project, run by the United Nations High Commission for Refugees, is helping women in Uganda have access to affordable sanitary pads. It is also providing income for about 60 Congolese refugees who now have an environmentally sustainable way to earn a living, in a model program that they hope to expand to other countries. Check out this article about pads from papyrus.

Upcoming Events at Bluestockings

Yah, these events are for the New Yorkers in the audience, but the rest of you can still buy the books or watch the film. Or arrange a reading / screening in your home town! All events will be held at Bluestockings Bookstore and Fair Trade Cafe, 172 Allen Street @ Stanton.

Saturday, February 21st @ 7PM - Free
Reading: Carol Leonard "Lady's Hands, Lion's Heart." Teamed up with Choices in Childbirth, we celebrate the release of "Lady’s Hands, Lion’s Heart," Carol Leonard’s memoir about her 30 years as a midwife and advocate for reproductive freedoms. Leonard is a co-founder of Midwives Alliance of North America (MANA), and her book is inspiring, hilarious, touching and a might full of beans. Doubtlessly, this book is a future classic in birth literature.

Thursday, March 5th @ 7PM - Free
Reading: Julia Watts "Women. Period." Please join contributors to "Women. Period. Women Writing on Menstruation," a new anthology of poetry, essays, and short fiction exploring the monthly cycle which unites all women. While menstruation is perhaps the most universal of
female experiences, surprisingly little has been published on the subject. Period.

Wednesday, March 11th @ 7PM - $5 Suggested
Screening: Carol Ciancutti-Leyva "Absolutely Safe" (2007, 85 minutes) While more women than ever are getting breast implants, few people seem to be asking: why? Even fewer are asking: are implants safe? Join director Carol Ciancutti-Leyva for a screening of "Absolutely Safe," her documentary about everyday women who find themselves and their breasts at the tangled intersections of health, money, science, and beauty.

"Dias Especiales" (Special Days) at Bronx Bedroom Project

Bronx Blue Bedroom Project (BBBP) is an innovative "gallery" in the bedroom of artist Blanka Amezkua. A new exhibit entitled "Dias Expeciales" (Special Days) by Jessica Lagunas opens on Saturday, 12/6.

From the artist's statement:

"The installation consists of a full-size sheet on a bed where I printed etchings inspired by medical books' images of biopsies from different menstrual cycle days. This project is an introspective exploration of the female body, but rather than offering a negative connotation with the association of dirtiness and impurity of some cultures and religions, I want to cherish women's bodies by exploring menstruation in a positive way.

The printing of this project was made possible thanks to a grant from NoMAA (Northern Manhattan Arts Alliance) and the Upper Manhattan Empowerment Zone."

More info on this exhibit, the opening, and the BBBP, can be found here:

http://www.bronxbbp.com/current.html

Pathologizing Your Period

Does PMS (Pre-Menstrual Syndrome) exist? What about PMDD (Pre-Menstrual Dysphoric Disorder)? The makers of Prozac, and men who think women are inherently unstable, have a vested interest in making you think they do. Charters, weigh in: do you get (more) nuts before your period? I've long thought so called PMS was mostly about blood sugar becoming more unstable, and women needing to eat healthfully and more regularly in the days before their periods. But I recently read a study that showed that blood sugar did not vary during the cycle. One study is one study, but still, it made me wonder. I also think caffeine plays havoc w/moods, especially when one is premenstrual. If those last few days have you reaching for your shotgun, spend a few months (yes, it takes a few months) drinking Fair Trade decaf and see if you don't feel better. 

Ms. Magazine | Pathologizing Your Period | summer 2008