Why Women and Girls Deserve Safety, Not Isolation, During Their Periods In many parts of the world, menstruation is still treated as something sham
Why Women and Girls Deserve Safety, Not Isolation, During Their Periods
In many parts of the world, menstruation is still treated as something shameful—something to hide, isolate, and silence.
One of the most extreme examples of this is the continued use of period huts—small, often unsafe structures where girls and women are forced to stay during their menstrual cycles.
They are not retreats.
They are not cultural sanctuaries.
They are dangerous, dehumanizing, and deeply harmful.
And they are rarely talked about.
Today, we break the silence.
🔥 10 Surprising—and Disturbing—Facts About Period Huts
1. Period huts still exist in multiple countries today, including Nepal, India, and parts of Sub-Saharan Africa.
Despite laws banning the practice in some regions, it continues in secrecy and silence.
2. Girls as young as 11 are forced to stay in period huts—alone.
This includes their very first periods, often with no guidance, protection, or comfort.
3. Some period huts have no windows, no bathrooms, no heat, and no security.
They’re often built from mud, sticks, or tin, with open doors or no doors at all.
4. Girls and women have died in period huts from cold exposure, snake bites, smoke inhalation, and rape.
This is not metaphorical. These deaths are real. And they are preventable.
5. Even where period huts are banned, enforcement is rare—and often resisted.
Families and communities sometimes force compliance out of fear of spiritual or cultural consequences.
6. Many girls are not allowed to touch water, food, animals, or even family members while menstruating.
They’re seen as “polluted” or “cursed,” further deepening their isolation.
7. Girls have missed school for up to 1 week per month due to period hut practices.
This leads to long-term educational gaps, increased dropout rates, and vulnerability to early marriage.
8. Period huts contribute to lifelong shame and trauma around menstruation.
Women report feelings of abandonment, fear, and emotional pain that linger well into adulthood.
9. Some women are expected to carry their newborns into the huts when postpartum bleeding is mistaken as “unclean.”
Imagine: A bleeding woman, with a days-old baby, left to sleep on the cold ground.
10. The women and girls most impacted by period huts are also the least likely to be heard.
Poor girls. Rural girls. Girls from marginalized castes or tribes. They are silenced twice—once by the structure, and again by the world’s indifference.
This Isn’t Culture. It’s Control.
While cultural practices should be honored when they uplift and protect, this is something else.
Period huts are a form of gender-based violence.
They strip women and girls of safety, dignity, and community when they are most in need of support.
We Must Make Room for Women and Girls to Speak
We are not centering this post on what boys or men think.
We are centering it on the experiences and voices of girls and women—those who have been:
Exiled during their periods
Labeled “unclean” for simply existing
Punished for the natural process of giving life
What We Can Do:
Support organizations working to end period poverty and menstrual stigma
Donate to initiatives providing safe, clean hygiene kits to girls in rural communities
Educate girls about their bodies—with pride, not shame
Hold space for survivors of menstrual exile to speak their truth
Amplify the stories of women who’ve survived this harm—and are fighting back
🩸 A Word for Every Girl Forced to Hide
You were never impure.
You were never dirty.
You were never the problem.
You are powerful.
You are whole.
You are sacred—every single day of the month.
[rosaschildren.com] | [wesurviveabuse.com] | [survivoraffirmations.com]
Share if you feel safe and ready—your voice might be the lifeline someone else needs. And if you do share, remember to cite the messenger. Words carry legacy.
