“My mom always told me to eat bananas when I’m cramping” My informant told me about this cure when I asked her for advice concerning my own menstrual cramps. She went further on to explain that when she was a young girl, she noticed that her mother was constantly buying bananas even though her mom… Continue Reading »
“Anytime a girl has her first period, they tell her she’s finally seen the moon.” The informant heard this phrase from her mother, who, in turn, heard it from her cousin. The informant’s mother is Cameroonian and in their culture people speak in a roundabout way. You are not supposed to say directly that… Continue Reading »
“In my Jewish family, and I’m sure in many other Jewish families, when the girl got her period, the mother would slap the girl across the face, very hard, and leave an imprint. I’m not sure what the reason was… something about warding off evil spirits, I think. To keep the devil away from… Continue Reading »
When a Jewish girl has her first ever menstrual cycle, every woman in the family (and sometimes, any woman) will slap her across the face. My informant recollects getting her period for the first time while she was alone with her younger sister at their grandma’s house. She was panicking because no one was home… Continue Reading »
The first time my informant got her period, her mother told her to go to the stairs, hold her breath, and walk down the number of steps she wanted her period to last for. For example, my informant decided that she wanted her periods from then on to last for three days, so she went… Continue Reading »