Still spoken in whispers: the obstacles of opening up about menstrual experiences

A woman’s menstrual cycle is the most normal reality of her life, but conversations around menstruation health and hygiene are still addressed cautiously, in private.

Rushed steps and hushed whispers are how Munu Maya Sherpa remembers most of her early period days as, in her village Baluwapatti Deupur, in Kavrepalanchok. Approaching puberty felt frightening and confusing, she says.