CARE DURING MENSTRUATION.
I have said that I do not want you to think yourself a semi-invalid
and so be "fussy" about yourself, but I have also said that I want you
to take care of yourself at all times, and especially during your
menstrual periods. How can you make these ideas agree with each other?
I know that many writers say that a girl should spend one day each
month in bed, or at least lying down; that there are some things that
should always be forbidden to girls, simply because they are girls,
such as running up and down stairs. These wholesale restrictions make
girls rebellious at their womanhood. I simply want you to use good
sense at all times in your care of yourself.
Knowing the fact that just before and during menstruation the uterus
is heavier than at other times, because engorged with blood, and
remembering that it is loosely suspended, it is easy to understand
that long walks or severe exercise at the menstrual period will more
easily cause it to sag, and this sagging becoming permanent may cause
pain, backache, and other discomforts. Therefore, having good sense,
you will not plan to take long rides or walks or do any severe
exercise. At the same time moderate exercise in proper clothing will
tend to relieve pelvic congestion by equalizing the circulation, and
if the clothing is properly adjusted and the muscles are strong and
well-developed, an ordinary amount of physical activity may be
beneficial rather than harmful.
Girls are so often told that they must not walk at their monthly
periods, must not study, must not ride, etc., etc., that it really is
no wonder that they feel it a very undesirable thing to be a woman. My
observation leads me to believe that if girls from earliest childhood
were dressed loosely, with no clothing suspended on the hips, if their
muscles were well developed through judicious exercise, they would
seldom find it necessary to be semi-invalids at any time. In fact, we
do sometimes find a young woman who has no consciousness of physical
disturbance during menstruation. She can pursue her usual avocations
without hindrance, and finds her physical womanhood no bar to any
enjoyment.
This is as it should be; but as girls have not all been well developed
and properly dressed, we cannot assert that all girls can be
indifferent to physical conditions at this time. If a girl is well,
has no pain or discomfort, then I would say, let her use good common
sense in the ordering of her daily life and give the matter no special
or anxious thought. If she has pain or uneasiness, let her govern her
life accordingly, using care, taking some rest at the time of the
menses; but, above all things, let her arrange her clothing at all
times so as to secure for herself absolute freedom of movement. Then
let her, during the intervals between the menstrual periods, endeavor
by judicious exercise to build up strong muscular structure around the
vital organs, such structure as will support the _viscera_ where they
belong, and in time she will probably find herself growing free from
menstrual pain.
During the painful periods resulting from congestion it is often
advisable to keep the recumbent position, and to use heat both
externally and internally. However, I would advise never using
alcoholic beverages. Their apparent usefulness lies principally in the
hot water with which they are administered, and the danger of forming
the alcohol habit is too great to justify their use.
There are cases of nervous pain at menstruation that are aggravated by
heat and diminished by cold. I knew such a case where a girl at
school, suffering with menstrual pain, alarmed teachers and friends by
wringing towels out of cold water and laying them over her abdomen.
But the alarm subsided when they saw that the pain soon passed away
under the cold application. The girl was one in whom there were no
local congestions, but great nervous exhaustion and heat always
increased her sufferings, while cold allayed.
I have read that a woman should not bathe or change her underwear
while menstruating. I cannot see how soiled clothing can be more
healthful than that which is clean; and if well-aired, I should no
more object to your putting on clean underwear than to your changing
your dress. Most especially would I advise a frequent change of
napkins, in order to remove those which are soiled from their
irritating contact with the body. A full bath during menstruation
would, for most people, be unadvisable, but the cleansing of the
private parts is imperative. For this, tepid water, with good soap,
may be used daily or oftener. Other parts of the body may be rubbed
with a wet cloth, followed by vigorous, dry rubbing. Cleanliness at
all times is certainly a mark of refinement.
You should use good sense and not run out in thin slippers on wet or
cold ground; but if your feet get wet through accident, keep in motion
until you can make a change of shoes and stockings. There is little
danger from wet feet to those in good health, if they keep in vigorous
motion.
As to other rules, they are those that pertain to the care of health
at all times: loose clothing, deep breathing, wholesome food, plenty
of sleep, sunlight, pure air, exercise according to your strength,
and, above all, serenity of mind, accepting the fact of physical
womanhood, together with a recognition of its sacredness and dignity.
As a minor item, I would suggest that the napkins be fastened to
straps that go over the shoulder and are then joined together in front
and back to an end piece, on each of which a button is sewn.
Buttonholes in the napkins at the corners, diagonal from each other,
will make them easily attached or removed. The napkins should be of a
material that is quickly absorbent of the flow. Cheesecloth is cheap,
and can be burned or otherwise disposed of after using. It may be
protected by an outer strip of unbleached muslin which is almost
water-proof.
A very comfortable way of arranging napkins that are to be used from
time to time is to take a piece of linen or cotton diaper sixteen
inches square. About three inches from one end, make on each side an
incision four inches long. Fold this strip in the middle lengthwise,
and sew together up to the end of the incisions. This makes a band
with a sort of pocket in the middle. Hem the cut edges. Fold the
napkin over, four inches on each side, that is as deep as the
incisions. Then fold crosswise until you can enclose the whole in the
pocket in the band. This makes a thick center and thin ends by which
to attach the napkin to the suspender.
I hold that mental serenity is one of the essentials of healthful
menstrual periods, and this cannot be had if the mind is continually
troubled and the thought centered on the physical condition. I would
be glad to have your mind freed from the ideas of sex matters as far
as possible. It is a scientific fact that thinking continually of an
organ tends to disturb that organ. I know a man who was so afraid of
heart disease that he felt of his pulse every few minutes and kept a
stethoscope on the head of his bed to listen to his heart in the
night. I would have been surprised had he not had heart trouble.