Reusable and Washable Cloth Pads & Menstrual Hygiene Workshop

Reusable and Washable Cloth Pads Making and Menstrual Hygiene Workshop

Namaste Nepal has collaborated with Aythos Nepal on menstruation awareness initiatives at Gati, Mandra, Singarche, Dansing, and Chidhyar villages. Our initiatives aim to spread awareness around Menstrual Hygiene Management and train the mother’s group and students to sew the reusable sanitary pad. Menstruation is a natural part of the reproductive cycle. However, in many parts of the world and Nepal, it remains taboo, stigmatized, ‘hidden’, and rarely discussed. In worst-case scenarios, prevailing harmful cultural practices surrounding menstruation negatively impact the lives, health, and safety of women and girls, reinforcing gender inequalities and exclusion.

The workshop was completed with active participation. There were altogether 393 participants present during the entire workshop session held at different places. The workshop conducted was conducted based on the following session:

i). Pre-survey

ii). Presenting animated video on menstrupedia

iii).Orientation on menstrual hygiene

iv). Training on sewing sanitary cloth pad

Pre-survey:

Pre-survey, which plays an important role to collect information on menstrual health practices at Mandra and Singarche villages. During the pre-survey, most of the women felt quite reluctant to answer the question; however, some participants actively participated. Information that we collected from the pre-survey is as follows:

⮚ Women feel uncomfortable discussing and discussing menstruation with the family’s male members. Only a few mothers and daughters used to have conversations on menstruation but never shared it with the male member of the family.

⮚ Most importantly, we learned that most women in the village use cloth during the period and use disposable sanitary pads only while traveling. The clothes used during menstruation are from bed sheets and old torn-up clothes.

⮚ Though most women dry the cloth used during menstruation in sunlight, they have the habit of hiding the cloth by covering other clothes on it, especially when a male member is around them.

⮚ Back pain, stomach ache, tiredness, and moodiness are the major problem faced by women during the menstruation period

⮚ None of the participants had ever received suggestions and services on menstrual pain in the village. Everyone thinks that menstruation is a natural process and women don’t have to be health-conscious during menstruation.

⮚ Women still follow various cultural practices, such as avoiding entering kitchens and religious places at the time of menstruation.

⮚ We even asked the students whether the teachers taught them about menstruation or not. Some students were able to answer correctly the meaning of menstruation and its causes. The student said the teachers are no longer shy to teach about menstrual health inside the classroom.

Presenting animated video on menstrupedia:

An animated video by Menstrupedia consists of detailed information on menstruation. This video presents practical guidance based on the real-life story of a girl. It presents menstruation most easily and entertainingly. Practical tips to deal with menstruation are provided through the character enacted by cartoons and are further supplemented with beautiful illustrations. The entire participants enjoyed the video and learned lots of new information on menstrual health and hygiene.

Orientation on menstrual hygiene:

After showing the video on Menstrupedia, we begin the orientation session. The collected information from the pre-survey helped us understand the menstrual practices followed in the respective villages. Accordingly, with the information collected from the pre-survey, the information on menstrual health and hygiene was delivered. The entire participants were interested in and satisfied with the knowledge they gained during orientation. An explanation of the method of caring for personal hygiene was given. Also, the participants were educated about the side effects of not caring for their health at the time of menstruation.

Training on sewing sanitary cloth pads:

The reusable sanitary pad is an eco-friendly menstrual pad. Besides this, the flannel cloth used for making the reusable sanitary pad is recommended by Gynecologists as well. The materials for the workshops were the pre-cut portion of fleece, cotton cloth, thread, and a needle. As there were many participants, we made various groups so the volunteers could lead a group to facilitate them sewing sanitary cloth pads properly. Also, the volunteers took care of the small babies during the training session so that the mothers could focus solely on their training. The participants showed great interest till the end of the session and sewed the sanitary cloth pad beautifully.