by Cordelia Riordan

Created on: January 19, 2009

I was one of those girls who looked forward to what is now a source of irritation: my period. I was twelve years old when I started it, and have since wondered why it seemed so special back then.

Up to that day, I thought and thought about it. I carried pads with me - just in case, of course - and I read puberty-focused books. I was ready, I told my body. I was ready to be embraced by womanhood! If only my body would cooperate in hurrying the process along, I was convinced, I would be better and happier for it.

For six months this went on. I wanted to be a woman, you see. As I told my body this, eventually it happened, as we all know. I went to the bathroom and there it was, innocently starting just as I'd wanted. Excitement rushed through me, and I told almost everyone I could think of. I thought it gave me maturity and wisdom, silly enough. I thought that it marked something to celebrate, something to cherish and enjoy - womanhood.

How naive I was; no one had explained the ever-present down sides of being a woman, and let me tell you - there are a lot.

Thankfully, I managed to avoid the nasty cramps right away (though they did develop after a little while) and instead, I went straight to nearly bleeding to death, anemia and the ice cravings, and a blood and hormone transfusion. I had to see doctors galore, take birth control pills, get ultra-sounds, and generally go through the many tests, just so they could figure out that they didn't know what was wrong with me. Believe me - it quickly became tiresome. All of the reproductive horrors were things no one warned me about, and let's not forget the minor things.

Until I was about fifteen, I couldn't wear tampons, so I couldn't swim during a period (and still can't, largely because for a while, tampons didn't even do much to help). I had no idea how much good protection cost, and how stressful it was to keep enough. I leaked in school often and got blood everywhere. It was embarrassing, I hated it, and I wanted it to stop. For a long time, my periods were incredibly heavy for days on end and only recently has that calmed down. Having a period, I soon learned, really sucks.

The amazing thing about all of the things I've experienced since that first period is that I still wouldn't have had it not happen. It's just another part of being a woman, after all, and I'm sure I'm not the only one with these experiences. Being a woman can suck, but I still wouldn't trade fertility for lack of said fertility.

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