My Period As A 22-Year-Old Student Living on N30k per Month in LUTH, Lagos
Period Dairies - Episode 1
Period Diaries is a 4-week series documenting the experiences of Nigerian women during their periods. Sadly, periods are still a taboo topic in Nigeria and the prices of period products keep rising while the quality keeps reducing. With Period Diaries, we hope to bring attention to the menstrual health of Nigerian women during Women’s History Month and highlight the work of organizations fighting period poverty in Nigeria.
Today, our diarist is a 22-year-old student and copywriter in LUTH, Lagos who experiences period poverty and spends 13.5% of her monthly income on period care and supplies.
Occupation: Medical student and Copywriter
Industry: Health and Tech
Age: 22
Pronouns: She/ Her
Length of period: 3 days
When did you get your first period? At 12 years old.
Period Expenses
How much do you spend on period products and period care every month?
Not much. I buy it in bulk so it lasts a whole year.
Please, list the period products and services you use monthly and their costs.
Cravings - NGN 500 ( I am lactose intolerant and cut down on sugar so I only get them when I'm in dire need)
Data - NGN 3000 (I get period blues which means a lot of YouTube videos)
Pads - NGN 550
Total spent - NGN 4050
What is your monthly income and what percentage of your monthly income do you spend on your period?
My monthly income is NGN 30,000 and I spend 13.5% of it on my period.
Have you ever received any education about periods from a teacher or family member?
The usual making sure to dump the used pad properly by wrapping it in paper and nylon.
Have you ever ever experienced or do you currently experience period poverty?
Yes, I am a student so I can't afford to waste pads. It’ll cost more to buy them every month. So I try to use a pad a day for 3 days.
Have you ever experienced discrimination or harassment because of your period?
Nope.
Do you have any health or other condition that affects your periods?
Nope.
Day One
At 7 am, I wake up to get ready for class. My Clue App, a period app, sends me a notification to expect my period so I take a sanitary pad along with me and wear something black just in case.
By 9 am, classes are done and I get breakfast. Usually, I get the feeling of wetness down there so I make sure to check frequently. I get back to my hostel by 9:15 am ish and watch a couple of videos. Usually, I'm a bit distant from everyone during my period because I get easily irritated. Luckily for me, I have taken several courses on how to have more control over my emotions.
By 11 am, I fall asleep. I usually sleep for a really long time. For me, fatigue is a great indicator of PMS. I wake up intermittently by 1 o’clock and 3 o’clock to do some copywriting.
By 5 pm, I'm fully awake. I'm usually awoken by a dull tummy ache so I wait it out by distracting myself with activities. My period arrives by around 5:20 pm so I put on a pad. There's relief from the dull pain as soon as the period comes. I prepare for the next day and get dinner by 7 pm.
By 11 pm, I have a bath. The pad seems really full so I change it and I'm back to bed.
Day Two
I experience a new and different fatigue. In some way, this fatigue is always different every month. It's a Wednesday and there's no class so I'm grateful I get to just be in bed with my thoughts.
By 9 am, I get out of bed and check for stains. Not a thing, great. I have a shower and use the pad from the night before because it's not that stained; I have to make the best of my money.
I get breakfast by 10 am because I'm really hungry and I make it a point to get swallow with some protein because I know I only eat twice a day; I have to find a way to make sure I get nutrients somehow. I get back to my room and watch some Netflix series, probably cry a little. Around this time, the period blues really hit. I struggle with intrusive thoughts that are particularly heightened around this period so I distract myself with true crime podcasts, chores, work and ticking off activities from my to-do list for the rest of the day.
I don't feel as sleepy as the previous day but I sleep for an hour (from 2 pm to 3 pm). By 3 pm, the cravings for pastries hit and I fight it hard, I'm already nursing slight PMS acne and I'm petrified sugar would increase it so I drink lots of water instead.
I get a heavy dinner of spaghetti by 7 pm. At 11 pm, I get ready for bed. I take a bath and my pad is truly soaked, so I change into a new one and go to bed.
Day Three
I wake up feeling irritated by 7 am. I usually have really weird nightmares that happen during my period. I call them period dreams. I wake up with deep thoughts on how the Lovecraftian dream applies to my life. I get ready for my 8 am clinic, I'm a medical student, and this time, my pad is soaked. There's a little stain on the bed from how I slept so I clean it with detergent soap and a small towel. I eat before the clinic so I don't become hypoglycemic during the ward rounds.
I'm done with ward rounds by 12 pm and get back to my hostel. I sleep for about an hour and wake up to do some work and activities lined up for the day. My acne is dying down and leaving little scars so I'm glad the period is done with.
By 7 pm, I get a heavy dinner again to make up for the fact that I only eat twice a day. By 11 pm, I have a bath and my pad isn't that soaked so I resume them until the next day.
Day Four
I wake up by 7 am feeling somewhat normal compared to the past three days. Officially, my period ended the day before so I use a panty liner. I have an 8 am to 10 am class so I eat after.
I get back to the room by 10 am ish and focus on my 1-hour nap, activities for the day and sleeping. It's Friday so I prepare ahead for going out with friends. I don't typically go out so this is a once-in-a-blue-moon experience.
By 7 pm, I have dinner and by 12 am, I have a shower and get ready with friends. It's the end of my period so I record the flow on my Clue period App. I use another panty liner and cross my fingers and toes that unexpected flows don't happen.
Is there any other thing you’d like to add?
The most affected part of my life is my emotions. I get really hard on myself and even borderline depressed during my period. I’m grateful to learn how to control my emotions better so it doesn't affect others but staying away from sugar really helps.
Is there any period resource you would recommend?
The Clue App. I've been using it since I was 13. It makes periods seem less like a woman's deal and more of "hey, this just happens". It also helped me take note of my ovulation days and fertility window. That was really handy when I was sexually active.
We would like to highlight the work of Pad Up Africa, a non-governmental organization that is sensitizing adolescent girls and women on menstrual hygiene management and providing free sanitary products to Nigerians who experience period poverty. Since its inception in 2017, Pad Up Africa has campaigned for a law which provides free sanitary products in schools and has provided sanitary pads and training in making sustainable sanitary products for women and girls across Nigeria. Support their work and follow them on Instagram and LinkedIn.
Changes
6:53 pm on March 10, 2022: The location indicated in the diary was changed from Ajah, Lagos to LUTH, Lagos upon a request from the diarist.