“Where do you use Stayfree,mumma?” asked my five-year old daughter, as I hurriedly dressed her that morning. We were at Gir and had to shortly leave for Gandhinagar and in the rush of packing and unpacking during our travels, the packet of sanitary pads must have been left unattended to and she probably would have seen it somewhere.

“I am not sure, I don’t use it,” I lied, and promptly changed the topic. What with the rush and the confusion of travelling and visiting new places, she soon forgot all about it. But for how long? Thanks to these brand wars, free media and marketing strategies, it is impossible to keep kids away from things that they may be a little too young to understand.

I remember that even as a three-year old, the first thing she picked up at the supermarket would be pads, ‘badalke’ as she would call it back then, referred to the tag-line of a famous sanitary napkin brand. Full marks go to these advertising guys, I daresay! Her brand awareness and her curiosity had made me so paranoid that I would rush to change the channel as soon as there was such an ad being broadcasted. I know I sound old-fashioned and stupid, but the fact is that given the nature of our society and our social conditioning, such reactions are almost a very part of our being – remember our parents doing the same when we were young?

Menstrupedia Comic

Soon there was another set of ads that I had to protect her against – condoms. I mean, what business does a little kid have in knowing of the flavours and the variety of condoms and why must she have to watch Sunny Leone pose seductively in different parts of a house? Although I do know that she probably won’t even get the context of the conversation, I really do not want to take a chance – that I am quite a prude can be one reason I suppose, and that I do not know what or how to explain these things to her, could well be another.

Being a blogger with Menstrupedia however, and given that my first ever article to be published in the newspapers almost fifteen years ago was on sex education, I should know better than to be embarrassed or sheepish about it. As a mother, I should be prepared to share with my daughter what was never shared with me, as should all other mothers of my generation. The sooner the kids know about things like periods, childbirth and maybe even sex, the cooler and less perplexed they will be about it.

I had told my daughter about how babies were made when my second daughter was due, and when children much older than her would say that their parents had ‘brought’ the baby from a hospital, she would correct them and point at my big belly to announce that babies are made inside the tummies of mummies.

This is when she was just three; she is soon going to be six and looking at the way children grow up these days – both physically and mentally, I know I need to sit her down and explain her body to her. Although I am yet to figure out what to tell her and how, I am sure I will have to do this sooner than later, lest she comes up to me and tells me all about it herself!

Author: Anubhuti

I am a thirty-four year old stay – at – home mother of two beautiful girls. I have worked as a training manager and a freelance training consultant in the past. When on a break from my children, I love to cook, read, travel and write. Writing is my latest passion and I blog here.  I am also a volunteer with Pratham books and conduct story-telling sessions for  underprivileged and street children. 

Editor: Divya Rosaline
Menstrupedia Comic Book helps young girls learn about menstruation easily in a fun way! Read it for FREE here

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