This manual has been designed in consultation with visually impaired women and girls to break the silence on menstruation, provide spaces for dialogue and discussion, increased understanding and information.
The needs and aspirations of visually impaired women are the same as women everywhere: to talk about their bodies and understand them better; to know the menstrual cycle, its purpose and management and to replace shame and silence with confidence, pride and dignity.
Water, sanitation and hygiene facilities often ignore the very real and practical needs of women and girls, thereby compounding the deep psychosocial stress they experience as they try and manage their monthly periods with dignity.
This reality is much more challenging for a young blind girl in a remote village confronting her first periods at home, at school or in a marketplace. Women and girls are not a homogenous group. Nor are women and girls with specific impairments or age-related illnesses. They reflect the full diversity of the human race with changing needs as they journey across the human life course.
