Getting your period at a festival is no fun. This is evident from a poll at Pukkelpop. Morgan Litten, founder of Guud Woman and pioneer in menstrual health, and midwife Uwe Porters strolled with eye-catching signs on the lawn and created much appreciation. “We got a lot of responses.”
Morgane Leten and Uwe Porters went Pukkelpop this weekend with large cardboard banners with eye-catching quotes. In this way they wanted to engage in open conversations with festival-goers.
“We got a lot of feedback,” says Uwe Porters. “People came to us spontaneously, to take pictures or chat. General implication: many women are disappointed. One of them literally said: ‘Festival toilets are pathetic.’ to leaving tampons and sanitary pads lying around.”
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“It’s also not easy to wash your hands, because there is often no soap and the paper towels are not replenished. Not to mention that you can clean the menstrual cup. That’s really not an option with the current sinks. You have to have a high level of ‘je m’en.” fous” for that”.
Many women go through the pill as an emergency solution
We also noticed that girls and women keep taking birth control pills when they go to a festival, so that they don’t get their period. There were even those who said: “I usually don’t use contraceptives, but when summer starts, I take a pill. Then I can do it if necessary.
Morgane and Uwe think it’s an asset that you can get tampons and sanitary pads at the first aid stand. “Although there are many people in this field who are not aware of this. This is a pity, because if they drop out or suddenly get their bases, this could be useful.”
The aim of our work is not to crush Pukkelpop and other festivals
Morgan Litten
The duo has addressed men, too, and they can learn a thing or two about your period. For example, no man can answer the question: what is the abbreviation PMS? “Premenstrual syndrome (PMS) is defined as the monthly onset of complaints, such as fatigue, mood swings, hormonal acne, cramps, bloating, sore breasts, and headaches…. These complaints occur in more than 90 percent of people who are menstruating.”
The dream: a separate room for washing menstrual cups
Morgan: “The goal of our campaign isn’t to crush Pukkelpop and other festivals. We especially wanted to break taboos around menstruation. And we wanted to hear from the festival-goers themselves: What could be done better?”
Tampons and sanitary napkins are uncomfortable, especially when it’s hot like this past weekend
you porters
“The dream is that one day there will be a station where women can comfortably change their underwear or where they can wash their menstrual cups,” Morgan and Oye say. “Nowadays there is already a separate room where women can breastfeed and pump. Surely a similar initiative providing relief to menstruating women should also be possible?”
In the meantime, tampons and pads remain an appropriate option. “Although I personally don’t find it very comfortable, especially when it’s hot like last weekend,” says Oye. “I prefer a menstrual cup that you clean up and insert in the morning, and menstrual pants as a backup. You can also take a second slip with you and a fresh bag to keep the first slip in.”
