Let’s start with MenarcheDefinition:Menarche is when menstruation starts. On average it occurs at the age of 13 though this age varies per person.Menarche is a sign of adulthood. Menstruation is most commonly known for its role in procreation but it is also an important process to keep the uterus healthy and to regulate hormones (the endoctrine system). Uterus health is important for overall health and well-being.
As you read this think about your daughter’s and nieces Indicators/Body Signs:The first menstrual cycle is the first chance to give the uterus a health checkup and ensure that the menstruator will have a healthy pain-free relationship with their uterus and cycle.Medical Diagnosis and Treatment:Menarche is acknowledged in western medicine but there are not any recommendations, check-ups or treatments for this time.Birth control may be prescribed for menstrual pain or acne.
Traditional Asian Medicine / Acupuncture:In Traditional Chinese Medicine Menarche is seen as the First Golden Opportunity – a chance to impact the health of the entire life cycle. It is a time to care for and nourish the body to the utmost extent possible
African Menarche is both a biological and social marker of femaleness, with menarche rituals as a means of “turning” girls into women. It provides the opportunity for girls to develop a sense of their individual, relational, and collective responsibilities as women.The rituals instruct young women in the rules of decent female behavior such as exhibiting self-control, downcasting the eyes, and displaying respect to men and elders.In some countries especially rural areas formal initiations are practice by sending the girls to camps the ceremony serves to inform the community of the girl’s new status as woman. most mothers do not talk about sensitive issues [with their children]. Whether within the confines of formal or informal menarche rituals, mothers rarely take part in their own daughters’ rite of passage. The two most common sources of knowledge are grandmothers and aunts with older sisters and other females from the community also routinely stepping into assist girls at menarche.
During the rituals elders come and they assign some girls, older girls to teach the younger girls to start pulling the labia. Pulling of the labia. They start tell the young women, “Now you have to pull these labia’s in preparation for a man. If you don’t have this, then you have problems in your marriage. The man is going to do such a thing if he doesn’t find this on your private parts,” from my explanation menarche is an important ritual in African culture.This includes donning new clothes and undergoing a series of cleansing rituals that establish virginity. Its a period of education for womanhood that takes place in confinement with older women, who teach dancing and domestic arts. In another stage, the girls don glass beads, dance, and reenter their families and society as adult women.
Common challenges experienced with menarche Getting your period can be an overwhelming and confusing experience. But it can be especially distressing for girls if a period comes as a surprise or is surrounded by secrecy and shame. A bad experience with a first period can shape a girls’ perspective of her body for years to come. It can make her feel isolated, stop her from asking for help, and from understanding how to manage her periods hygienically. This can lead to infections, worry and upset. I know that for many parents, raising the topic of periods can feel stressful. You’re not alone. Early menarche is associated with physical and psychosocial problems such as anxiety/depression, substance use, suicidal behavior,irregular menstruation, excessive bleeding, and dysmenorrhea, also been associated with serious ill-health including reproductive and urinary tracts infections ,concentration in class, participation in sports, socialization with friends, test-taking skills, and homework task performance school absenteeism and a decrease in academic performance, participation in sporting activities, and socialization with friends. When they experience it for the first time. Some adolescent girls tend to hide and struggle with it for some time, and when they are unable to handle it, they resort to peers for assistance.
How Mambokadzi can help parents and young women
We work with the parent or guardian outlining the information they would like their child to receive from hygiene,morals,adolescent guidance,changing body,hormones and everything in between in a safe environment Step 1MENARCHE PREPA Peristeam Hydrotherapist works with your teen before menstruation starts.This program is recommended to help prepare youth for a healthy menstrual cycle over their lifetime. It consists of 6 Lessons that someone should know when they start their period. This program is recommended at the age of 11 or older but can be started earlier as well.POST-PERIOD EVALUATIONAfter the first menstruation, a consultation with a Peristeam Hydrotherapist should take place in order to do a menstrual cycle analysis to make sure there are not any menstrual cycle imbalances or unnecessary negative side effects. If there are any imbalances Mambokadzi will make a steam plan, herbs and schedule to target them. Steam therapists are also able to help in the following situations:EARLY MENARCHESteaming can be very helpful in the case of early menarche – age 10 or younger to naturally suppress the period.LATE MENARCHESteaming can also be helpful in bringing on the start of menarche in cases of late menarche onset (age 14 or older).OTHER CONCERNSSteaming is also used in the case of infections, labial adhesion, vaginal discharge, cysts, bumps and other such matters that sometimes youth deal with.Steam Therapy:Steaming is recommended as a way to support menarche. Monthly steaming is recommended starting at the age of 12 and on (or earlier if the menarche starts before then). Once menstruation starts, steaming should be done at the conclusion of every period as a pleasant way to transition back to normal routine and also as a preventative care practice to ensure that the uterus had a full cleanse.This concludes the lesson on menarche. Please feel free to add your contributions,experiences and questions