Livvi - Founder:
I'm Livvi (she/her) I'm 29 and I'm a secondary teacher just outside of Glasgow. I founded Bloody Amazing because of my own experience. I had extremely painful and heavy periods growing up and never learned in school that this could happen, what I was experiencing wasn't normal and what to do about it. The more I spoke to other people with periods, I learned that everyone else had pretty much the same experience. No idea what a period is, no idea why it happens, no idea what products are best to use and no idea if their symptoms and complaints are normal or something to worry about
We. Don't. Talk. About. This. Enough.
This means people with periods can sometimes leave school without the knowledge and language about their bodies. Which means, if something goes wrong with their cycle - like it does for around 1 in 9 people with periods across the world, they are less likely to ask for help and more likely to be dismissed. I want periods to be normalised. I want people to talk about them and I don't want people to suffer needlessly without access to diagnosis and treatment options, like I did for most of my life because I didn't have the knowledge and language to advocate for myself.
Jen: Director:
My name is Jen and, for the past 15 years, I’ve been a secondary teacher. I am also a qualified English language teacher and currently volunteering to teach English to refugees and asylum seekers who wish to settle in Scotland.
Since starting Bloody Amazing I have come across young people who have never been taught about menstrual health. I would like to support parents who feel anxious about this topic to empower them with knowledge and language to speak to their children with confidence and, in doing so, this will help remove the stigma and shame that still surrounds the subject of menstrual health.
It was important to me that my children were educated about menstrual health from a young age. It wasn’t something I consciously introduced as a topic of conversation. Menstrual health is relevant all the time, so they have grown up in a house where menstrual health is part of our normal, daily conversations and where they have always known the correct names for body parts, symptoms and conditions.
I have a particular interest in supporting trans boys and non-binary people as menstruating can be a traumatising experience for those who do not identify as female, but who were assigned female at birth.
I am passionate about helping young people to understand their bodies, their symptoms and giving them the confidence to seek support if they feel something is wrong in terms of their menstrual health.
Rachel - BA Member:
My name is Rachel (she/her). I'm a secondary Modern Studies teacher and I work with ASN learners. Like so many others, I suffer from painful periods. I have missed both school and work due the intensity and longevity of my pain. As a teenager and young adult, I felt my pain was quickly dismissed as "one of those things". I had to push the issue. I underwent a laparoscopy- this is a surgical procedure where a small scope is inserted into the abdomen- it is the quickest way to diagnose endometriosis/ polycystic ovaries.
They did not find anything - it's always a possibility that surgeons may not find anything. I then became part of a clinical trial for women; where I had to rate my pain score before and after taking medication they had prescribed. However, some people were given placebos. It was abundantly clear what was being investigated: is the pain physical or emotional?
I did not gain wisdom or knowledge from this study-if anything it confirmed my beliefs that menstrual health is incredibly under researched, underfunded and not taken seriously. Now, it is a case of pain management for me. I often joke to my friends that I have one good week in a month (where I am available for birthdays, weddings and bar mitzvahs!). The week before my period, the PMS is awful. The week of my period is basically a write off. The week after my period my body is recovering and my stomach is very sensitive.
In my current role, the lack of education on periods astounds and worries me. Every individual who menstruates has the right to know what is happening to their body, the right to be educated, the right to access period products that meet their needs and know where to seek help, should they need it. I look forward to meeting new people, listening to their experiences and delivering fantastic resources which have been created with great care and respect.