A bold and revolutionary perspective on the science and cultural history of menstruation
Menstruation is something half the world does for a week at a time for months and years on end
yet it remains largely misunderstood. Scientists once thought of an individual’s period as
useless and some doctors still believe it’s unsafe for a menstruating person to swim in the
ocean wearing a tampon. Period counters the false theories that have long defined the study of
the uterus exposing the eugenic history of gynecology while providing an intersectional
feminist perspective on menstruation science. Blending interviews and personal experience with
engaging stories from her own pioneering research Kate Clancy challenges a host of myths and
false assumptions. There is no such a thing as a normal” menstrual cycle. In fact menstrual
cycles are incredibly variable and highly responsive to environmental and psychological
stressors. Clancy takes up a host of timely issues surrounding menstruation from bodily
autonomy menstrual hygiene and the COVID-19 vaccine to the ways racism sexism and medical
betrayal warp public perceptions of menstruation and erase it from public life. Offering a
revelatory new perspective on one of the most captivating biological processes in the human
body Period will change the way you think about the past present and future of periods.
