It is probably one of our least favorite subjects, feelings and days of the month; our period. But before you frown, today is Menstrual Hygiene Day, and therefore we will look at our periods in a positive way by celebrating one of the brands making the most out of that bloody period – pun intended —> Yoni.care.

Let´s Talk About Menstrual Hygiene!

First of all, let´s talk about Menstrual Hygiene. Today aims to break the taboos around menstruation. Additionally, it emphasizes the importance of the aspects necessary for girls and women all around the world to have a hygienic menstruation, such as pads, tampons and menstruation cups, but also privacy and means to wash. Our periods are celebrated, honored and fought for on the 28th of May, and there is a reason for that day. May is the fifth month of the year, and for most women, their period lasts about five days. And the 28th symbolizes our menstrual cycle, which usually consists of 28 days.

About Yoni | Amsterdam

One of the brands standing up for our menstruation is the Dutch brand Yoni. Their mission is ‘Rethinking periods’. When one of the founders got the advice to use organic tampons and pads, she found out that these were not that easy to find. On the contrary, they found out that in a lot of sanitary products synthetic materials, plastics and perfume can be found. On top of that, they found out that there were no rules regarding the contents of sanitary items. That is why they decided to set up their own toxic-free sanitary products brand. And not just one, but a brand characterized by beautiful design – try to find the abstract vagina on their packaging and in their logo –, the coolest taboo-breaking visuals and, probably most important, lovely toxic-free products made out of biological cotton. And extra sustainable, their products are biodegradable!

Educating Young Girls

As Menstrual Hygiene Day 2017 focuses on education about they focused on education for young girls. Which is incredibly important because, as Yoni found out, in the Netherlands 19% of girls getting their periods didn’t receive any information beforehand about what is going to happen. In India, but also in Italy, this is even 39%. Therefore Yoni created a little booklet for all young girls which explains how often you need to change their tampons or pads, what happens in your body when you have your period and how your hormones can react to this.

Let´s Open Up

And open as they are, they also tell about their own first-period experiences. Next to sharing the same frustration about having their period, they did experience their first period quite differently.

Founder Wendelien:

“I was 12 years old when my mother told me that ‘there would be some blood with my pee one day’ and that that would be very normal. One morning I woke up with a lot of blood in my underwear, I was a little shocked. My mom didn’t tell me that it would be so much blood and that it could also happen at night. When I got over my shock, I learned about pads, tampons and panty liners. But when I found out that the bleeding would keep going for a few days I got angry… Every month again?!”

Founder Mariah:
“I remember walking around the playground at school with pads in my bag, I felt so cool. However, I did keep my news for myself, except a few of my best friends. But that, keeping your period to yourself, is not what we’re doing today. Today we’re praising periods!”

Chapeau Yoni, for being the first brand to make an unwanted product into a desirable well-designed – and sustainable toxic-free – product. Also check out their Instagram account @yoni.care, which is as pleasing to the eye as our periods can be painful. And to honor Yoni’s mission: being open about menstruation and breaking the taboos surrounding our periods, I will admit that while writing this article there actually was a Yoni product down there. Get your products, too. Yoni ships to The Netherlands, Germany, UK, and Belgium.

Photos: Yoni

This article is supported by Yoni.