Women of a reproductive age make up roughly 26% of the global population. Based on these statistics, it would be appropriate to say that a similar amount have periods – although this is in acknowledgement that not all women menstruate, and that not all those who menstruate are women. Despite this, menstruation, and related women’s health issues, exist as taboo subjects shrouded in misinformation, stigma, and shame.
At the very core of this construction of women’s health is how suppliers of sanitary items portray their products. A genre in their own right, advertisements for sanitary products have a distinct set of tropes including, but not limited to: blood seldom being red; models parading in dainty underwear, seemingly avoiding their bloated fate; and women’s ‘time of the month’ being characterised by sunshine and rainbows. Unless this is the experience of women across the globe, and that I am simply an anomaly, these advertisements create a fantasy world in which women are expected to keep calm and carry on every day of every month.
However, Bodyform’s latest advert, #wombstories, seeks to tackle the taboos associated with women’s health. Combining tongue in cheek animations with emotive ‘real-life’ scenes, Bodyform cover everything from menopause, infertility, first periods, miscarriage, IVF, endometriosis to the seldom seen notion of women not wanting children.
According to research conducted by the brand, 62% of people believe that women’s health is not talked about enough, with 40% going on to state that this negatively impacts their mental wellbeing. Such findings indicate why advertisements like #wombstories are so important: they are a reminder that nobody is ever alone. With 68% of women who had gone through endometriosis, menopause, fertility issues or miscarriage agreeing that talking about their experience had helped them cope, it is imperative that more influential sources actively open the discussion. By encouraging viewers to share their own #wombstories on social media, Bodyform show how feminism and social change is rooted in a united force. The more people engaging in conversation, the bigger the noise and the more amplified the chorus.
As much as I hate the mood swings, paranoia and cramps that come with having a period, the advertisement has forced me to acknowledge one huge home truth: my experience thus far hasn’t been that bad. If the most frustrated I’ve been with my womb is a spell of amenorrhea and a ruined pair of underwear every month, I should consider myself lucky. Confronted with clips of a woman with endometriosis writhing in agony on the bathroom floor and a couple hearing the excruciating news that they have miscarried, the advert, though tough at times, has made me acknowledge how fortunate I have been thus far. It is the first advert that has truly made me feel empowered to be a woman.
Though feminist advertising is not new, where Bodyform differs from existing campaigns is its honesty. Whereas brands such as L’Oreal have built up a persona in which liberation lies within consumerism – ‘because you’re worth it’, anyone? – Bodyform demonstrate how empowerment has nothing to do with consumption. Instead, liberation comes from within. It is the freedom to exert control over your body. To experience joy, frustration, sadness, and everything in between. But, most importantly, gender equality is about being able to express these experiences without ever feeling shunned by society.
By making women’s health issues hyper visible, and laying the complexities of the reproductive system bare, #wombstories is a lesson in female liberation. Though it may only be one advert, change is achieved incrementally. One day, I hope periods can be depicted without such mass discussion and debate: think of that period sex scene from I May Destroy You and the media circus around it. For us to get to that point, representations like this must begin trickling (no pun intended) into the mass media.
Words by Lucy Robinson