‘But we are not prepared’

†perdona‘, I’m sorry – ‘menstrual activist’ Paloma Alma (32) has to get something off his chest. The conversation is about the planned menstrual leave in Spain and the criticism that women would be given a few days off per month. ‘There are men with neck complaints, with back problems, who are stressed or have mental problems. Then surely there is no one who questions their right to sick leave, often for months?’

The whole of Spain seems to have an opinion about menstruation for the past week, a subject that normally hardly comes up, and certainly not in such a tone that strange ears can listen in. The reason is the proposal of the left-wing government to give women with severe menstrual pain the right to sick leave. Spain would thus become the first European country with such a ‘menstrual leave’, which was previously introduced in Indonesia and Zambia, among others.

On Tuesday, the Council of Ministers in Madrid gave the green light for the leave, which still has to be approved by parliament. The proposal, part of an amendment to a broad women’s rights law (see inset), will give women the right to stay at home on all days on which they are unable to work due to their menstrual period. Whether this is the case must be determined by a doctor. The leave will be paid in full by the state to prevent companies from hiring fewer women for fear that they will lose an employee and her salary every month.

‘Also leave for painful testicles’

But the initiative attracts fire. One of the objections is that the leave would create a new stigma for women. Companies ‘are already asking us if we want to become mothers’, a female director of the large trade union UGT responded to Euronews† “Will the next step be that they ask us if we’re in pain when we’re on our period?”

Other critics question the necessity. Isabel Ayuso, the right-wing regional president of Madrid, said she prefers to spend her time on “real problems”. Meanwhile, the contribution of a journalist on the conservative radio station Cope, who said that there should now be a furlough for men with ‘inflammation of the testicles’, reflects the tone of the social media debate, especially among male opponents.

These are statements that illustrate the lack of knowledge and understanding about menstrual pain in society, says Paloma Alma, a regular voice in the menstrual debate in Spain. While scientific research is sparse and findings vary widely, it’s clear that more than half of women experience monthly pain during menstruation, according to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. For 5 to 20 percent, the cramps are so severe that they get in the way of daily life.

“But many doctors are not well informed and do not know how to make a correct diagnosis,” says Alma in her small office in Madrid. The white shirt under her bright red jacket is bulging; she is six months pregnant. “And you as a woman have been told your whole life that period pain is normal. So you just assume you’ll just have to put up with it.’

‘Society is not prepared’

To combat that lack of knowledge in women, Alma started teaching menstruation classes in 2016. What started as a chat with friends in a bar in Madrid grew into Cyclo, a company that offers women courses to understand their own menstrual cycle and sells sustainable care products such as the menstrual cup (a reusable cup that collects the blood) and sanitary pads made of organic cotton. At the end of 2020 she wrote a book about it, also called Cyclo†

Her involvement stems from her own past, she says. From her early teens she suffered from vaginal infections and other health problems. No gynecologist could help her. “Ten years after my first period, I was desperate.” She decided to try the hitherto unknown menstrual cup. Suddenly her symptoms disappeared. “That’s when I realized I was allergic to the pads and tampons I was using.”

In her last job before Cyclo, as a receptionist at a law firm, there had been “no place” to discuss her period pain. “I’ve never had excruciating pain, but if I had been entitled to leave, I might have taken advantage of it at certain times.” For example, most women will rarely stay at home if the leave actually comes, she thinks. And for the rest: ‘What good is it as a company if a woman does come, but can’t stand it?’

She applauds the government’s plans, yet she fears that ‘society is not quite prepared for it’. There is currently no national program for menstrual lessons in education. And how should the doctors who cannot make a diagnosis now, be able to do so in the future as a condition for the leave? “It’s not that this plan is going too far,” Alma says, “but I do think it misses some very important points.”