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It is not uncommon to hear every other girl having a hard time owing to those special 5-6 days in a month. When Mother Nature announces with pomp and glory that a girl is not having a baby, she gifts her with blood-red jewels except that these are in the form of period blood clots that cause stomach cramps. These shoot right up to your brain and make it living hell for you.
Well, there are also times when this monthly debacle can actually steel one’s nerves like nothing else can.
So it was a time (February 2021) when my back ached owing to a 25-kg rucksack weighing down on my shoulders and my vision was hazy due to all the snow around (had snow goggles on for protection against snow blindness). My trek mates were treading up the same trail, facing the same ordeals. But my cramps and discomfort down there was an added cherry (a pretty rotten one) on top.
En route to Dzongri top (Sikkim), we were trekking from Yuksom to Tshoka (16 km long trail) that day. The steep path was really taking a toll on our stamina and the slippery snow which greeted us mid-way had us taking every step carefully. It was not long until on each step the pain from my knee jerked up to my stomach.
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The journey was long. Nightfall came and still two kilometers uphill lay before us. The dizziness struck about then when flashlights were zooming around the pitch black forest. I felt myself swaying to one side when a trek mate came and caught me. One of the guides offered to carry my sack, but I refused. I could feel the blood trickling down my thighs.
Something told me I need to see this through myself. When I was offered help, the thought of yielding to my period pain struck me sooner than my dwindling stamina. I tightened the shoulder straps and held the rucksack firmly to my back. I did have to take the hand of a trek mate to stop from falling, but when I reached Tshoka, it was all worth it.
My period pain could not weaken me. Period.
As I finished washing my menstrual cup and cleaning up my stains, I waited patiently until I could join the giggles and jokes audible from the trekkers’ hut. Once I was done, I rushed back and stayed up with my trekmates who were busy cooking, ignoring all the pain and exhaustion of a tiring trek.
As I chimed in with my friends and added to the noise and laughter, I knew that I was a tad bit stronger due to my period. I guess tough challenges test your wit and grit to turn you into a stronger and wiser person.
Sources: Blogger’s own views
Image sources: Blogger’s own photography
Feature Image designed by Saudamini Seth
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This post is tagged under: #PeriodEmoji, celebrating periods, celebration of periods, bloggers fight it out over celebration of periods, period pain, trekking, period while trekking, period makes you stronger, dzongri trek, sikkim, trekking girls, trekking women, period pain stopper, normalize menstruation, Free The Menstruation, menstrual cups, Himalayas
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