My first period: Mila’s story

I first got my period when I was 11 on holiday in Scotland at my cousin’s house. I was way too scared to tell my mum. I had stomach aches so I went to the toilet and was like ‘holy s**t’. It wasn’t like ‘I’m a woman’, for some reason I thought you’d have a party or something. I was just really scared and confused, I looked in the cupboard and just used toilet roll. I was wearing shorts and we were on a walk up this Scottish mountain. I get really heavy periods with fevers and stuff. On the walk I was just thinking ‘oh God’. After that we went to a water park and my mum realised there was something up. Nothing happened that was embarrassing she just noticed I was uncomfortable.

I was just really scared and confused, I looked in the cupboard and just used toilet roll”

It got progressively worse throughout the years. I get really ill on my period, I can still go to school, but I just feel like I have the flu. I recently went on the pill because of my acne and it hasn’t helped my period at all.

When I first used a tampon it was really uncomfortable. In school they never taught you that you need to put it all the way in so I didn’t do it right. I had to go to a street dance class that lasted 6 hours and it was falling out. I didn’t really know what to do when it first came out. They talk about it in primary school but they just put the tampon in this blue liquid so when it came I was like ‘why isn’t it blue?’

Why isn’t it blue?”

They don’t talk about all the side effects that can come with it like cramps and things. I get really badly depressed a week before my period and it’s scary because I think I’m depressed then my period comes and I’m like ‘ah, that’s why’. Throughout my period I feel quite depressed as well so it takes a lot out of my month. I get really bad acne as well and just feel insecure. They don’t teach you that this is normal. I think in primary school they don’t think you’re going to get your period anytime soon so they brush over it but they need to consider the early bloomers.

I was quite an early bloomer. I was one of the first to wear a training bra. It was scary because there is the whole ‘becoming a woman’ thing around it. I was just thinking what the f*k I can get pregnant now? I’m 11!!

*Note: you can get pregnant before you have your first period as you may have already started to release eggs. Please read the periods page for further information.