Menstrual issues: how adolescent schoolgirls in the Kibera slums of Kenya negotiate their experiences with menstruation

Abstract

Adolescence is a crucial stage in life that is often challenging to girls because of the physiological and psychological changes they undergo. These challenges are compounded in places such as the Kibera slums by the socioeconomic implications of the girls’ home environment, an informal settlement. The meanings and interpretations of menstruation were explored from the point of view of 18 girls aged 15–17 years. Participants were selected from a mixed-gender day school in Kibera and purposively sampled from the Form Three class. Data were generated from focus-group discussions and individual interviews. The girls’ views of menstruation were governed by societal and cultural norms, as well as menstrual taboos, and their teachers were insensitive to their menstruation-related problems in school. Moreover, they felt isolated or excluded from social spaces in and outside of school because of social norms and cultural taboos. The girls also reported challenges accessing sanitary provisions. Results of this study can be used to inform policy, parental and other stakeholders’ practices in the education system, and ways to help girls to develop healthy identities and attitudes about themselves, their bodies, and their society.