When 9-Year-Olds Whisper About Periods - Early Puberty
And why it shook me as a mother and as a founder building menstrual health solutions..
Yesterday, I went to a birthday party.
Just another mother-duty afternoon balloons, confetti, kids running around, the chaos that somehow feels comforting.
But in the middle of all the noise, something quiet caught my attention.
Two mothers stood in a corner, speaking in hushed voices, almost whispering. They were discussing periods.
Periods… for 9 and 10-year-old girls.
For a moment, it jolted me.
Not because the topic was unfamiliar I have spent years building a menstrual health brand.
But because I wasn’t prepared to hear it in a setting filled with children who haven’t even learned long division yet.
As a mother, I felt a knot in my chest.
As a woman, I felt empathy, almost grief.
As someone who works in menstrual health every single day, I felt a rush of urgency I wasn’t expecting.
The New Reality We Don’t Talk About
Girls today are hitting puberty earlier than ever before. It’s not rare anymore for menstruation to begin at 9, even 8 in some cases.
We still expect children to manage something even many adults struggle to talk about openly.
A 9-year-old is still learning:
how to pack their school bag
how to tell time
how to tie their hair
how to deal with friendship fights
And suddenly, she’s expected to understand:
why she’s bleeding
how to wear a pad
when to change it
how to avoid stains
how to hide her fear
how to act normal in school
how to carry a secret she didn’t ask for
It’s too much.
Way Way too much.
Childhood Interrupted
Periods at that age are not just a physical event.
They’re an emotional rupture.
Imagine a little girl sitting in a classroom, feeling something strange in her underwear… but she’s too afraid to tell her teacher.
Imagine her trying to walk carefully so the pad doesn’t shift.
Imagine her hiding a stain with her school notebook.
Imagine her panicking during PT class.
Imagine her crying silently because she thinks she has done something wrong.
This is the honest, unfiltered reality for so many little girls but no one wants to talk about it.
And that silence is the heaviest part.
Why Are We Expecting Children To Be Adults?
At 9, children are supposed to be thinking about:
homework
pencils
swings
birthday gifts
dance practice
Not:
“Which pad should I use?”
“Will someone laugh if I leak?”
“Why is my body betraying me?”
“Am I dirty?”
“Is something wrong with me?”
We might not say these questions aloud, but girls feel them deeply.
We spend so much time teaching kids how to read and write, but not enough time teaching them how to understand their bodies.
And that needs to change.
Mothers Carry a Silent Guilt
Listening to those women at the party made me realise something else:
Most mothers don’t know when to start the conversation.
Or how to start it.
Or what exactly to say, without scaring their daughters.
We want to protect them…
But we also want to prepare them.
And finding that balance is terrifying.
No one gave us a guidebook.
We are building this bridge while walking on it.
This Moment Made My Work Feel Even More Personal
I build a brand that focuses on menstrual health, sustainable pads, flushable technology, and dignity.
But yesterday reminded me of something much deeper:
We are also building courage.
Safety.
Understanding.
And a world where a girl doesn’t have to feel alone at nine.
Periods are natural.
Growing up is natural.
But the fear, confusion, and shame around them?
Those are entirely man-made.
And they are changeable.
What Young Girls Need Today
Not fancy products.
Not whispered warnings.
Not embarrassment.
They need:
- simple, honest explanations
- tools made for their small bodies
- emotional reassurance
- teachers who understand
- homes where periods are normal conversation
- safe bathrooms in schools
- pads they can manage easily
- and a world that doesn’t punish them for bleeding
This is not a girl’s problem.
It’s a society’s responsibility.
A Birthday Party Changed Me
As I drove back home that day, I felt the weight of what I had heard.
Two mothers whispering about their daughters’ periods.
Whispering as if it was something to hide.
But I know this:
Little girls shouldn’t have to whisper.
Mothers shouldn’t have to whisper.
And periods should never be a source of fear.
That small moment, at a simple birthday party, reignited something powerful in me.
A reminder of why Flawsome exists.
Not just to innovate sustainable products.
But to make periods easier, kinder, and more understood even for the youngest among us.
Because if a 9-year-old is brave enough to bleed, we must be brave enough to speak.