November 9, 2021
Article By Vangard
Periods shouldn’t be embarrassing, and more people, especially dads with daughters navigating this important time in their lives, should understand menstruation. That’s the goal of “The Period Genie,” a new 5-minute animated short film from the creators of the book The Period Passport: Conquering Period Poverty.
Period literacy is crucial. On average, women and girls menstruate for 5 days per month and doctors think your period should be a fifth vital sign. The new animated short discusses the daily conversation on sexual health, deftly communicating the often-confusing world of menstruation while explaining the importance of understanding periods in a relatable way.
“Our biology doesn’t always send an advanced warning when we’re about to start menstruating, which often means we need to stop whatever we’re doing and deal with a period. Often periods arrive at inconvenient times,” Garcia said in a statement “Having convenient and free access to these products means our period won’t prevent us from being productive members of society and would alleviate the anxiety of trying to find a product when out in public.” Cristina Garcia ‘Period Princess’ was celebrated in their debut book as one of the changemakers in the Period space.
“We want to tell a great story on better period management in a format that appeals to dads and daughters and that the current generation understands,” says Chaste Christopher Inegbedion, creator of “The Period Genie,” co-author of The Period Passport and Chief Period Officer of healthcare company Sanicle.
“The Period Genie” is based on The Period Passport, a unique work from Inegbedion and Yetunde Oluwafunmilayo Tola, a registered nurse and midwife currently completing her doctoral studies. The Period Passport is already highly regarded as the quintessential self-help guide to understanding all there is to know about periods. It also addresses how, with a greater emphasis on education, society could soon eradicate the financial barriers, stigma, and poor education around menstrual cycles, otherwise known as Period Poverty, that have led to inadequate access to menstrual hygiene products and education for hundreds of millions of women around the world. Watch the clips for The Period Passport here.
With “The Period Genie,” the storytellers hope to share a side of the issues tackled in The Period Passport that hasn’t yet been heard or seen. “Maybe it’s because our culture teaches us from a young age to be discreet about the ‘Time of the Month,’ but periods have always been a source of excruciating embarrassment for teenage girls, some grown women and the majority of men,” says Sanicle CEO Roxanne Stewart. The animated short format will better appeal to dads who want to help their daughters navigate menstruation with understanding and love.
“One of the many virtues of this book is to move beyond a sterile debate between advocates of Dads with Daughters and its even relatable for someone like the actor Sylvester Stallone – famous for the Rocky and Rambo franchises – and his three daughters and those who regard Period Poverty as a myth that has never existed,” added Tosin Oni, the CTO of Sanicle. “If you want a short, readable guide to a field you feel you need to know more about, and an argument to react to as well, then this is the book for you.”
The Period Genie also has a game on Playstore primarily aimed at prepubescent children, but it may be an instructive experience for anybody who wants to learn more about the human body. Dads and daughters are invited to join in the fun.
The Period Genie Game attempts to create a stigma-free atmosphere by encouraging young people to speak terms like “ovulation” and “period.”