Men queued up in Limburg today to experience what women go through when they experience menstrual pains. Men were given this unique opportunity in a hospital in Genk.
A taboo often still surrounds menstrual pains and women often shy away from sharing what they are going through with friends, relatives and colleagues.
At the Genk hospital men got special patches attached to their stomach and were subjected to electric shocks intended to stimulate menstrual pains.
Daan experiences menstrual pains for the first time. It’s so painful he bites his hand to deflect the pain and his voice moves up a level: “Does it feel like this every time? And how long does it last” he asks his female colleagues, who look on amused.
Genk is the first Flemish city to offer the Men-strual Challenge. “The idea is to remove the taboo” says alderman Nagels. “We already distribute menstrual equipment in schools but wanted to go further. We want people to show understanding to women who are menstruating. Research shows that half of all girls and women aged between 14 and 21 are ashamed about menstruation, even though it is a normal, natural development”.
Samir Ahmidouche also did the test . He said it hurt like hell: “I wanted to see if it was as painful as they said. I can tell you it is, even though I only experienced the pain volume at 10%. In future I’ll take greater account of my wife when she is menstruating”.