9 Myths and Misconceptions About Menstruation, Debunked

There are a lot of myths and misunderstandings about menstruation. But it’s important to parse out what’s true and what’s a lie.

Below, we debunk some of the biggest ones, as adapted from the above episode of Misconceptions on YouTube. 

1. Misconception: Menstruating is dirty.
2. Misconception: Menstrual blood attracts sharks and bears.
3. Misconception: You can’t swim or workout while menstruating.
4. Misconception: It’s impossible to get pregnant while menstruating.
5. Misconception: Getting your period means you’ve ovulated.
6. Misconception: Excruciating cramps and other debilitating symptoms are normal.
7. Misconception: Using a tampon can “take someone’s virginity.” 
8. Misconception: Menstruation is a sign of womanhood
9. Misconception: Menstruation is always necessary.

Misconception: Menstruating is dirty.

Pliny the Elder had some … interesting ideas about menstruation. He wrote that period blood has several “monstrous effects,” including ruining crops, spoiling new wine, causing gardens to shrivel, and killing the bees. The Roman philosopher is far from the only person to deem menstrual blood particularly unclean or outright dangerous. The Bible says menstruating women and anything they touch is unclean. Even today, people are encouraged to hide their sanitary products and, in some parts of the world, are even kept home from school and isolated in special huts while on their periods due to the myth that someone who’s menstruating is dirty. 

But there is nothing uniquely dirty or dangerous about menstruation. It’s true that it’s more than just blood—there’s also endometrial lining and vaginal secretions in the mix—but there’s nothing about this combination of bodily fluids that makes it act like some sort of super crop and bee killing weapon. As long as a menstruating person is practicing proper hygiene, they’re no more unclean than anyone else. 

Misconception: Menstrual blood attracts sharks and bears.

It’s true that sharks can detect blood in the water—including menstrual blood. But despite what menstruating beachgoers may have heard, there’s absolutely zero evidence that being on your period while swimming in the ocean will attract sharks. According to the Florida Museum of Natural History’s International Shark Attack File, more than 80 percent of known shark attacks have happened to men. 

Bears are also no more likely to find and attack someone who is menstruating. It’s believed that myth got started due to one incident in 1967, when two women were attacked by grizzlies in Glacier National Park on the same night—and one of the women happened to be on her period. But there’s no conclusive evidence to back up the claim that bears seek out menstruating people. And though one study did suggest that polar bears may be more attracted to menstrual blood over “regular” blood, the fact is that no one wants to encounter a polar bear in the wild, regardless of whether they’re menstruating or not. 

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Misconception: You can’t swim or workout while menstruating.

There’s a myth that swimming can cause periods to stop, but this is utterly untrue. It’s also untrue that  menstrual blood will contaminate a swimming pool. There’s no reason you can’t swim when you’re on your period. As long as you’re using a tampon or menstrual cup—not a sanitary pad—while in the water, you’re good to go. 

It’s also completely safe to workout while menstruating. Some may feel more fatigued while on their period and opt to skip their regular workouts, which is totally fine. But there’s no harm to sticking with your usual workout routine while on your period. In fact, exercise may even help boost your mood and relieve symptoms like cramps.

Misconception: It’s impossible to get pregnant while menstruating.

Menstruation is not nature’s birth control. Though it is unlikely that you’ll get pregnant on your period, it isn’t impossible. It all comes down to when ovulation occurs. Someone with an average 28-day cycle will likely ovulate around day 14, which would be roughly around a week or so after their period ends. But a person with a shorter cycle will probably ovulate earlier. And sperm can live inside the body for up to five days—so if someone with a shorter cycle has unprotected sex toward the end of their period and ovulates four or five days later, there’s still a chance one of those swimmers will reach and fertilize the egg. 

Misconception: Getting your period means you’ve ovulated.

It’s typical to get your period anywhere from 12 to 16 days after ovulation. But this isn’t always the case. Someone with a hormone imbalance like polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), who has perimenopause, is severely under or overweight, or who is under a large amount of stress, among other conditions, may bleed without actually ovulating. This is called an “anovulatory cycle.” The “period” experienced during an anovulatory cycle is not true menstruation, but is instead referred to as abnormal uterine bleeding. According to the Cleveland Clinic, anovulation is responsible for around 30 percent of infertility cases. 

Misconception: Excruciating cramps and other debilitating symptoms are normal.

Menstruation-related pain is often dismissed, even by doctors. But it isn’t normal to have severe pain or heavy bleeding during a period. Mild or moderate cramps are considered normal. However, camping that is so painful it limits someone’s ability to function normally is not something to be dismissed, and may actually be a sign of endometriosis or another health condition. 

Someone who soaks through a sanitary product within two hours, passes heavy clots, and bleeds for more than seven days may have an underlying bleeding disorder. Heavy menstrual bleeding, which is called “menorrhagia,” can also be managed with medical help. 

Severe premenstrual symptoms, or PMS, is no joking matter either. It’s normal to have mood swings or otherwise feel the effects of hormones changing as your period approaches. If those pre-period symptoms are so severe they impact a person’s quality of life, though, they may actually be suffering from premenstrual dysphoric disorder. 

Misconception: Using a tampon can “take someone’s virginity.” 

Despite whatever middle school rumors you may have heard, using a tampon cannot take someone’s virginity even if it does stretch or “break” their hymen. Virginity is a social construct related to sexual intercourse—and has nothing to do with sanitary devices. 

Misconception: Menstruation is a sign of womanhood

Menstruation is a sign that someone’s ovary has released an egg, and that that egg was not fertilized. But a person’s first period does not automatically make them a woman. Not all women menstruate, whether due to underlying health conditions or because they’ve reached menopause. And not all people who menstruate identify as women, as nonbinary people and transgender men may all menstruate.

Misconception: Menstruation is always necessary.

Sure, if someone is trying to conceive, then they do need to menstruate. If someone is actively avoiding getting pregnant, though, there’s no harm in simply bypassing periods in general. There are various birth control methods that let people skip getting their period, either for a one-off time or every month.