Historically, menstruation has been depicted in Hollywood as a disgusting, uncomfortable, and shameful event in a woman’s life. In films such as Carrie (1976) and My Girl (1991), the start of a period by protagonists is portrayed as a horrifying brush with death, in which both women believe they are bleeding out. In other movies such as Superbad (2007) and Blue Lagoon (1980), the female characters are subjected to shame and ridicule for their biological functions, particularly at the hands of their male counterparts.
Hollywood has come a long way in the past decade, with an increasing number of female writers and directors working to destigmatize this phenomenon and create a positive representation of periods for younger viewers. Media depictions have slowly shifted to biological processes signifying womanhood, and now to just a normal part of women's lives. In the film 20th Century Women (2016), the character Abbie played by Greta Gerwig passionately announces that everyone should be comfortable using the term “menstruation” instead of shying away from women's bodies. This scene stands out for its portrayal of periods within the film but also for its general critique of how men and male-dominated spaces further suppress womanhood through their periods.
Even more recently, we have seen representations of realistic period sex in television and movies. The film American Honey (2016) shows a woman removing her tampon before sex, which frames her as an active sexual character rather than a shamed, passive body. Prior to such scenes, period sex was really just left out of film depictions entirely, even though menstruation happens to many vulva-owners every month. 2019 indie film Saint Frances, described in this Guardian article, features the character, Bridget, and her partner waking up after a night of sex with dried blood on their faces and on the sheets. While such a scene sounds embarrassing for the characters, the film spins it to show the intimacy between partners and an honest look at what sex looks like for many bodies.
In the show I May Destroy You (2020), there is an infamous scene dubbed the “Beautiful Blood Clot” by The Cut. In a moment that surprised and excited viewers, the characters Arabella and Biagio decide to have sex and because Arabella is on her period, the couple lays a towel on the bed for protection. Biagio then takes off Arabella’s underwear, which has a liner, takes out her tampon, and then pulls out and inspects a blood clot while fingering her. It takes a groundbreaking moment to really depict honest and messy sex – which is such a frequent occurrence in real life – and this show did exactly that. For those of us that grew up watching these older films that featured periods, it’s almost impossible to imagine a male character getting up close and personal with menstruation, especially in a way that does not shame the menstruator!
Period sex in the media is not just about changing the stigma around menstruation in a male-dominated space. It’s also about showcasing the real, unedited life of those with periods, for whom their cycles are significant to their lives in many ways. Emotional states, physical health, sex drive, and more are constantly influenced by our cycles, and these are impossible to edit out of our narratives, even if male viewers might find discomfort in this reality. Specifically, many people find that their desire for sex is heightened around the time of their period. While it might be “easier” to showcase sex outside of the period, that would not be accurate to the desires of many female bodies.
Especially in the digital age where media makes a substantive impact on young people in particular, who have access to social media, television, and film from early childhood, it is even more important to consider the messaging they receive. For young people that will menstruate, this time in their lives is already challenging and emotional as their hormone levels are shifting and their bodies are changing. When you add to that a culture of shame and the fear that their periods will make them undesirable, you raise people that feel like they should hide this part of themselves – the part that’s simply a biological function, and one that’s central to human life!
There’s nothing about period sex that’s distinctive from other kinds of sex aside from this culture of shame. Our society has grown highly comfortable with other bodily fluids in the bedroom (hello, male ejaculation!) yet still disallows the liberation of female bodily fluids in the bedroom. The cultural shift starts in the media, which saturates the lives of most, making these groundbreaking films central to the transformation we want to see. These depictions of honest, messy, humorous, awkward sex are real, and they are beginning to change the narrative of what sex looks like. These scenes also work to unveil the humanness of women, who for so many years were portrayed as perfect and passive bodies rather than active sexual participants. It’s refreshing to see myself and my body on screen, even the less pretty parts, and I hope to see even more in the future.
By Sydney Sullivan