I have always been fairly lucky, menses-wise.
I hardly recall experiencing the dreaded cramps, or crippling abdominal pain, or any kind of dizzy spells, or mood swings. In fact, I had a rather cavalier attitude towards my chums; I took that time of the month for granted, always assuming that I would be perfectly okay. I wasn’t going to change any scheduled plans simply because I was going to be bleeding. Ahh, my robust body afforded me to be this way, so nonchalant and careless.
One time, I accompanied a friend to old Mumbai for an errand. We spent all day at Mumbai University. Couldn’t resist a walk along the lovely Marine Drive promenade, gazing at the birds and lovers. Got thoroughly soaked in the waves and surf, then returned home to Andheri in the local train, squashed and mashed with a million other sweaty female bodies. And I was on my period that day.
But it felt perfectly okay and manageable to me.
However, things are a little different now. Not all that much but just a little. How do I describe it?
A day or so to the period, I start feeling a sense of heaviness in my limbs. But it is not the kind of heavy exhaustion that drains your energy reserves. In fact, my body seems to welcome this heaviness that gently pushes me downward, towards the earth… like an older friend, more experienced and knowing, encouraging me to relax, breathe deeply, sit a while. It actually feels like something tender and loving.
Can you imagine a state of tiredness that is also grounding? That’s what Day 1 feels like.