At the age of fourteen, I got my first period. I’d been “warned” about what to expect with my menstrual cycle. And those warnings made it a traumatic event.

The day I saw the blood in my underwear, I actually passed out cold. Of course losing consciousness is never a good thing, but the fact that it happened in a girl’s restroom at my high school, while I was in the bathroom stall with my pants and underwear down, made it even worse. Because of all the horror stories my mom had told me, I was so fearful of PMS, and my period in general, that I lost consciousness all together. It was an unnecessarily dramatic and unpleasant experience, all because of some silly white lies my mom told me.

PMS & Period Myths – The Lies My Mother Told Me…

1) Walking around without shoes and socks during your menstrual cycle will give you pneumonia.

2) If you wash your hair during your period, it will fall out and leave you bald.

3) If you do not eat chocolate, you will not have PMS.

4) Talking on the telephone increases the blood flow of your period.

5) If you kiss a boy during your menstrual cycle, you will get pregnant because you are ovulating.

Later on, my doctor and school counselor explained to me that my mother was “a bit confused” about the menstrual cycle. This was obviously so, and she had passed much of that confusion onto me. This experience had such a powerful impact on me growing up as a young woman, that I sometimes wished I could re-experience it – one more time, and in a completely different way.

A few weeks ago, I watched my baby girl take her first steps. The years will probably fly by past, and I want them to be wonderful for her. I definitely will not be telling her any of the lies that my mother told me. After all, I’ve learned the truth, however painful.