A Book Review of ‘It's About Bloody Time. Period.’

In her book ‘It’s About Bloody Time. Period’, Emma Barnett presents an account of what it means to live with an invisible yet chronic and debilitating condition. Having been diagnosed with endometriosis in her early 30s after a post-pubescent menstrual life’s worth of excruciating periods, Barnett questions why so little is known about the condition. Barnett uses a discussion of her endometriosis condition as a hook to discuss a wide range of issues pertaining to periods, with the overarching question being — why are they ​still​ a matter of such discretion and secrecy? She seeks to dismantle widespread, uncomfortable reactions to period conversations, and is on a mission to demystify the unknowability of suffering with endometriosis.

Barnett has spoken extensively about the process of being diagnosed with endometriosis. Namely how, while one might speculate that they have the condition, it can only be diagnosed via keyhole surgery. This means that, dozy on anaesthetics, you are either given the all-clear as you come to five minutes after entering the operating room or, in cases such as Barnett’s, you can be under for several hours. During this time, you can be both diagnosed and treated — meaning you are often receiving intense treatment for a condition you still aren't even aware you have. The treatment during this surgery includes lasering endometrial cells off surrounding organs which they may have spread to. For many, this can alleviate masses of pain. For Emma Barnett, it did not.

Barnett emphasises how, for her, it was a matter of pure luck that she was diagnosed. Being on the contraceptive pill for ten years eased her periods somewhat and masked symptoms which may have prompted an earlier diagnosis. It was only once coming off it that her symptoms reared their demonic head. The time it took to be diagnosed is not peculiar to Barnett: according to the charity Endometriosis UK, the average wait for a diagnosis is 8 years. Over this period, the condition spreads to other organs and symptoms worsen, often having a destructive impact on fertility. This can take a huge mental toll on endometriosis sufferers.​ ​Research done by the BBC​ in 2019 revealed that as a result of such prolonged unexplained pain, many have lost jobs, lost partners, failed exams, and become addicted to pain medication.

But why does it take so long for people to be given their diagnosis? Barnett discusses the lack of gravity traditionally given to ‘women’s conditions’ — an umbrella term which mystifies menstrual health, and does not acknowledge that this can affect people other than women. The implications of this are visceral: in the same report by the BBC, multiple women are quoted in their struggles in being taken seriously by doctors and other medical professionals. More shockingly, they are often told that they are ‘making their symptoms up’. Another heightened cultural barrier is addressed in Barnett’s work, which is the idea that periods and pain go hand in hand. This has fed into a tradition of menstruators diminishing their own pain, borne from a history of being told that painful periods are normal.

This attitude has arguably had systemic implications, seen in the allocation of research funding. Barnett gives a shocking statistic: while endometriosis is as prevalent as Type 2 diabetes in the US, affecting 1 in 10 menstruators, the funding put into research into each condition is wildly disparate. For every person with Type 2 diabetes, the American National Institute for Health spends $35 a year in research funding. For every person battling Endometriosis, they spend less than $1. That is thirty. Five. Times. More. For a condition which affects the same proportion of the population.

Speaking on the ‘How Do You Cope’ podcast, Barnett concludes that the antidote to such systemic and prolonged disregard for menstrual health is to stop being silent about periods. She says, “if you can’t talk about periods generally, you’re certainly not going to talk about the weird ones”. As such, it is crucial that we overcome the years of awkwardness and embarrassment ingrained in our collective menstrual psyche. Down with the shifty shoving of tampons up of sleeves while you sidestep to the bathroom. No longer should menstruators have to pass off down days and stomach cramps as being a result of eating a dodgy dinner. Emma Barnett's book is a great place to start with this.

So thank you, Emma, queen of the news desk, for this encyclopaedia of period insight. A whistle-stop tour of modern period stigmas and stories, sometimes whimsical and often baffling, she presents a sizeable roundup of period knowledge in a digestible format. At least, more digestible than the list of period-euphemistic foods included — let's leave jam sandwiches out of this from now on and have real conversations about periods, thank you very much.