Beyond Blood: Mahina Launches India's First Report on the Invisible Mental Load of Menstruation

Business Standard

6 days ago

NewsVoir
Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India], June 4: Mahina, a purpose-driven period care brand, announced the release of a groundbreaking comprehensive report on the World Menstrual Day titled "Beyond Blood: The Unseen Burden of Every Cycle." With this report, the brand shifts focus to a new frontier - the invisible labour menstruators face every cycle.
Drawn from the lived experiences of over 1,000 menstruators across eight major cities, aged between 18-45 years, the report unveils a rarely measured truth known to women: Every cycle brings not just blood but an unspoken mental load carried in silence. The emotional strain, disrupted routines, and the pressure to "push through" without complaint- a critical yet long-ignored dimension of menstrual health has been finally acknowledged through the findings of this report.
While conversations around menstruation have long focused on rural access, hygiene, and age-old taboos, Mahina's new report shifts the spotlight to an often-ignored reality: the urban menstruator. It uncovers critical gaps in awareness, product design, and support--bringing to light the invisible mental load that comes with managing a period every month, for 30 to 40 years of a woman's life.
Speaking about the report Natasha Jamal, Founder of Mahina said, "For too long, the mental load of menstruation has been normalised and ignored. This report is Mahina's way of saying: we see it, we measure it, and we're done accepting silence as the standard. We've always talked about periods in terms of blood. But what no one talks about is everything else, the planning, the pretending, the emotional weight. With this report, we wanted to name that invisible labour and finally give it the recognition it deserves."
To view the full report, click here; Summary of the report given below:
Report Summary
What Every Period Truly Demands
Menstruation is more than a biological function--it's a recurring experience that demands ongoing adjustments. Yet, much of this burden remains unseen, unheard, and unacknowledged.
* 62% of menstruators reported masking their period symptoms to appear 'normal' in professional and social settings.
* 73% said they are impacted by hormonal and emotional changes during their period but feel compelled to underplay
* Only 3% of menstruators report making no changes during their cycle. The remaining 97% adjust and adapt their lives every month to accommodate menstrual symptoms--physically, emotionally, or logistically. Nearly 3 in 4 women experience a week of routine disruption and hidden labor every month.
The First Period Comes with No Manual
A generational influence often shapes how young women navigate their menstrual cycles, yet remains largely unspoken -- despite more open conversations today, the first period is still marked by anxiety, confusion, and frustration.
* 76% of menstruators felt the emotional weight of their periods at 8-14, on the onset of their 1st cycle
* While 73% were introduced to menstruation by their mothers, 4 in 5 still felt unprepared for their first period.
* Half of menstruators say they felt excluded by family during their periods, and 2 in 3 say men expect them to manage it quietly.
The Physical and Mental Load
The mental load shapes how menstruators speak, sit, sleep, and move.
* Leak anxiety is a major contributor to menstrual stress: 72% use extra protection during their period, yet 67% still experience leaks.
* 38% wake up in the middle of the night to check or change menstrual products.
* Many resort to layering or using multiple products simultaneously.
* Emotionally, 64% feel "unlike themselves" during PMS, and 58% dread their periods due to unpredictability.
* Among women aged 25-30, 2 in 3 experience heightened daytime anxiety about leaks
* Amongst this 3 in 5 sit or move cautiously in public during their periods.
* Remarkably, 1 in 4 respondents said they would prefer to skip their period entirely, highlighting how burdensome and disruptive the experience can be.
How Modern Menstruators Have Adapted
What menstruators want isn't more--it's getting the basics right.
* 56% prioritize comfort and flexibility as their most urgent needs, followed by leak-proof protection and skin-friendly materials.
* In the absence of institutional support, menstruators are creating their own systems of care: 74% carry period products not only for themselves but also for friends, colleagues, and even strangers--a quiet but powerful culture of mutual support.
* Additionally, 1 in 3 use digital tools like cycle trackers and mental wellness apps to better manage their periods.
Additionally, an interesting insight from the report also revealed a complex duality in society today: while 1 in 2 respondents believe period pain is real, yet underestimated and 53% support open conversations, deep-rooted biases continue to persist. More than half still view period blood as impure; 55% think periods should last exactly five days; and 71% believe delaying a period with medication is harmful. These conflicting attitudes--often held by the same individuals--show there is no singular narrative, only recurring patterns of silence and stigma. It is in this quiet tension between progress and taboo that the real story of menstruation unfolds.
In summary, the report highlights key gaps that must be addressed to raise awareness and drive a period revolution -- one that challenges taboos, demands safer and more inclusive products, and reclaims the narrative around menstruation. The goal isn't just to create products that do the job, but to innovate with purpose and ease the mental and emotional burden that menstruators carry every month
Mahina is deeply committed to leading this change, not just by innovating smarter, more supportive period care but by actively working to reduce the mental load menstruators face. Through this report, Mahina hopes to ignite a much-needed conversation around dignity, design, and the future of rural well-being.
Made in India and rigorously tested, Mahina is the country's first brand offering bonded, leak-proof, absorbent period underwear, setting a new standard in menstrual care with a focus on comfort, performance, and sustainability. Aimed at transforming the period experience, Mahina provides meticulously engineered, reusable, and planet-friendly products personalized for every flow. Crafted with real Indian bodies and lifestyles in mind, Mahina blends form and function: a sleek, stitch-free gusset, four absorbency levels, and reusability for 100 washes. More than just a product, Mahina is a movement that champions body positivity, empowers informed choices, and advocates for menstrual equity.