End
menstrual
exile.
PERIOD.
Donate now and put a stop to menstrual discrimination in Nepal.
“What is Menstrual Exile?”
Menstrual exile is a spectrum of discriminative practices that banish or exclude women from their homes, schools and community life for the duration of their period.
In Nepal, this means girls are routinely robbed of education, inclusion and well-being due to a lack of awareness or products supporting menstrual health.
In the most severe cases, a practice called Chhaupadi forces girls to live alone in isolated huts while menstruating due to traditional misconceptions around impurity. This cruel and humiliating practice severely damages the girl or women’s physical and mental health. It leaves them vulnerable to sexual abuse, illness and, due to the remote and poor conditions of the huts, can sometimes be fatal.
None of these practices or attitudes should exist. They can end, now, with your support.
Make a donation today and end menstrual exile. Period.
“How does Menstrual Exile affect women and girls in Nepal?”
Menstrual exile is an extreme and damaging form of period poverty – which half a billion people still experience worldwide.
Called Chhaupadi in Nepal, it is still practiced throughout the country to differing degrees. It might mean restricting women and girls to their rooms or banning them from community spaces; it might mean forcing them to live alone in huts or even cattle sheds for days at a time. Grounded in gender discrimination, it damages the physical and mental health of thousands of girls, putting their lives and safety at risk in service of harmful ideas about the purity of a women’s body. In the poorest regions with limited access to education and insecure climates and livelihoods, superstitions are often exacerbated, leading to the most severe forms of Chhaupadi.
At school, support or even open discussion of women’s reproductive health is seen as offensive. This stigma means girls routinely lie to their families and teachers about their periods so that they can still attend school, while a lack of education or resources mean they are forced to use inadequate sanitary materials and practices, leading to infection. Bullying and shame, combined with poorly maintained and sometimes open-topped toilets, mean many girls routinely miss classes or simply drop out.
Thousands of girls are left with the message that a women’s body is intrinsically impure and that they belong in the home, not at school nor as a part of the community.
“How is Karuna helping to end Menstrual Exile?”
Menstrual exile can end – but it will take a village to do so. That’s why our approach is community-led. We collaborate closely with local leaders, religious figures, traditional healers and authorities to challenge entrenched norms around gender and reproductive discrimination. We also know how important it is to work with boys and men in order to shift attitudes – which is why we engage them directly to combat bullying, raise awareness and foster support for women’s reproductive health.
Prioritising education, we also work closely with schools and teachers. Together, we design and implement curriculums that include timetable provisions and education about female and menstrual health. We support the building and maintenance of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) facilities in some of the poorest areas, as well as help to ensure private and clean toilet access for girls. We also give thousands of girls free access to hygiene kits, menstrual pads and other essential resources.
With this vital work, we can make sure that thousands of girls stay in school, maintain their confidence and gain community support for their wellbeing.
https://youtu.be/k068fYR61A0
“What can I do?”
Ending menstrual exile is possible but only with your donation.
For just £15,000, we can reach 20,000 people in 36 villages in Nepal each year.
Make a donation today and together we can end menstrual exile. Period.
https://youtu.be/XVp_Po0PgWM
Thank You
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