Written By: Mary Ann Fahmy, MsGH ’27
At the first Think Global event of the Spring 2026 semester, an interdisciplinary panel of faculty and trainees shared expertise about cultural, clinical, and community-based aspects of menstrual health equity. Dr. Megan Huchko, Director of the Center for Global Reproductive Health and OB/GYN at Duke, moderated the discussion and highlighted the many layers of stigma, structural barriers, and social norms that influence menstrual experiences across the lifespan. Dr. Huchko opened the session and emphasized the recurring theme of “menstruation rhetoric” or the ways language, beliefs, and cultural narratives contribute to society’s understanding and response to menstruation.
Dr. Hannah Taylor, Senior Lecturer in Duke’s Thompson Writing Program, examined how the cultural narratives influence menstrual stigma and identity. Through interdisciplinary research and rhetorical analysis, Dr. Taylor traced the historical framing of menstruation through lenses of shame, illness, or moral judgment, long linking menstruation to womanhood and motherhood. With nostalgic graphics of coming-of-age books for tween girls, she spoke about contemporary menstrual education materials and consumer health technologies (e.g. period-tracking apps). She also spoke to the need for additional innovations incorporating non-stigmatizing language to foster empowerment and help people with periods better understand their bodies. Through this need, Dr. Taylor underscored the significance of language and how it shapes experience and beliefs.
To build on this cultural perspective, Dr. Emily Cherenack, Assistant Professor in Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences and the Duke Global Health Institute , presented research about menstrual health, stress, and mental wellbeing from adolescence through menopause. She presented her dissertation work consisting of a mixed-methods study in Tanzania studying how menstrual/puberty stressors impact mental and reproductive health among adolescent girls. Nearly 42% of participants did not know what menstruation was before menarche, or their first menstrual cycle, calling for improved health education. The study also demonstrated an association between menstrual stress and depressive symptoms and risk for reproductive tract infection. Additionally, Dr. Cherenack discussed her emerging work on the often neglected topic of menopause. Specifically, she informed the audience about ongoing U.S. based research about menopause in university workplaces, working to understand how menopausal symptoms show up and disrupt productivity, wellbeing, and job performance. She concluded with a call to action that although women’s health transitions and conditions remain stigmatized and under-researched, open dialogue and overall attention toward the matter generates benefits from individual health to strengthening communities.
Lastly, Ella Bassett, a Duke undergraduate student studying Biology and Global Health, shared about a community-based intervention in Kisumu, Kenya. In partnering with local organization Garden of Hope and community leader Rosemary Odada, Bassett and the team supported the development of reusable period-product distribution incorporating health education, implementation science, and sustainable economic development. While better access to supplies is one solution, there is a demand for culturally responsive education, community trust, and locally grounded approaches. Her discussion centered on how to amplify voices and lived experiences of those most affected by period poverty and the role of menstrual dignity.
Each of the panelists illuminated the realities faced worldwide by people who menstruate. From stigma to pain, stress, and embedded neglect, this all hinges on greater education access, workforce participation, and intentional dialogue. Rooted in multidisciplinary expertise, the speakers resoundingly called for a future in global health where menstruation is met with care and equity instead of silence, shame, and injustice.