From sage tea to sirens: Providing menstrual support in Lebanon

In Lebanon's Iqlim Al Kharrub, 70 percent of those internally displaced people are women and children. This not only highlights the impact this war has on civilians, but it shows the growing need for specialist forms of aid.

To meet the growing needs of women in the area, we are providing truckloads of aid to support women's health needs. Each kit contains wipes, pads, tissues, underwear and other items to support girls and women during their monthly cycle.

Supporting displaced women during their cycle is not just a matter of health and hygiene, but it’s a crucial element to women’s overall wellbeing. A woman’s cycle is more than just the menstrual phase – it's the mood swings, cramps, change in basal body temperature, hot flashes, cravings and other symptoms that women in even the most affluent situation find difficult to manage.

The stress of war can result in more severe cramps, a longer menstrual flow, heightened emotions, or even the body being too traumatised to ovulate and bleed. This can affect long-term fertility, something that is even more distressing for families who value having children and creating a long-lasting legacy.

For teenage girls and young women suffering under war, it goes unsaid that they deserve a more comfortable and compassionate introduction to womanhood. Prior to this displacement, a typical girl in Lebanon would have associated dealing with her first period symptoms with a warm cup of traditional sage tea, chocolate, a yoga or stretching class and light-hearted talks by her elders. Now, the same girl would be in a refugee camp where chocolate is a luxury, sage is scarce, her nervous system too frozen to relax into a stretch and her elders in another camp, injured or dead.

Menstrual health is more than just providing pads, it is ensuring women are supported in as many ways as possible throughout their cycle. Dignity is paramount in this situation.

Periods are NOT a stigma in Islam

While it can be awkward to discuss menstrual health in some circles, it’s important to remember that Islam’s health guidelines stress the need for rest and care during menstruation and encourages compassion for women during this time.

Islam places high significance on women’s health as a matter of dignity and spiritual respect. The Qur’an acknowledges menstruation, and it provides specific guidelines to ensure respect for a woman’s body during this natural cycle.

In Surah Al-Baqarah (2:222), Allah addresses menstruation directly, describing it as a natural process, and instructs believers to treat it with care:

“They ask you about menstruation. Say, ‘It is a discomfort; so keep away from women during menstruation and do not approach them until they are pure.’”

This verse highlights an understanding of menstruation as a period of physical sensitivity and women going through it must be treated with honour and compassion.

The Qur’an and Hadith establish the womb as a sacred and divinely blessed organ. The Arabic word for the womb, "rahm," shares the same root as “Rahman” (Merciful), one of Allah’s names.

The womb is revered as the vessel of human creation, and this reverence is echoed in the Hadith where Allah (swt) told the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh): "I am the Merciful (Rahman). I have created the womb and derived its name from My own. Whoever upholds it, I will uphold them. Whoever cuts it off, I will cut them off" (Sahih Bukhari).

Understanding menstrual health as a sacred, divinely guided aspect of a woman’s life reinforces a woman’s autonomy and wellness. The womb, as both the physical and symbolic place of mercy, underscores the role of women in nurturing life and extends respect to all stages of womanhood in Islam.

At a time of war, implementing menstrual health is just as sacred of a duty as it is a basic human necessity, and it is our absolute duty to support our sisters through this.

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