Have you ever notices on ads for pads and tampons they’re always shown absorbing blue liquid instead of blood? Have you ever had to dash from a meeting at work with a tampon discreetly in your hand so that no one notices? Maybe you got your period when you weren’t expecting and have had to quietly whisper to your colleague if they have a spare one.

31-year-old Casimira Melican, who works as a research and advocacy officer at the Victorian Women’s Trust, joins Caspar to discuss the new book, About Bloody Time. The book aims to address the stigma and shame associated with menstruation and menopause.

She explores the idea that workplaces should adopt menstrual leave, how the notion of the male body as neutral and the female body as “other” has shaped the experience and treatment of periods throughout time, and how even getting an Emoji of period stained underwear is still unacceptable in 2019.

This episode of Binge Thinking was hosted and produced by Nina Roxburgh, was recorded at Youthworx studio in Melbourne, was co-edited by Nina and Charlotte Morton, and features music by Big Gigantic.