Listening to a professor in class can be a lot harder of a task when I feel like I have Mike Tyson boxing in my uterus. 

Once a month, women can expect an infamous visit from Mother Nature herself bringing on a world of discomfort.

With the stigma of periods and the idea of students “faking” sickness to have a free day, it’s hard to find the much needed rest days I need to recover while in “Shark Week.”

That’s why the Menstrual Leave Policy Resolution proposed by Julia Habchi, a former Student Government senator, could help bring an end to the stigma and allow students the ability to focus on their health. 

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The resolution states students should have three excused days per school semester to deal with the pain brought upon by menstruation.

If USF implemented this proposal, students who menstruate would not have to face the anxiety about missing class unexcused. 

“I think the policy has the potential to lead to productive conversations regarding reproductive health,” said Amy Brown, a USF Health associate professor in obstetrics and gynecology. “It’s a step in the right direction and hopefully will get more students seeking help for menstrual issues.”

Many students have struggled in silence with extreme menstrual pain since early adolescence. 

“In middle school I was severely anemic and my cramps were borderline debilitating,” said Jayden Johnson, a sophomore in psychology. “I could barely pay attention in class because it felt like it took up most of my energy just to sit up straight,” Johnson said.

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Besides not wanting to miss important academic instruction, Johnson and many other women choose to keep their pain silent as menstruation is often seen as an uncomfortable topic. 

“For instance, we celebrate pregnancy with baby showers and gender reveals, yet menstruation—the very foundation of fertility—remains cloaked in silence,” Habchi said. “Why? Because it’s deemed ‘uncomfortable’ to discuss, forcing women to suffer in silence without the support they need.”

USF outlines a medical excused absence as “illnesses or injuries that require them to be away from the classroom or workplace, or affects their ability to perform optimally in class or on exams.” Many professors require a doctor’s note for a medically excused absence.

“Pain is pain, so just as we would make adjustments for someone with severe back pain, headache, joint pain, etc. to modify their academic schedule, the same is true of menstrual-related pain,” Brown said. 

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Brown said that pain is only one of the many other symptoms women experience during menstruation.

“Some women experience nausea, headaches, fatigue, mood changes, bloating, and bowel changes,” Brown said. “Very heavy periods can be associated with dizziness and lack of energy.”

With all these symptoms hitting women at once, it’s hard to imagine women would be using these days for leisure. 

“This policy is not a luxury—it’s a necessity,” Habchi said. “The three days of leave are not ‘vacation days;’ they are an acknowledgment of the hidden labor of menstruation.”

For someone like me who prioritizes their academics, my period has left me sitting absentmindedly in class focused on the pain I feel rather than actively engaging. 

It’s time to recognize that menstruation can serve as a hindrance to women’s ability to focus on their academics and that we need to make accommodations for those who need it.