According to menstrual mythology, the modern tampon was created by a man named John Williamson, who stuffed a condom with cotton-like filling. By that logic, tampons would have been created in the shape of a penis rather than a vagina. And when you stop to think about it, tampons do open cylindrically — but is a vagina cylindrical?
Harvard grad Nadya Okamoto, the queer, Asian American co-founder of August, a period care company, brought this question to TikTok — where she went viral — when she explained that she designed tampons with the intention of actually fitting a vagina, and they don't open cylindrically.
To be clear, vaginas come in different shapes, sizes, and colors. Imaging studies have shown that most vaginas are “narrower toward the vaginal opening and wider toward the cervix. This usually forms a ‘V’ shape.”
Assuming a vagina is a sort of cylindrical case for a penis is not that far-fetched — the word "vagina" literally means "sheath" in Latin, while "gladius," Latin slang for "penis," means "sword."
In addition to their innovative design, August tampons (and pads) are made using 100% organic cotton and are fully biodegradable within 12 months — a stark contrast to a typical pad, which can take 500 to 800 years to decompose, and a pack of pads, which has the plastic equivalent of three to five plastic bags. “We have no plastic in them, and we use food-grade glue so that, even with the stickiness, it's completely absorbent,” Nadya told me.
As a matter of fact, it wasn’t until 2020 that a period ad (by Kotex) even used red liquid, instead of blue, to demonstrate pad absorbency. So while you may be grossed out by period blood, menstrual stigma and subsequent censorship really speak to larger issues around menstrual care — including poor menstrual education in schools, period poverty, and mental health.
“In 2021, we look at this era of period brands that refuse to see the word ‘period’; that are not gender-inclusive; that use blue liquid instead of red liquid; that use euphemisms like ‘time of the month’; and that don't really talk about periods for what they are,” Nadya added. “You know, even in those big global campaigns, they don't say the word ‘period.’”
By middle school, preteens already know to slip a tampon into their sleeves or hide a pad in their waistbands. “We’re conditioned to think that this small wad of cotton is worth so much shame that we have to hide it at all costs — even bringing our whole backpack to the bathroom. No one tells us that, right, specifically?” Nadya noted.
While menstrual concealment is standardized, proper and objective menstrual education is not. In 1946, Walt Disney Productions (commissioned by Kimberly-Clark) produced one of the first commercially sponsored films distributed to American high schools, called The Story of Menstruation. But rather than emphasize that menstruation is normal and therefore nothing to be ashamed of, the 10-minute animated film normalizes menstrual shame.
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Though the film addresses women, it's important to discern that not all women menstruate and that not all menstruators are women.
Disney consulted a gynecologist for scientific accuracy and addresses "taboos" in the film. Still, the film emphasizes "proper" behavior and cleanliness. In positioning menstruation as an issue of emotional regulation and hygiene, it perpetuates menstrual stigma and misconceptions.
Frankly, menstrual education videos have not improved much since 1946. Of course, Disney was not the first to position menstruation as an issue of hygiene and secrecy — period care companies had and have used the same stigmatic marketing for decades.
This stigma and obfuscation surrounding menstruation are problematic in ways beyond principle. For one, they make it difficult for menstruators to clearly communicate with and receive accurate treatment from their healthcare providers. (As an example, endometriosis takes, on average, seven years to diagnose, in part due to period pain myths.)
If you're surprised that food stamps (SNAP, WIC, and Medicaid) don't cover period products, it's for the same reason that most states tax them: They're considered luxury items. To help combat menstrual inequity, August absorbs the tax in the 27 states that currently enforce the tampon tax.
Naturally, period poverty and stigma are enough to affect mental health, but menstruation itself can impact mental health, too. While usually thought of as just periods, menstruation is actually the full 4-phase, 28-day (on average) cycle, during which hormone levels (including estrogen, which has been linked to serotonin) change. And as Nadya pointed out, “Hormonal changes equal mental health changes.”
Fundamentally, Nadya believes period care companies have a responsibility to improve period care and dispel menstrual stigma. This belief drove her to design better fitted and more functional tampons, create sustainable period products, and absorb the tampon tax through August. She even created Ask August, a digital tool and resource, to help create a safe community for menstruators to learn about menstruation.
For her part, Nadya concluded, “Regardless of where my career takes me, I'm completely passionate about and thrilled by the workaround improving quality period care and ending period poverty and stigma.”
