First Period: What Does A Father Feel When His Daughter Starts To Menstruate?
This question originally appeared on Quora. Answer by Alyssha Katruss.
When I first got my period, we were on vacation in another city. I knocked on my dad's bedroom door and said, "Daaad, I just got my period."
Through the door, I heard him go, "Ahhhh, s**t."
Luckily, my sister and my aunty were with us, so they were able to assist in the nitty gritty. My mum cried on the phone, because she was back at home and couldn't be with me for this momentous occasion.
My family has always been pretty open about most things. I can't say for certain how my dad feels or felt, except perhaps sympathy? I get really bad cramps and sickness, so every time I get my period he always apologises that this must happen to me ("I'm so sorry, sweetie. It's not fair, is it?"), hands me some chocolate and listens to me complain, tolerating a surprisingly graphic amount of detail.
Actually, I just asked him what he felt when me and my sister got our periods and he looked at me for a moment, then shrugged and said, "I dunno, 'poor things'? I mean, what can I do about it?" Then he laughed and said, "I thought now I'm going to have to worry that one day I'll hear 'Daddy, I'm pregnant!'"
So there you go. Now he's feeling sentimental and talking about how proud he is of me while I try to write this answer. Life is hard.
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