I like Dan Pearce. Some of his blog posts are hilarious, some others inspirational. As most bloggers (including yours truly), I suppose he is a little narcissistic, but I generally enjoy what he writes.
Except this piece. Dan had surgery that caused rectal bleeding, and, in a supposed attempt to sympathise with menstruating women, shares with us how horrific it was. I'm not sure whether he wanted to be funny or inspirational, but it ended up being neither.
I have so many issues with his post.
Dan constantly describes it as "bleeding from your 'down there'". Funny as this may sound, a rectum and a vagina are not the same thing at all. They don't look the same. They don't feel the same. They don't have the same function. To put them in the same broad category and call it your "down there" is incorrect and, to me at least, rather offensive.
He complains about being constantly and uncomfortably aware of the bleeding - but that bleeding was the result of tissue trauma, so no wonder! Menstruation, on the other hand, is not the result of a wound or of surgery. It's a perfectly normal female bodily function. I am aware there is something called endometriosis, and that some women are plagued with very painful periods. Admittedly, as I don't experience either of these, I'm not representative of all women, but I'm not constantly aware of it when I'm on my period. I get on with my day just fine.
He also complains about the discomfort and irritation. I would argue that, heavy bleeding due to surgery aside, it's also caused by using disposable pads. I use cloth pads (trust me, much more comfortable than those sticky horrid disposables). He wasn't able to do some of the things he usually enjoys. Well, there again, this was due mainly to the fact that his (heavy) bleeding was caused by tissue trauma. When a woman is menstruating, however, she can choose a kind of protection that won't stop her from playing sports, dancing or swimming, such as tampons, or, even better and healthier, menstrual cups. As for staining your clothes, unless periods are extremely heavy (which isn't the case for everyone), wearing the right protection usually prevents that.
Dan was uncomfortable disposing of soiled pads, and the odours were most unpleasant. Of course, as his bleeding was only temporary, he couldn't invest in washable ones, but for menstruation women, making that switch solves those issues (bad odour doesn't come from the blood per se, but from the mix of blood and the chemicals in the disposables).
To me, the worst part was his statement that "no human should ever have to bleed from their down theres", as if it was something horrendous. What he experienced was undoubtedly most unpleasant, but once again, comparing it to menstruation is inaccurate and unhelpful. We need to de-dramatise periods and fight the stigma against them, not patronisingly dramatise them.
He is right on one thing, though: menstruation is a topic that deserves discussion - but a positive one.
So no, Dan Pierce, rectal bleeding isn't the same as menstruation. Not even close.
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