Menstrual health and management during the COVID-19 syndemic in the Barcelona area (Spain) : A qualitative study
Holst, Anna Sofie (Institut Universitari d'Investigació en Atenció Primària Jordi Gol)
Jacques-Aviñó, Constanza (Institut Universitari d'Investigació en Atenció Primària Jordi Gol)
Berenguera, Anna (Institut Universitari d'Investigació en Atenció Primària Jordi Gol)
Martínez-Bueno, Cristina (Universitat de Barcelona)
Munrós-Feliu, Jordina (Institut Català de la Salut)
Pinzón-Sanabria, Diana (SomiArte Taller)
Valls-Llobet, Carme (Centre d'Anàlisis Programes Sanitaris (Barcelona, Catalunya))
López-Jiménez, Tomàs (Institut Universitari d'Investigació en Atenció Primària Jordi Gol)
García-Egea, Andrea (Institut Universitari d'Investigació en Atenció Primària Jordi Gol)
Vicente-Hernández, María Mercedes (Grup de Recerca en Salut Sexual i Reproductiva)
Medina-Perucha, Laura (Institut Universitari d'Investigació en Atenció Primària Jordi Gol)
Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona

Data:	2023
Resum:	Available evidence suggests that menstrual health and management have been impaired during the COVID-19 syndemic. However, research in this area is scarce, and it is failing to voice the experiences of women and people who menstruate regarding their menstrual experiences. This study aimed to explore the experiences of menstrual health and menstrual management among women and people who menstruate in the Barcelona area (Spain) during the COVID-19 syndemic. This is a qualitative study, conducted taking a critical feminist approach, is embedded in the 'Equity and Menstrual Health in Spain' project. It includes photo-elicitation individual interviews with 34 women and people who menstruate in the area of Barcelona (Spain). Data were collected in person and through telephone calls between December 2020 and February 2021. Analyses were performed using Thematic Analysis. Main findings navigated through the menstrual changes experienced by some participants, especially women living with long COVID-19, and the barriers to access healthcare and menstrual products during COVID-19. While some participants experienced menstrual poverty, this did not appear to be exacerbated during COVID-19. Instead, access to menstrual products was compromised based on products' availability and mobility restrictions. Menstrual management and self-care were generally easier, given that menstrual experiences were almost exclusively relegated to private spaces during lockdown periods. Our findings highlight the need to further research and policy efforts towards promoting menstrual health and equity, considering social determinants of health, and taking intersectional and gender-based approaches. These strategies should be further encouraged in social and health crises such as the COVID-19 syndemic.
Drets:	Aquest document està subjecte a una llicència d'ús Creative Commons. Es permet la reproducció total o parcial, la distribució, la comunicació pública de l'obra i la creació d'obres derivades, sempre que no sigui amb finalitats comercials, i sempre que es reconegui l'autoria de l'obra original.
Llengua:	Anglès
Document:	Article ; recerca ; Versió publicada
Matèria:	COVID-19 ; Gender ; Long COVID-19 ; Menstrual equity ; Menstrual health ; Menstrual management ; Menstruation ; Qualitative research
Publicat a:	Women's Health, Vol. 19 (april 2023) , ISSN 1745-5065

DOI: 10.1177/17455057231166644
PMID: 37092568

10 p, 584.9 KB

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