The Menstrual Marathon--what I didn't put on Facebook

Unless you've been living in a remote cave for the last week, you've read the article about the woman who ran the London Marathon while having her period, and chose not to wear sanitary protection. Here are a couple of links:

People Magazine article about Kiran Gandhi  

http://www.ryot.org/woman-fights-the-stigma-associated-with-menstruation-by-running-a-marathon-without-wearing-a-tampon/940163

I've read most of the comments under various versions of the article, and they interest me. Generally, there are two points of view: (1) "You go, sister!" and (2) "How disgusting!" I had the opportunity on Facebook to share my thoughts; below is my post,

I'm looking at this from a social scientist's point of view; also, from a purely medical mindset (for lack of a better word).There's an undercurrent of profiling here that gets under my craw. We have a pre-menopausal, attractive woman who is physically fit enough to run a marathon, and her photogenic smile smacks of a certain "image..." as if she knows on some level that any health issue that would put others exposed to her bodily fluids at risk is not at the forefront of viewers' minds. So - me being me, that's the first reaction I have to this story. My second reaction is just "ick!" But again, it's not my marathon, and not my Auntie Flo--she left the room a long time ago, and I thank the Crone Goddess for that.

What I didn't put on Facebook, either because I didn't think of it or thought I'd offend people:

• What if a gay man with a bloody nose were running that marathon? (Of course, nowadays, we don't hear a lot about AIDS in the USA and other Western countries, and I rarely hear of a gay man dying of the disease now) 
• So - she can get by with esposing airborne pathogens from her free-flowing blood because she gets to. Her ethnicity may not be Caucasian, but she's a Harvard Business School gradulate and a drummer for singer M.I.A. As I said in my Facebook post, she doesn't fit the profile. (Only three-tenths of the population of India is infected)
• Have we reached a turning point in our collective thinking where HIV and AIDS aren't a part of our daily concerns? If we think about it at all, it's when we read about Haiti and African countries. AIDS exceeds 20% of the population in Botswana. South Africa has the largest number of people, but a lower percentage since they have a large population. But that's remote, and it's "those people." 
• If Kiran Gandhi has done anything for me by running the marathon with blood running down her leg, she has reminded me how dismissive I myself have been regarding "those people." 
• Considering what happened at the Boston Marathon in 2013, I can't believe the amount of media coverage of this woman's display.
• From the political to the personal,  I have to hand it to her for running 26.2 miles on the first day of her period. If she'd wanted to make a point, perhaps she should have used cloth rags or leaves. That is what our "sisters" without access to sanitary products have done since the beginning of time.
• From the personal to the trivial - did anyone notice that she wore red leggings for the run? And she must have had brutal cramps. It's been 14 years since I bid farewell to my ladies' time, but I have sharp recollections of wanting to chew Advil, curl up in bed and be completely alone on the first day of my period. Of course, I didn't do that - I got up and went to work, along with all my "sisters." Our cycles were probably synchronized - my department was known as the PMS Hall of Shame.

I would love to hear some feedback on this from other bloggers. Right now, even though "surfing the crimson wave" is a thing of the past for me, I believe I'll go eat some chocolate. 

Choice Architecture, Pattern Interrupts and My Fat Ass

I want to share a lesson about behavioral change that I learned from Paul Dale Anderson today, through an e-mail about an unrelated topic. It applies to my situation perfectly.

Today I have to go to my doctor's office for what I presume is a "check in" visit. I know Queen Jane will make me step on the scale. I have gained almost 10 pounds since I was last weighed there, so I'm not thrilled .Last time I was at the royal palace, I weighed a lot less. And - of course - Queen Jane's scale weighs five pounds heavier than ours at home.

Marie has noticed (how could she not?) that I've been in the habit of mixing peanut butter with Hershey's chocolate sauce and eating it every night with a spoon. She hasn't nagged nor criticized me. Instead, last week when she did our grocery shopping, Marie bought me a half-gallon of chocolate and caramel yogurt which tastes like ice cream, and quietly put it in the freezer. A half-cup serving is 130 calories.

Marie has observed, (how could she not?), that over the past week, I've been eating TWO scoops of that chocolate and caramel yogurt at night, and topping it with a glob of peanut butter and some chocolate sauce. This means I'm adding another 130 calories with the second scoop. Two level spoonfuls of peanut butter = 240 calories, and the chocolate sauce would add another 180. And I really need to lose weight. She knows that I want to. She, too, is on a healthy eating pattern.

Today she suggested that I just eat one scoop and dribble a little bit of chocolate sauce on top.

I was NOT OFFENDED. I didn't feel like she was monitoring my eating habits and commenting on them. I didn't feel patronized nor shamed. Why is this? Paul's words in quotes, explains it: Because Marie "did not argue, remonstrate nor berate me". by buying me the lowfat yogurt and suggesting a different way to enjoy it. She "simply showed me that I have a better choice."

The lesson, and I do quote Paul: "Just flip the frame with a pattern interrupt! It's called "choice architecture" -- and it acts as a kind of influence flip-stick: flipping a person from one choice of action to another choice of action." And that's EXACTLY what Marie is suggesting.

Photo of my fat ass