Phenomenological Analysis of the Menstrual Experience of Girls Living in Tehran

Abstract

Introduction: Menstrual experience is one of the most important physical experiences of girls. The main question in the present study was not only how to understand and give meaning to this experience, but also how it could be related to social and cultural fields. Methods: This qualitative study was carried out using grounded theory method and through encoding phenomenological interviews with 24 girls who lived in Tehran and experienced menstruation. Results: Five main categories and sixteen sub-categories were identified; The main categories included “Context of menstrual experience”, “Causal conditions of menstrual experience”, “Intervening conditions of menstrual experience”, “Action strategies of menstrual experience”, and “Consequences of menstrual experience”. Conclusion: The results of the present study indicated that the menstrual experience paves the way for girls to construe their body as an object for manipulation. From this perspective, though menstrual experiences are similar, they can be distinguished from one another whether by regarding menstruation as a defect in the normal functioning of the ideal body that needs to be concealed or as a natural event indicative of a feminine body with reproductive capacity.