We are teased as a Chaupadi girl amongst our friends especially boys. I wish boys would have to face the same problems as girls then they would know how difficult it is. During menstruation we have to walk separately to make sure we don’t touch anybody in the family and village. I can’t use the same toilet at home and I am not given nutritious food. I can’t consume any dairy products because if I do so those animals would get sick. I have to work all the time without getting any rest and do all the physical work at home even when you are sick. At school we don’t have a separate toilet and bathroom so for the whole day we have to use the same clothes and to avoid excessive bleeding we use heavy clothes made of polyester which causes blisters.

It is very difficult to convince our parents against this custom. If we complain they will scold us and say “Who is that teacher that is teaching you all this stuff?” I can’t help myself although I know this is wrong. We girls are helpless. Accham