Parents, please start talking to your kids about periods as early as humanly possible
Some parents are taking issue with "Turning Red" talking about periods.
Let's talk about periods.
Some parents have taken issue with the Pixar movie "Turning Red" for several scenes in which the subject of a 13-year-old getting her period—even though she didn't, actually—is discussed and used for humor. There's nothing graphic in any way, unless you consider seeing boxes of menstrual pads graphic, but some parents thought that menstruation itself was an inappropriate topic for young kids.
I'm a fan of letting parents parent. None of us has a manual for this stuff and it's hard to know if you're making the right choices for your kids. Different families have different priorities, values and beliefs, and I think there are a million ways to raise conscientious, contributing humans.
I'm also a fan of choosing age-appropriate content for kids when it comes to things that they're not ready to process yet. My kids are teens and young adults now, but when they were younger I was picky about what they consumed media-wise. There is some content young kids simply aren't ready to process and that can have a negative impact on their developing psyches, which is why sex and violence are screened for in age-based movie and TV ratings.
Periods, however, are an entirely different story.
I genuinely don't understand why anyone would take issue with any child of any age learning about menstruation. It's a basic bodily function of half the population. Kids start learning about basic bodily functions as soon as they are old enough to ask questions, and there's nothing about having a period that necessitates holding off on the basics until they're a certain age or maturity level.
Both girls and boys need to learn about periods, and the earlier the better.
I have two daughters and a son. My boy is my youngest, and he's grown up in a household that has talked about periods from the time he was old enough to understand words. When he got old enough to ask what we were referring to or what pads were for, I explained the basics to him in a way he could understand. It went something like this:
"Every month, a woman's body practices getting ready to grow a baby. She has organs called ovaries that push out an egg and her uterus makes a nice cushy home for it by building up a lining of blood. After a couple of weeks, her body lets go of the egg and dismantles the home, which then comes out of her vagina. The bleeding isn't from an injury and it doesn't hurt—it just drips out for a few days. So women wear pads/tampons/cups. etc. to catch it so the blood doesn't get all over her clothes."
Simple, basic, honest. When he has questions, I answer them matter-of-factly. My philosophy is that if a child is old enough to ask a question, they're old enough to get a simple, basic, honest answer. If they want or need to know more, they'll ask more questions. If there are parts that I'm really not ready for them to get details on, I'll say, "That part is a little complicated and we can learn about that later, but here's what's important for you to know right now."
I've also learned that it's far preferable to have these conversations when a child is old enough to be curious but not old enough to be embarrassed to ask.
Periods aren't a picnic, but we've got to stop avoiding talking about them due to the "ick" factor.
People didn't like Pixar addressing a girls transition to womanhood in Turning Red.\n\nI 100%\u202funderstand why some find the topic uncomfortable but there's nothing "inappropriate" or "disgusting" about a woman's period. It's a natural stage of their life. I respect Disney for this.pic.twitter.com/aQ5TGmcoaT— JOLLY J\u2728 (@JOLLY J\u2728) 1647193575
I'm not someone who waxes poetic about menstruation. I understand there are women who find deeper meaning and beauty and magic in it, and hey, more power to them. For me, it's just a thing that happens every month—I don't love it, I don't hate it, it just is.
I do think, however, that we need to get away from the idea that it's "gross" or "disgusting" or "inappropriate." Again, it's something half the population experiences. It's not necessarily pretty, but it's not like it's dirty or wrong or shameful. Women have been ostracized from society in various cultures throughout history for having their period—something that automatically happens to their bodies every month. Treating menstruation in general as gross or inappropriate simply adds to the idea that it's taboo.
We need to talk about periods when kids—girls and boys—are young, because periods can start really young.
It\u2019s actually insane how many people are bothered by the period talk in Turning Red because young kids will see the movie. A LOT of girls get their periods at like 8 years old. I was 10.— Megan Rose Ruiz (ETSY OPEN) (@Megan Rose Ruiz (ETSY OPEN)) 1647383606
I have a friend whose daughter was 9 years old when she started her period. Another friend recently told me her daughter just started her period, and she's only 8. It happens. It's not as unusual as we think. Very few families are running around announcing publicly that their under-10-year-old has started menstruating. So it's definitely important to normalize the conversation early and often with our kids.
And yes, that includes our boys. It's shocking how little some men understand about this topic, even as grown adults. There's no magical time when it suddenly becomes appropriate to talk about periods, and if we make it a normal part of conversation, it's not nearly as awkward for us or for them. In our household, having two daughters first helped create more opportunities, but even in families with all boys, moms can be open about being on their period so it's not a hush-hush or unfamiliar subject.
I often think about the story of the teen boy who noticed a younger student had had a period accident on the bus, and how he offered her his sweatshirt to wrap around her waist. When she thanked him, he said, "No problem. I have sisters." That's a guy for whom periods had been normalized and who was comfortable enough to do the exact right thing to help a girl avoid potential embarrassment rather than adding to it.
A movie about a 13-year-old girl that includes mention of periods is simply reflective of reality. Parents might debate the way a character's behavior or the dynamics of parental relationships are portrayed in "Turning Red," but menstruation should really be a nonissue regardless of the age or gender of the kids watching.
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There's a reason why some people can perfectly copy accents, and others can't
Turns out, there's a neurodivergent link.
A woman in black long sleeve shirt stands in front of mirror.
Have you ever had that friend who goes on vacation for four days to London and comes back with a full-on Queen's English posh accent? "Oooh I left my brolly in the loo," they say, and you respond, "But you're from Colorado!" Well, there are reasons they (and many of us) do that, and usually it's on a pretty subconscious level.
It's called "accent mirroring," and it's actually quite common with people who are neurodivergent, particularly those with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). According Neurolaunch, the self-described "Free Mental Health Library," "Accent mirroring, also known as accent adaptation or phonetic convergence, is the tendency to unconsciously adopt the accent or speech patterns of those around us. This linguistic chameleon effect is not unique to individuals with ADHD, but it appears to be more pronounced and frequent in this population."
Essentially, when people have conversations, we're constantly "scanning" for information—not just the words we're absorbing, but the inflection and tone. "When we hear an accent, our brains automatically analyze and categorize the phonetic features, prosody, and intonation patterns," writes Neurolaunch. For most, this does result in copying the accent of the person with whom we're speaking. But those with ADHD might be more sensitive to auditory cues. This, "coupled with a reduced ability to filter out or inhibit the impulse to mimic…could potentially explain the increased tendency for accent mirroring."
While the article explains further research is needed, they distinctly state that, "Accent mirroring in individuals with ADHD often manifests as an unconscious mimicry of accents in social situations. This can range from subtle shifts in pronunciation to more noticeable changes in intonation and speech rhythm. For example, a person with ADHD might find themselves unconsciously adopting a Southern drawl when conversing with someone from Texas, even if they’ve never lived in the South themselves."
People are having their say online. On the subreddit r/ADHDWomen, a thread began: "Taking on accents is an ADHD thing?" The OP shares, "My whole life, I've picked up accents. I, myself, never noticed, but everyone around me would be like, 'Why are you talking like that??' It could be after I watched a show or movie with an accent or after I've traveled somewhere with a different accent than my 'normal.'
They continue, "Apparently, I pick it up fast, but it fades out slowly. Today... I'm scrolling Instagram, I watch a reel from a comedian couple (Darcy and Jeremy. IYKYK) about how Darcy (ADHD) picks up accents everywhere they go. It's called ADHD Mirroring??? And it's another way of masking."
(The OP is referring to Darcy Michaels and his husband Jeremy Baer, who are both touring comedians based in Canada.)
Hundreds of people on the Reddit thread alone seem to relate. One comments, "Omfg I've done this my whole life; I'll even pick up on the pauses/spaces when I'm talking to someone who is ESL—but English is my first language lol."
Sometimes, it can be a real issue for those around the chameleon. "I accidentally mimicked a waitress's weird laugh one time. As soon as she was out of earshot, my family started to reprimand me, but I was already like 'oh my god I don’t know why I did that, I feel so bad.'"
Many commenters on TikTok were shocked to find out this can be a sign of ADHD. One jokes, "Omg, yes, at a store the cashier was talking to me and she was French. She's like 'Oh are you French too? No, I'm not lol. I'm very east coast Canada."
And some people just embrace it and make it work for them. "I mirror their words or phrase! I’m 30. I realized I start calling everyone sweetie cause my manager does & I work at coffee shop."