A dad's Facebook post is going viral for the way he handled his daughter's first period
Your first period is always a weird one. You know it's going to happen eventually, but you're not always expecting it. One day, everything is normal, then BAM. Puberty hits you in a way you can't ignore.
One dad is getting attention for the incredibly supportive way he handled his daughter's first period. "So today I got 'The Call,'" Maverick Austin started out a Facebook post that has now gone viral.
The only thing is, Austin didn't know he got "the call." His 13-year-old thought she pooped her pants. At that age, your body makes no sense whatsoever. It's a miracle every time you even think you know what's going on.
Austin went over to the school to help her out. "So I rush to school take her a change of undies, put the old ones in a bag and rush back to my conference call and threw the bag in the kitchen trash," he said.
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"A few hours later, she calls and I had to put a very important work meeting I'm hosting on hold which I never do. She says, 'Dad it happened again.' I'm confused and very annoyed because I'm super busy. I yell 'just wipe your butt better then stuff toilet paper in the back of your pants and I'll have to call you back in an hour!'"
Austin eventually figured out what was up, then put everything on hold so he could support his daughter during this milestone. "I interrupt my project meeting and explain to my banking colleagues that I'm VERY sorry but I have to go! I'm racing to the school while calling them telling the nurse to go find my child! [I'm] speeding and having a panic attack because my child called me for help and I just left her to die on the battlefield!" he wrote.
"I run into the office and she's standing there very calmly looking at me and says, 'Dad, I officially started my first . . .' and I stopped her and said, 'I already know Avi . . . it hit me a few minutes after I hung up on you.' The stress of raising a daughter!"
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Austin's stellar parenting skills don't end there. "Later on she asked, 'Don't I get something like when a tooth falls out?' So I snuck off to the store and when she got out of the shower I told her the period fairy brought her something."
Can we please start the Period Fairy as a thing, now? It would really take the edge off of realizing you're now doomed to periods once a month every month - and all that goes with it - until what feels like the end of time.
It's commendable that this dad was there for his daughter when she needed him. Entering womanhood can be wonky, but it's easier when you have supportive parents to lean on. We might have a nominee for the Dad of the Year Award.
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Mom praises teen boy for the way he helped her daughter with a period emergency
This article originally appeared on 02.21.19
I know firsthand that getting your period is never a convenient event, especially when it's your very first one and you don't have tampons or pads (or diva cups ooh la la) handy.
Depending on what you're wearing, a leak can show up in ways that announce your cycle to the whole world — and when you're a teenager that can invariably lead to teasing from cruel peers.
Womanhood can truly feel like a curse when you first enter it.
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Most of the time, when we hear embarrassing period anecdotes, the girl in question is riding solo with her shame-stained pants, or maybe there's a kind woman with tampons in the public restroom.
It's rare that a guy, let alone a teen boy, is the unlikely hero in a tale of periods. However, a recent Reddit post served as the delightful exception to the rule of terrifying teen boys.
When a boy noticed his female classmate's period stain on the bus, he took the high road rather than making her a punchline.
Here's what the post in full:
"My daughter started her period on the bus ride home today. A boy a year older than her...that she doesn't really know...pulled her aside and whispered in her ear that she had a stain on the back of her pants and gave her his sweater to tie around her waist so she could walk off the bus. She said she was kind of embarrassed and originally said it's okay, but the boy insisted and told her 'I have sisters, it's all good!' If you are this boy's mom, I want to say thank you and that you are raising him right!! We hear so many bad things about today's youth and I wanted to share something positive!"
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People on Reddit were happy to hear about such a mature and positive exchange between the teens, particularly how the boy expressed empathy without even knowing her well.
The whole exchange is a testament to how important it is to educate kids about how bodies of all genders work, so it's normal and not shameful.
"What an awesome kid," Redditor Imrhien wrote. "This highlights the importance of teaching boys about girls bodies, and vice versa. Understanding engenders compassion."
It's also notable how awkward it may have been for him to approach her, one of the reasons teens often take the low road is because kindness is a form of vulnerability.
"I'm guessing neither your daughter nor the boy are very old, maybe around 15," cli7 wrote on Reddit. "It would be so tempting to make fun of her. And even if not that, very awkward to have this conversation with a stranger. He must have been awfully nice for your daughter to react how she did I have a feeling your daughter made a friend for life."
In short, this is the right way to raise and kind and respectful kid.
"This is how we should raise our sons and daughters," Redditor binarydaaku wrote.