You are a 10 year old girl from Midland, Texas. You go to Midland Middle School. Today is just like any other day. This morning you ate breakfast with your mom, your dad, your older sister, and your Tabbey cat named Rufus. How are you getting to school today?
[[Take the bus]]
[[Hitch a ride with your older sister]]
When you're sitting on the bus you overhear Zoey and Lizzy talking about something behind you. Lizzy says, "Oh my god, did you hear about what happened to Anabel?....SO embarassing." You wonder what happened.
[[Turn around and ask them what they are talking about]]
[[Tune them out]]
Your older sister asks you to grab her a piece of gum from her purse. You see something that is cylindrically shaped in a bright yellow wrapper.
[[Ask your sister: "Is this candy?"]]
[[Ask your sister: "What is this?"]]
[[Ignore it and hand your sister a piece of gum]]
Your sister says, "No, don't worry about it." But doesn't answer your question. She turns on the radio.
You are still confused, but you decide not to ask anything else. You spend the rest of the ride listening to the radio and looking out the window.
You guys arrive at school.
[[Go to school]]
She says, "Oh, You don't need to worry about what that is until you're older!"
You feel dismissed
[[Ask again]]
[[Don't ask again->Go to school]]
[[Go to school]]
In a classic Lizzy fashion, she shuts you down and says "You wouldn't understand." You blush and [[turn back around->Go to school]]
You ignore them.
[[Go to school]]
You arrive at school.
Your morning is uneventful. You eat a grilled cheese for lunch even though you're lactose intolerant. After lunch you are sitting in biology class when you feel a sharp pain in your lower belly.
It doesn't feel like any stomach ache you've felt before, but you think it must be the grilled cheese you ate for lunch.
[[Go to the bathroom.]]
[[Go to the nurse.]]
[[Stay in your seat and wait it out until class is over]]
[[Go to the bathroom.]]
[[Go to the nurse.]]
[[Stay in your seat and wait it out until class is over]]
When you go to the bathroom and sit down to pee, you realize your underwear has blood on it and your pee is red. What do you do?
[[Freak out]]
[[Stay calm]]
You walk to the nurses office and explain that you are feeling a sharp pain in your stomach. You tell her you ate a grilled cheese for lunch and you think that might be the problem. She gives you TUMS and sends you home for the day.
[[Go Home->Go Home (2)]]
The bell rings and you stand up. Lizzy from the bus snickers at you, "Looks like Mother Nature left you a present."
You don't know what she's talking about, but her tone is nasty, and you feel your stomach drop.
Other people are starting to look and point at you, and your face starts heating up.
[[Run out of the room]]
You still have no idea what's going on.
[[Google your symptoms]]
[[Call your mom at work]]
[[Wait for your sister to come home]]
You start crying and feel helpless. Someone hears you crying and asks whats wrong. You say, "I'm bleeding." They tell you to go to the nurse.
[[Go to the Nurse->Go to the Nurse (2)]]
You clean yourself up. You don't know what's happening. You're scared and you decide to go to the [[nurse.->Go to the Nurse (2)]]
You run out of the room and hear people snickering and laughing behind you.
[[Go to the bathroom to see what Lizzy is talking about]]
You see a red blood stain on your new white pants. You're scared and embarassed. You stuff your underwear with toilet paper.
[[Go to the Nurse->Go to the Nurse (2)]]
Your mom doesn't answer the phone because she is the CEO of Fortune 500 Company.
[[Wait for your sister to come home]]
An hour later, your sister comes home. You explain to her what happened to today and you are in tears.
Your sister [[explains everything]].
You go to the nurse and tell her that you have a sharp pain in your stomach, and that there is blood on your pants and underwear.
The nurse tells you not to worry but she does not tell you what is wrong with you. She says, "You should have this conversation with your mother" and [[sends you home.->Go home]]
You go home, and the pain in your stomach persists. After a while you have to go to the bathroom, and you notice that there is blood on your underwear and your pee is red.
You are confused, and a bit scared. You wonder if the pain and the blood are connected, and you begin to panic.
[[Google your symptoms]]
[[Call your mom at work]]
[[Wait for your sister to come home]]
You don't know what's going on, but the internet probably does. You get on to the family computer and pull up Web md, and enter your symptoms, you hold your breath as you wait for the results to load.
OH NO!
<insert image>
This is serious, but you don't want to freak out just yet. You need a second opinion.
[[Call your mom at work]]
[[Wait for your sister to come home]]
You ask your sister what the wrapped cylinder in her bag is. She looks over at you and shrugs, then she begins to expain that it is called a tampon, and [[she tells you what tampons are for.->explains everything]]
Puberty is a confusing time, a time of change and growth. Getting your period is simply another stage in developing and growing. About once a month, a little egg will leave one of your ovaries and travel down a fallopian tube. This signals to your uterus to line itself with extra blood and tissue in an effort to prepare for pregnancy. If the egg isn’t fertilized however, it won’t travel to the uterus. Instead, the uterus sheds its extra blood and tissue. This is your period! It’s nothing to be afraid of. You can use pads, tampons, or other forms of menstrual devices for your period. There is nothing to be ashamed of and soon enough, you’ll get used to it! And its a beautiful part of a woman's experience that you'll come to love and embrace!