Navigating Shame and Salinity: Menstrual Hygiene Management among Women in Climate-Vulnerable Coastal Bangladesh

Abstract

Menstrual hygiene management (MHM) in climate-vulnerable regions is a critical public health issue, yet there remains a significant gap in understanding how specific environmental stressors, such as salinity intrusion and cyclones, intersect with socio-cultural norms to constrain women’s health. This study addresses this gap by exploring the lived experiences of women in Shyamnagar, a coastal upazila in Bangladesh characterized by severe environmental risks. Employing a qualitative research design, the study utilized in-depth interviews, focus group discussions, key informant interviews, and direct observations to capture the complex realities of MHM. The analysis revealed a widespread reliance on reusable cloth due to poverty, compromised by the necessity of washing in saline-contaminated water and drying in hidden, unhygienic spaces due to cultural taboos. The study’s primary contribution is the conceptualization of a “Vortex of Vulnerability.” This framework demonstrates how environmental exposure, infrastructural deficits, and stigma do not act in isolation but mutually reinforce unsafe practices, creating a downward spiral of adverse health outcomes that is further intensified during disaster-induced displacement. Consequently, the study argues that addressing MHM in such contexts requires moving beyond simple product distribution toward integrated, gender-responsive interventions that tackle this systemic cycle of vulnerability.