Transgender YouTuber Jamie Raines on having periods as a man
Transgender guy Jamie Raines is changing peoples misconceptions around periods.
Transgender man and YouTuber Jamie Raines has opened up about experiencing periods, saying they can be “hard to navigate” while trans.
Jamie stopped having periods after starting testosterone but they resumed three years later when switching testosterone medication.
He spoke to PinkNews about how he deals with “the very unwelcome guest” as a transgender man.
Watch Jamie Raines’ interview here:
Periods aren’t only for women
Jamie shares his experiences with periods online, changing the misconception that periods are only experienced by women.
Explaining that “trans men can have periods and so can non-binary people as well.”
I just remember, again, being stuck on the toilet crying just not knowing what to do… it just kind of shook me.
“It can be quite hard to navigate having periods as a guy when everything to do with periods is aimed very much towards women,” he said.
Explaining why buying sanitary products makes him uncomfortable he said: “The advertising and packaging are very female orientated”
Periods as a source of gender dysphoria
Recalling what it was like to start his period as a teen he said, “Whenever it happened I felt very down.”
For him, periods brought feelings of gender dysphoria something which made it hard to get out of bed.
When he started having periods again he said he was “brought straight back to that very dysphoric feeling that I had years ago.”
He added: “I just remember, again, being stuck on the toilet crying just not knowing what to do… it just kind of shook me.”
Surviving periods as a transgender man
“Being further along in my transition helped me to get over having periods,” he said.
He explained that being more comfortable in his own skin has helped him face those times of the month, but admitted that navigating sanitary towels with boxers can be quite challenging.
