In India, if there’s any topic apart from sex that is not openly discussed, it is menstruation. A normal and naturally occurring phenomenon, periods come with a whole lot of taboos. This prompted Bandra resident Archana Sharma to set out on a journey to ‘shamelessly’ discuss two things about the uterus — menstruation and cervical cancer.
“My mission is called ‘Healthy Womb, Healthy Nation’ which started in 1993, when I was totally perturbed on seeing menstruating women being treated as untouchables. There are so many period taboos that for a lot of women, their menstrual cycles become like a curse,” says Sharma, who is also an actor. She says it is a very difficult subject to talk about to people, as not everyone is open to discuss it, but she has not given up.
Sharma travels to rural and urban areas across the nation to teach young girls and older women about the importance of menstrual hygiene, healthy practices to be adopted during periods and overall uterus health. “I speak to young school students who are expected to start their menstrual cycle and also women over 50. Even after menopause, they need to take care of themselves, especially their uterus. Else, It may lead to cervical cancer,” explains the motivational speaker.
Sharma adds that most women after hitting menopause do not take care of themselves and don’t keep a check on the condition of their uterus. If one does not maintain menstrual hygiene, then it could possibly lead to several medical issues.
She has conducted sessions on menstrual hygiene and cervical cancer in Shahapur, Mumbai, Delhi, Pune, Nasik and Surat, among other places. From streets, platforms, schools, corporates, CISF campus to balwadis — Sharma has conducted sessions at all kinds of places. Her only agenda is to create awareness around these two very important subjects in a woman’s life.
During the course of her menstrual hygiene awareness campaigns, Sharma realised that cervical cancer has been on a rise and it is also a topic that people shy away from. “Talking about cervical cancer is the need of the hour. So around, eight years ago, I started conducting awareness campaigns and screening camps,” shares Sharma, who is also a philanthropist.
“I feel blessed, as more and more people continue joining me in my journey. With each passing year, more and more gynaecologists and cancer specialists have joined the awareness sessions,” Sharma shares. She explains that these healthcare experts make presentations to show the people, as audio-visual elements help make them understand the subjects better. These experts have also conducted cervical cancer screening for free or at a minimal charge.
“At a few locations, women were detected of cervical cancer of various stages. And in such scenarios, we have guided the patients to the hospitals that have government schemes, which allows them to obtain treatment at subsidised rates,” she explains Sharma. In a handful of cases, some doctors had even provided free treatment. “I believe detection of cervical cancer is more important than prevention.”
Dr Mukesh Batra, founder of Dr Batra’s Healthcare, said Archana had been working hard towards the eradication of cervical cancer. “She is creating awareness about menstrual hygiene, and building a healthy nation with her mission Healthy Womb, Healthy Nation. Till date she has educated more than two lakh women from the rural and urban areas,” Dr Batra said.
The do-gooder in the past three decades, has donated around 80,000 sanitary pads to women in the rural villages. She believes that in order to establish a healthy nation, children need to be healthy, which is possible if the wombs of the mothers are safe, healthy and disease-free. “So if the mother is healthy, the nation will be healthy. Hence, ‘Healthy Womb Healthy Nation.”
Dr Mukesh Batra, Founder of Dr Batra's Healthcare |
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