Exploring Mother to Daughter Menstrual Communication Practice in Kolwa East Ward, Kisumu County

Abstract

Mothers play a vital role in the menstrual literacy of young girls which influences their preparedness, management, understanding and perceptions of menstruation. With a topic that is often laced with a culture of silence, the absence of or limited mother-daughter open communication can make young girls prone to danger of ill-prepared menstrual health management and infections. This study sought to investigate mother-to-daughter menstrual communication practice in Kolwa East, Kisumu County in Kenya. The objectives of this study were 1) To examine the kind of menstrual information that mothers at Kolwa East Ward are communicating to their adolescent daughters. 2) To identify the communication approach used by mothers in Kolwa East Ward in imparting menstrual knowledge to their adolescent daughters. 3) To examine factors that make mothers in Kolwa East Ward begin communicating menstrual information to their adolescent daughters. 4) To establish the challenges that mothers at Kolwa East Ward encounter/experience in communicating menstrual information to their adolescent daughters. Social Cognitive Theory and Theory of Planned Behavior guided this study. Additionally, the study adopted a phenomenological research design and purposive sampling technique. 10 participants were interviewed for this study and thematic analysis was employed. Mothers were found to be actively engaging in comprehensive menstrual health communication encompassing practical hygiene, sexual health, social-emotional guidance and early discussions before menarche. Storytelling and personal experiences were found to be the key strategies used by the mothers while discussing menstruation. Additionally, the age of communicating menstrual health information was shaped by developmental stages and social environments. Mothers navigated challenges such as knowledge gaps and their daughters’ varying receptiveness. Localized communication practices reinforced the critical role of mothers and how they actively shape their daughters’ understanding of menstruation. The emphasis on open dialogue and trust building reflected a conscious effort to overcome cultural taboos thus fostering positive communication patterns. Therefore, the study recommends that mothers should focus only on menstruation as a distinct subject, without integrating it with overall well-being or strategies to avert early unintended pregnancies during discussions about menstruation. There is need for enhanced menstrual health education to empower mothers with enriched knowledge and diverse communication strategies.