November 8th 2024.
Steph McGovern, known for her work on Channel 4, recently shared a personal and "mortifying" experience she had while on an airplane. In a brave move, she detailed her "mortifying" experience of having a period leak while in public.
The former presenter of the show "Steph's Packed Lunch," who is 42 years old, was on the verge of tears when she began bleeding while on an aeroplane. She explained the fear of feeling a "gush of blood" as she stood up, and admitted to being "in full panic mode" while unable to clean herself up.
After sharing her ordeal with her thousands of followers, Steph has received praise for "normalizing" conversations around periods and "sharing the reality" that millions of people deal with daily. She began her Instagram post by saying, "Like lots of us, I've been having painful, heavy periods since I was 12," and went on to talk about the hormones, embarrassing leaks, and crippling pain that are often associated with periods.
Steph recalled boarding a flight to London for work earlier this week, with plans to go straight into a meeting to discuss a new TV show. However, Mother Nature had other plans as she began suffering from stomach cramps during the flight. She was on the fourth day of her period and had already taken painkillers, so she "cracked on prepping for work, trying to ignore it."
Upon landing, Steph tried to ignore the "gushing" feeling, as she was wearing both a tampon and a liner, and had black jeans on. "Then another more powerful gush came and this time I felt blood running down my leg," she shared. "I looked down and saw the blood, which was now on my white trainers. I was mortified."
She continued, "Not only was I surrounded by businessmen, I could feel more and more blood coming out. I had no idea what to do." Steph tried to wipe the blood off her leg and trainers with her coat sleeve, hoping no one would notice. She was relieved that her coat was long enough to cover her body, but she didn't know what was going to happen next.
Steph had to take a bus to the terminal, all while trying not to cry. She eventually got to the bathroom and was able to clean herself up as best she could. "Thank god I had some spare knickers and trousers in my case!" she exclaimed.
From there, she went to her meeting "pretending nothing had happened" while also "praying it wasn't going to happen again." In her Instagram post, Steph acknowledged that such stories are "familiar" for many people and expressed her frustration with how "we end up embarrassed" about periods when it's "not our fault."
Steph shared a selfie of herself just after she had managed to clean up her mishap, along with a photo of the blood dripping down her ankle. After sharing her vulnerable post, she received an outpouring of supportive messages from fans and celebrities alike.
Steph previously worked for the BBC as their main business presenter on BBC Breakfast. She then hosted "Steph's Packed Lunch" on Channel 4 from 2020 to 2023, when the show was axed. She is now a freelance journalist and television presenter.
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