Gabrielle Union wants women of all ages to feel more comfortable with having discussions about their reproductive health.
The NAACP-award-winning actress recently became a brand ambassador for Knix, an intimate apparel brand that sells leak-proof period underwear. Union is using the partnership to prompt more discussions around reproductive health for girls and women experiencing everything from periods to menopause, she told People Magazine.
“You might discover that you have endometriosis or fibroids or cysts and those crazy periods that feel like hemorrhages,” said Union, who is 51. “You have a baby. Nobody talks about the postpartum fun that is leaving your body for a minute.” And then, “when you go into perimenopause and your periods are 30 days…”
Growing up, Union said discussing topics related to women’s health was taboo in her household. The lack of transparency led her to rely on advice from her teenage peers and also promoted “misinformation on top of misinformation,” she told People. One untruth she once believed as a teen was that she could not use a tampon as a virgin.
“My parents just thought, ‘She’s smart so she must know,’” Union said, about her younger self knowing about periods. “‘We don’t really need to have a full on discussion.'”
This is not the first time Union has been candid about her body during different stages of life.
Union previously revealed to USA Today that she had a challenging time during perimenopause — the stage where a woman transitions to the end of her reproductive years. Starting at age 37, her symptoms included hair loss, mood swings, weight gain and brain fog. At one point, around age 48, she even experienced suicidal ideation.
Aiming to break the stigma around menopause, Union partnered last year with Clearblue’s Menopause Stage Indicator, a urine test that helps women understand what part of menopause they are in. Union also says she promotes conversation about women’s reproductive health by having open discussions with important women in her life, like her 77-year-old mother and two daughters, ages five and 16.
“I want Kaavia and Zaya to know me, not the illusion of what I want them to think,” she said.
