Disability, Menstruation, and Gender

Disability, Menstruation, and Gender

Ela Przybylo

Associate Professor in the Department of English and Core Faculty in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies, Illinois State University, USA

Abstract

Grounded in critical disability studies, menstrual justice frameworks, and my recently published book, Ungendering Menstruation (University of Minnesota Press, 2025), this session explores the overlaps between disability, chronic pain, gender, and menstruation. 

I introduce two concepts to help us think about the overlaps of menstruation, disability, and gender. First, I look at “period trauma,” a term coined by Charis Chambers, a U.S. based Black OB/GYN and social media influencer known as the “Period Doctor.” Menstrual or period trauma effectively describes the many forms of “sustained psychological, social, or emotional injury/distress related to or caused by menstruation” (Chambers qtd. in Bunch 2021). Exploring the utility of this concept, I argue for the importance of recognizing “menstrual disabilities” that might include endo, fibroids, PCOS, TSS, or chronic pain. Second, I critique the ways that menstruation has undergone a “womaning” that binds it to womanhood on biologically essentialist terms. I argue that for a menstrual justice framework to be developed, we must stay attuned to the interruption of transphobic and misogynist gender essentialism in regard to menstruation.

Bio

Ela Przybyło (she.they) is an Associate Professor in English and Core Faculty in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies at Illinois State University. She is the author of Asexual Erotics: Intimate Readings of Compulsory Sexuality (Ohio State University Press, 2019) and Ungendering Menstruation (University of Minnesota Press, 2015), as well as co-editor of On the Politics of Ugliness (Palgrave, 2018), and The Routledge International Handbook of Global Asexualities and Aromanticisms (Routledge, forthcoming). They are also a founding editor of the independent, open-access online journal Feral Feminisms.

Crip & Queer Seminar Spring 2026

The Crip & Queer Seminar series is hosted by the division of Gender Studies. After the seminars, which are open to students, staff, and the general public, we serve fika in the kitchen on the fourth floor of Gamla Lungkliniken. 

Warmly welcome!

Contact

• Elin Lundell elin [dot] lundell [at] genus [dot] lu [dot] se (elin[dot]lundell[at]genus[dot]lu[dot]se)
• Irina Schmitt irina [dot] schmitt [at] genus [dot] lu [dot] se (irina[dot]schmitt[at]genus[dot]lu[dot]se)

Accessibility

The room is accessible for wheelchair users (automatic doors, accessible toilet, stair lift).