There's Now an Emoji for Periods, and People Hope It Will Normalize Menstruation

There are a whole lot of new emojis coming in 2019, but one of them is making much more news than any of the others.

We are thrilled to announce that we are actually getting a #PeriodEmoji!

It is through your support that we can now celebrate that the @unicode have announced that we will get our first ever #PeriodEmoji in March 2019 ?

Find out more here ▶https://t.co/dKd4WwEShX pic.twitter.com/CdyG5fapAx

— PlanInternational UK (@PlanUK) February 6, 2019

There is still a lot of stigmatization of periods in our culture, and the hope is that the period emoji will help to normalize what is obviously a very natural occurrence.

Plan International UK is the organization that got the ball rolling after discovering that 48% of women and girls in the UK between the ages of 14-21 feel embarrassed by their periods.

The organization partnered with NHS Blood and Transplant to push for a blood droplet emoji that would symbolize periods and the importance of blood donation.

A number of original designs were created and voted on by the public going back to 2017.

Photo Credit: Twitter

The design with panties with a drop of blood on them was the most popular but was eventually rejected, and the drop of blood emoji was adopted instead.

Although many people praised the new emoji and the awareness it will hopefully bring to menstruation, some believe the design falls short.