Deaf women “excluded” from menstrual health conversations at UK unis
Deaf women face barriers to menstrual health information and support at UK universities, according to a study involving 12 BSL users.
Researchers believe it is the first study of its kind.
Participants described difficulties discussing sensitive health issues because universities and healthcare services often rely on hearing-centred communication systems.
The study was led by Professor Jemina Napier from Heriot-Watt’s School of Social Sciences and involved interviews and co-design workshops with 12 deaf women who use British Sign Language (BSL) and work or study in UK universities.
Napier said: “Our findings show that deaf women face many of the same menstrual health challenges as hearing women, but they also encounter additional barriers because information and support are rarely designed around their language and communication needs.
“The burden of constantly adapting to hearing-centred systems can leave deaf women feeling excluded from conversations about their own health.”
Participants reported a lack of accessible information about menstruation, endometriosis, fibroids, perimenopause and menopause, despite working in highly educated environments.
They also reported feeling excluded from informal conversations where hearing colleagues often share experiences and learn about menstrual health.
Researchers identified four main issues affecting participants: communication, access to information, interpreter dynamics and factors including ethnicity, geography and additional disabilities.
Many participants said they preferred discussing menstrual health directly in BSL but rarely had that opportunity because managers and healthcare professionals did not sign.
Instead, they often communicated through interpreters or written English, which some said reduced privacy, comfort and confidence when discussing personal health issues.
Napier said: “A recurring theme was that of the ‘deaf tax’, which refers to the additional emotional and practical effort deaf women need to continually undertake to explain their needs or secure support.
“It’s ongoing emotional labour and fatigue and reduced participation in menstrual-health related activities.”
BSL interpreters were seen as essential, but participants said their involvement could raise concerns about confidentiality, trust and accuracy, particularly when discussing sensitive topics.
Several highlighted that male interpreters appeared uncomfortable discussing menstrual health.
The researchers also found that existing menstrual health information is largely produced in English and then translated into BSL, rather than being created in BSL from the outset.
Abigail Gorman, deaf independent facilitator, health policy consultant and co-author of the report, said: “To be in charge of your own health, you need to be able to recognise when something’s wrong, name it, and ask for help – in an appointment where you can actually be understood. That’s the whole chain.
“But if the information was never accessible in the first place, deaf women can’t even get to step one. If the appointment itself isn’t accessible either, that breaks the chain all over again, when it matters most.
“BSL-first health resources aren’t a nice-to-have; they’re how deaf women get to be equal participants in decisions about our own health.”
Napier said: “The deaf women we interviewed want more visual, culturally appropriate resources designed specifically for them – not a crude translation of existing material.
“BSL accessibility should be the default for menstrual health information and events.
“We need improved interpreter policies and BSL-first educational resources.
“The university sector should also establish a UK-wide, deaf-led health and wellbeing network.
“All these changes would reduce communication barriers and improve access to menstrual health support for deaf women working in higher education.”
