Getting your first period can be a confusing, terrifying experience. And if the people close to you make a big deal about it, that can make it even more embarrassing. But menstruation and periods is still such a stigmatized topic, that speaking publicly about it is incredibly necessary, especially from men. Recently, Prince William was asked if he’s talking to his daughter, 11-year-old Princess Charlotte about menstruation. Of course, that means that people on social media began discussing his response. And many believe that this is one of those moments where saying nothing would have been the best thing to do.
Destigmatizing menstruation among men is an important topic.
On June 3, 2026, the Prince of Wales took part in a panel discussion at SXSW London where he spoke with Vivi Lin, founder of the NGO “With Red.” The organization deals with the stigma around menstruation, and during the conversation, she asked him for his thoughts as the father of a tween daughter.
“I took the courage to ask him a really important question: I asked him, ‘Are you ready to talk to your daughter about periods?’ and how he is preparing,” she told People.
“He answered genuinely and smiled and said, ‘This is a topic I am not familiar with,’ and it was really lovely,” Lin said. ‘But he said he knows it is going to be a conversation that he would need to have in the future. He said he will try to do so with the help of his wife.”
According to Lin, William “acknowledged there is still menstrual stigma across the world and a lot of people don’t know about it.”
“Coming from Prince William, that he knows he knows he needs to talk to his daughter — and he needs the help of his wife to talk to her about it — will be really important for a lot of dads with daughters because a lot of people are struggling and don’t know how to talk to their daughters about periods.”
The story made its way over to Reddit.
In the r/RoyaltyTea sub-Reddit, some commenters pointed out that the royal dad was taking a fairly passive position in the discussion of menstruation and periods.
“Some girls start at age 10. The talk should have happened already,” one person wrote. Someone replied, snarkily writing, “I’m sure the governess has addressed it.”
“It’s important for dads with daughters who don’t know how to talk about it but he said he’d let Kate handle it???” another person asked.
Another commenter wrote, “I’m all for de-stigmatization of menstruation, including among fathers of girls, but this feels wishy washy.”
People had strong opinions about whether or not this was a conversation Prince William should have publicly.
One commenter wrote, “This is an invasion of privacy. The person asking was not being courageous, and she should have known better.”
“I absolutely would have been completely mortified if my parents had done this,” one person commented. “Talk about it, yes, it’s important, but I would have been so mad that they referenced me in particular. Feels like he thinks the kids don’t need privacy/are just convenient props.”
“Omg could you imagine if you were a kid and your dad started talking to the press about your period? What the hell? They don’t tell us what’s going on with Katherine’s health we don’t need to know about Charlotte’s period. Yeah sure smash the stigma but give the girl a chance to choose to do that for herself,” another person wrote.
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