Working in a bar, the military, a hospital.... on your period
- Published
Most women have experienced period pain that affects their ability to work, a survey suggests.
But only a quarter had told their boss what was wrong.
The YouGov survey of 1,000 women was carried out for BBC Radio 5 live.
And it's an issue loads of you have been getting in touch about.
You've been telling Newsbeat about the cramps, nausea and migraines - and the reaction you got at work.
'I just don't get any sympathy'
Jen is 22 and works in a bar in Birmingham.
"The pain usually consists of a really bad cramping and burning sensation in my lower abdomen.
"It's very sudden and quite crippling. I usually find myself bending in half because it hurts so much.
"I'm a bartender so I'm on my feet a lot.
"If my boss is female they're sympathetic."
But she says some male bosses "scrunch up their faces and say they don't want to talk about it".
Jen says she now just works through the pain to avoid awkward conversations.
"I just don't get any sympathy because they don't understand at all.
"I've been made to think it's not a genuine reason because they don't care or understand."
'Every month it's a bit of a stress really'
Emma is 24 and works as a cardiology nurse.
"It feels like someone is twisting my uterus inside of me and trying to get every last ounce out of me.
"It feels like I've been punched or stabbed.
"I've tried various medications and I think I've finally found one that's starting to work for me.
"However sometime my symptoms are so bad I just can't go into work - because it's not fair on my patients.
"I can't give them the attention and the care that they deserve.
"Every girl has a period so you kind of feel like, if every girl has a period, then I shouldn't feel like I'm special and have time off just because I suffer.
"I want to be able to be one of those people where if I get my period it's no big deal."
'I've passed out from the pain before'
Bridie is 22 and works in the military.
"I massively suffered from period pains my whole life.
"During school it was too embarrassing to talk about, so I would just leave and my parents would have to pick me up.
"With previous bosses I've just text them and just left rather than talk about it.
"My current job is very accepting but it can be embarrassing to talk about.
"Luckily I work with quite a lot of women which is quite unusual in the military.
"However when I do have to talk about it to men it does make them feel uncomfortable."
What you can do
"It's a very difficult one - it's not necessarily something women feel confident talking about to their managers," employment lawyer Juliette Franklin tells Newsbeat.
"I suppose first and foremost, the advice always would be that if you can speak to your managers or to HR in confidence, make them aware of the problem and see if it's possible to come to some sort of arrangement or flexibility to deal with it before it becomes a legal problem.
"If someone feels they are being treated unfavourably, unfairly or discriminately - and ultimately they are being dismissed because of sickness absence - then there are a number of potential legal claims this may give rise to."
Head to the BBC Advice pages for more info and help on what to do if you suffer from painful periods.
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