About

Women face higher sports injury risks than men, particularly during menstruation, yet this is often overlooked. Gornall (2024) states that injuries are more likely in certain menstrual phases, with players up to six times more prone in the days before their period. Nuffield Health (2023) speak about that many teenage girls lose interest in sports after starting menstruation, with some too embarrassed to participate.

This lack of tailored information leaves younger athletes unsupported. As both a national lacrosse player and artist, I see potential in combining sport, art, and science to challenge stigma, raise awareness, and foster empathy (Thivat, 2023). Art offers a powerful platform to express experiences and communicate complex issues to wider audiences. My work explores whether creative practice can highlight and reduce menstruation-related injury stigma in sport.

 

Stigma and Sport

Stigma appears in three forms:

• Self-stigma – Internalising negative stereotypes, reducing confidence and enjoyment (Goodwin, 2017; Thedinga et al., 2021).

• Structural stigma – Systemic inequalities in resources, access, and opportunities for women in sport (Kim and Dawson, 2023; Hedden, 2017).

• Public stigma – Prejudice and discrimination from society, reinforced through stereotypes (Pattyn et al., 2014).

 

Examples from Michael Jordan (Edwards, 2013), Chloe Kelly, and Gareth Thomas (BBC News, 2022) show how confronting stigma can inspire change.

 

Participatory Art-Methods: Photovoice

Photovoice—a participatory method combining photography and storytelling—allows athletes to share lived experiences, fostering openness and challenging stereotypes. It’s been used in various disciplines but not yet for menstruation-related injury stigma in sport (Courcy and Koniou, 2022). This gap presents an opportunity to combine art and research to address these issues directly.

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My practice uses photovoice and cyanotype prints to visualise menstruation and injury in sport. Ten national lacrosse players share photographs that tell their stories, while cyanotypes symbolise both physical and emotional healing.

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Autoethnographic Arts Practice

Auto-ethnography—blending personal experience with cultural critique—can disrupt taboos and humanise stigmatised experiences (Bartleet, 2021). Artists tackling taboo topics amplify marginalised voices, challenge misconceptions, and create empathy. Examples include Tracey Emin’s My Bed, Nan Goldin’s photography, Rupi Kaur’s menstrual imagery, and Mellissa Monsoon’s work on illness and body image.

 

I also create auto-ethnographic works—videos, paintings, and sculptures—that reflect my experiences as an athlete, including Wear and Tear (fabric and muscle-tape sculpture) and a goalie self-portrait exploring mental resilience. These works invite discussion, challenge stereotypes, and highlight overlooked aspects of female sport.

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Project Aims

Art can challenge stigma, broaden understanding, and encourage empathy. By addressing menstruation-related injuries through participatory and auto-ethnographic art, athletes and artists can reclaim narratives, share experiences, and spark social change.

More research is needed on menstrual cycle impacts in sport, but art-sport-science collaborations can drive cultural shifts, inspire dialogue, and promote inclusion. In today’s polarised world, such creative engagement is not just valuable—it is essential.​

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Research Questions:

• Do creative encounters with sports-related injuries, specifically those obtained during the menstrual cycle, promote more inclusive dialogue and understanding and aid in reducing stigma.

• Through art, it is possible to raise awareness about this important issue and challenge the associated stereotypes and stigma surrounding it?

Aims:

• Using photovoice, ask athletes to document their own social experiences as female athletes, plus injuries sustained and during menstruation.

• Develop an exhibition using photovoice outcomes that raises awareness of menstruation-related sports injuries and social stigmas affecting female athletes.

• To use autoethnographic practice through painting and sculpture to expose and challenge stigma around menstruation, injury, and female athletic identity.

• The project will culminate in an exhibition staged in traditionally male-dominated spaces, reclaiming visibility for women’s embodied sporting experiences.

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