How Fathers Can Support Daughters Through Puberty & Beyond

If you are a girl, chances are you did not really know what a period was all about before it arrived. For most of us, it felt accidental. Some thought they had eaten something wrong, while others assumed they had hurt themselves. A few years ago, before the internet became part of our everyday lives, most girls who experienced their first period were left panicked and anxious.

As girls tried to understand the changes in their bodies, families and relatives, in the name of tradition, would often sideline them for a few days and later plan grand ceremonies with large gatherings of guests.

Today, many families are choosing a gentler path. 

Today, puberty is spoken about with more openness. Families, schools, and communities are slowly coming together to guide both parents and children, making the change easier to understand and embrace with care.

As we celebrate International Daughters Day on 28 September 2025, we share the story of a father who showed that small acts of understanding can change everything. For his daughter, her first period was not a source of shame but a memory of comfort and confidence.

A father who broke the rules

When Madhulika Dash (45) from Odisha looks back on her first period, it is her father she remembers most. Nimai Charan Dash, who was a retired colonel and an ENT specialist in the army in the 1970s and 80s, helped her face it without fear.

“My father is a doctor, and maybe that is why he was so progressive in his thoughts back then. If not for him, I am not sure how I would have handled my first period,” Madhulika shares.

Across India, the first signs of puberty are often treated as a big event. “It comes with a rule book. Girls are told not to play outdoors, not to play with boys, to calm down, and many more things,” she laughs. “In my family, my father was the only one who broke all these rules. He told me, ‘You be who you are and how you want to be. This is just a biological change, and you will be fine.’”

An army doctor’s guidance at home

When Madhulika got her first period, she was in Class 5.

“My father noticed it first and advised my mother to investigate and confirm. When it happened again the following month, he sat down with me and explained scientifically what my body was going through. He taught me how to keep myself clean, how to use a sanitary pad, and that I must avoid unclean washrooms,” she recalls.

Back in the 1980s, sanitary napkins were not like the ones we have today. “They were long pads that came with a belt, and my parents patiently explained how to use them. In the army, pads were made with gauze and cotton. My father even taught me how to make those at home so I could choose what felt most comfortable,” she says.

Madhulika fondly calls her father her “second mother”. While relatives held on to rules, her father set them aside — calling those restrictions a myth. “He focused more on my diet and what I should eat so that I remained healthy and my body adapted to the change in the right way.”

Now, as Madhulika goes through perimenopause, she still finds strength in the lessons her late father gave her decades ago. “I am so glad I had the chance to have my father explain things to me when I felt most vulnerable. Back then, it made me feel secure, and today it still gives me confidence,” she smiles.

Parents, periods, and the power of sport

What Madhulika found in her father’s care, many girls still struggle to receive in their own families. To change that, Bengaluru-based physiotherapist Manasi Satalkar is working at the grassroots, encouraging parents to support their daughters through sport.

Alongside her practice, she also works with a non-profit organisation – Simply Sport Foundation – that partners with women’s sports groups. After running successful campaigns in Uttar Pradesh, Odisha, and Bihar, the team is now in Rajasthan, reaching out to families with the same message.

“Most parents we meet during these campaigns say menstruation has been a major hurdle in their daughters’ excelling. However, the support girls who are already in sports receive is commendable,” she shares.

How small gestures leave a mark

Manasi recalls a campaign in Uttar Pradesh where a wrestling coach carried pads and lemon juice for his trainees so they could continue practice and stay energised.

In Bengaluru, she conducted a workshop on menstruation for women athletes. “Among the 30 mothers present, there was one father who had come along, simply to understand how he could make his daughter more comfortable during her periods. That stayed with me.”

For her, these small moments reflect a larger truth: when fathers show up, they change the story for their daughters. “It is important for everybody — men and women, mothers and fathers — to be part of these programmes so that our girls feel uplifted, secure, and comfortable enough to pursue whatever they want to.”

A note to dads

As we mark International Daughters Day, here is a reminder to all fathers: your role does not end with childhood. Whether it is the first period, teenage changes, or even menopause, daughters feel safest and most confident when their fathers stand by them with understanding and care.

When fathers stand beside their daughters at every stage, they do more than break taboos — they give them the confidence to walk through womanhood knowing they are never alone.

Edited by Khushi Arora