Tuca & Bertiehas never shied away from exploring difficult topics. InSeasons 1 and ???? ???2, the cartoon/buddy comedy navigated questions of mental health, codependent relationships, coming of age, and sexual assault. With the premiere of Season 3, Lisa Hanawalt's audacious animated series introduces another seldom-covered topic on television: menstrual health.

The recently premeried Season 3 episode 2, “The Pain Garden,” follows Tuca as she tries to get a diagnosis for her extremely painful periods. The episode starts off with a young Tuca getting her first period and asking her aunt why it’s so painful. “Welcome to womanhood,” says Tuca’s aunt. “Population: Shut up about it.”

I related to this frank and distressing scene. When I first got my period at 11 years old, my mother told me not to tell anyone about it, for fear that I would get picked on because I was so young. Like Tuca, I quite literally “shut up about it,” and didn’t tell a single soul for an entire year. I suffered through the pain and confusion in silence and didn’t truly feel comfortable talking about menstrual health until I was well into high school. “The Pain Garden” explores the struggles of speaking up about menstrual health in a society that still very much considers it taboo. The ep also reveals the dangers of invalidating menstrual pain in medical settings.

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Throughout the episode, Tuca suffers from debilitating pain, nausea, and heavy bleeding, all of which are invalidated and dismissed by family, peers, and medical professionals alike. In anticipation of her period, Tuca experiences bouts of anxiety and panic that disrupt her everyday life and relationships. 

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To illustrate this distress, Hanawalt employs her fantastical style of animation to transform Tuca's body. Every time Tuca gets her period, her body is engulfed by dirt and flora, rendering her a beautiful garden that is stuck in place. Tuca spends hours at the hospital trying to get a diagnosis for what seems to be endometriosis or polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). When Tuca tells her gynecologist about how she thinks another symptom is related to her menstrual pain, her doctor refuses to consider it, telling her: “I’m the sheriff of Pussytown, and that’s across the county line.” Tuca’s frustration is tangible and echoes a sentiment that I’ve often felt at the doctor’s office. Despite advocating for herself, Tuca is reduced to a single body part under examination and dismissed.  

By the end of the episode, Tuca’s condition remains undiagnosed – an unfortunate but realistic conclusion for many people with irregular periods. With the overturning of Roe V. Wade reigniting discussions on menstrual and reproductive health, “The Pain Garden” could not come at a more relevant time. People with periods are often invalidated for their experiences. So, Tuca's journey is frightfully familiar. Thankfully, the episode concludes with Tuca’s partner watering her garden, validating and accepting Tuca for her pain. 

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I still think about how anxious I felt about periods at 11 years old, and how helpful it would’ve been to be exposed to the existence of menstruation on television. Perhaps I would’ve felt more comfortable talking about it to my friends at school, or even more honest with my doctors when they’d ask if my cycle was painful. I do know that I would’ve been more confident in my body and voice. If breaking away from period taboos can do that now for young people with periods, I hope that “The Pain Garden” is just the beginning of many more discussions about menstrual health onscreen. 

Tuca & Bertieis now streaming on HBO Max. 

Topics HBO Streaming