I had my first period at 8. Thankfully at that point I’d already had the playground “talk” with older friends who had done sex education so I knew what they were but it didn’t make it any less traumatising to me.

I think as we get older we forget that the information you tell kids often becomes filed away until it becomes relevant. Yes your daughter is nine and that seems like a huge deal to cover such a serious reality at that age, but most countries start sex education at 11 specifically because of periods and what they mean for girls and women.

You understand your kids maturity but don’t mistake innocence for naivety. The information won’t be relevant to her until she’s actually in that situation. She will still have her innocence.