- - 'Survivor' Finalist Sophi Balerdi Gets Real About Menstrual Cycles During the Show

Emy LaCroixDecember 27, 2025 at 8:37 PM

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From the very beginning, Survivorhas been all about keeping yourself alive and strong in the wild. Contestants have been seen catching fish or eating worms for food, shivering through the night in their makeshift shelters during rainstorms, brushing their teeth with sticks, and joking about going to the bathroom in the water, so what happens when a woman on the show menstruates? Season 49 finalist Sophi Balerdi shared what it's really like on Dec. 26.

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"Here's the deal with the periods on Survivor," she began in an honest Instagram video. "It is a TV show where we're actually starving. We're actually pooping in the ocean, and I think for this reason, the women have it a lot harder. The game's a lot harder because we have to deal with our menstrual cycle."

However, that doesn't mean you have to make your own sanitary napkins out of palm fronds. "Luckily, the people behind the scenes on Survivor really care about their players," she continued. "You're gonna be in good hands if you ever apply. There's a doctor on standby. There are feminine products if you need [them]."

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That said, it's definitely "still difficult," according to the runner-up, who lost to her bestie Savannah Louie in the Season 49 finale in December 2025. She said "bleed[ing] through your underwear and your tampons," "hav[ing] cramps", and "hav[ing] mood swings" can still lead to difficulty in the game.

Related: ‘Survivor 49’ Favorite Reveals Grueling Pre-Show Diet and Exercise Routine

"If you've got cloudy judgment, you might not take someone's advantage, and you might lose the game," she joked, as she herself failed to steal Steven Ramm's Block a Vote with her Knowledge Is Power, while many believed she should have taken her ally Rizo Velovic's idol instead.

Balerdi, who was one of only two players who made it out of the unlucky Kele tribe after losing every single challenge in the early stages of the game, was also unfortunate when it came to her cycle.

"A lot of women get lucky in that because we're starving, they don't get their period at all," she explained in the video. "I was unlucky and got my period two times in the entire time that I played, so I had it in the first six days of the game, and I had it in the last six days of the game. It was very uncomfortable."

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Despite the added challenges, Balerdi made it all the way to No. 2, and she's proud of herself, Louie, and second runner-up Sage Ahrens Nichols, for what they achieved. "That is why women are amazing," she said. "On my season, the final three were all women, and a woman won. So was it hard to have your period on Survivor? Hell yes. But will it stop you from winning the game and a million dollars? No, because women can do anything."

This story was originally published by Parade on Dec 27, 2025, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”