Airport Security Pulled Her Aside for a Reason She Didn’t Know Was Possible – “New Fear Unlocked”

Sometimes a trip begins with an odd moment that can make a very private detail feel suddenly public – not only to a security officer, but also to the people waiting nearby. After reading about today’s incident, many of you might ask how you would have felt in the same situation, with the entire airplane knowing about a condition you have. A completely natural one, still, but not something everyone should know about.

It can also leave you wondering why travelers aren’t warned about something like this before they reach the airport.

Air travel has given me no shortage of unusual stories to cover. A Delta passenger refused to end a phone call and the entire plane eventually had to get off. A passenger confronted the man beside him over loud chewing, filmed the exchange, and millions of people ended up arguing over who had actually been ruder. Another passenger was inside an overhead bin. More recently, a seat dispute opened a much wider discussion about what passengers are – and aren’t – expected to do for each other.

The incident I am sharing today happened before the flight, during airport security screening.

Anyone who flies knows how stressful airports can become. I looked into the psychology behind airport stress earlier this year, and crowds, time pressure, uncertainty and constant small decisions all play a role.

Even airport clothing can start an argument. Tampa International Airport caused a huge reaction when it announced a pajama ban – before confirming the goal of the announcement.

Security can lead to a stressful situation too. You empty your pockets, take out whatever the airport requires, step into the scanner, and hope to be collecting your things again a few seconds later. Most of the time, you are. Harmless things can still flag you, though. I learned that personally during a security check at the United Nations headquarters in Vienna, although my situation involved a bag rather than a body scanner.

And airport body scanners can react to some things travelers probably wouldn’t expect.

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By the Way, Did You Know These Can Lead to Extra Screening?

A body scanner isn’t simply looking for forgotten coins or other pieces of metal. TSA’s Advanced Imaging Technology is designed to detect both metallic and non-metallic anomalies concealed on a passenger.

Some perfectly innocent things have also been associated with alarms or an additional check.

• Certain hairstyles and hair accessories. Braids, buns, thick hair, wigs, extensions and some hair accessories have been associated with scanner alarms and additional hair screening. ProPublica reported on the problem after speaking with TSA officers and reviewing government findings.
• Folds and layers of clothing. Tests of millimeter-wave scanners have recorded false alarms caused by folds in clothing and multiple layers of fabric.
• Sweat. This one surprised me too. Perspiration has been documented as a possible cause of false alarms because millimeter waves can reflect off water.
• Medical devices worn on the body. Travelers with attached medical devices may require additional screening. TSA says passengers don’t have to remove medical devices attached to their bodies, but a device may require additional screening.
• Items left in your pockets or under your clothing. Airport body scanners can detect both metallic and non-metallic anomalies, so something harmless that you forgot to remove can still result in an alarm and an additional check.

If you want to avoid problems before your next flight, I also have a guide to surprising prohibited items travelers sometimes pack without realizing they can cause trouble.

Lindsey Gurk’s experience involved something considerably more personal.

She Looked at the Screen – and Saw Two Warnings in the Same Area

So here we are – at this rather peculiar incident that so many people had something to say about – as you will see below. Creator Lindsey Gurk shared her airport security experience in a TikTok.

After going through the scanner, she was told she needed to step aside for additional screening.

Her first thought was that perhaps she had forgotten about a necklace. Then she looked at the monitor.

Lindsey described seeing a “yellow warning” and a “red hot warning”, “both in the crotch area.”

She started trying to work out what could possibly have caused it.

Then she remembered what she was wearing.

Lindsey was on the second day of her period and had on highly absorbent period underwear.

When the officer explained how the pat-down would be conducted and asked whether she needed to know anything beforehand, Lindsey told her:

“I’ve got my period panties on.”

The officer offered her the option of going to a private room.

Lindsey preferred to have the screening done where they were, although she gave the officer some advance warning about what she jokingly called the “diaper situation.”

The pat-down was completed, and she was allowed to continue.

Her retelling is funny, but I can imagine the actual moment being rather less amusing when you don’t yet know why a security screen is highlighting that particular part of your body.

22.3 million people watched her video, and many women had stories of their own.

Other Women Said It Had Happened to Them Too

Among the many replies was one from someone who said they work for TSA:

“As someone who works for TSA, I can confirm, this is very normal.”

And Lindsey was definitely not the only woman saying she had been stopped while on her period.

“THIS HAPPENED TO ME. I said, ‘I have my period panties on.’ She responded, ‘I don’t need to know that.’”

Someone replied simply: “I’d die.”

Another woman wrote: “Happened same for me also w the pad on 🤣🤣🤣”

“I had this happen to me at 15 years old and my first time flying 😭”

“THAT HAPPENED TO ME TOO I WAS SO HUMILIATED.”

One frequent flyer said it has become almost predictable:

“EVERY TIME I’m on my period and have to fly, I get stopped. I make it real awkward and keep eye contact with them the whole time 🤣🤣”

Another wrote: “This explains why I’ve been stopped every time I’ve been on my period 😳”

And one woman admitted she did not even tell the person she was traveling with what she suspected had happened:

“This happened to me too and I was SO embarrassed. I was with my bf and he was like, ‘What was that about?’ and I immediately acted clueless even tho i knew that’s what it was.”

Period underwear and pads were not the only things mentioned in the replies.

“Got flagged cause my DivaCup.”

“My IUD sets it off. Every. Time.”

Another person added: “My copper IUD did that at LAX.”

Not Every Crotch-Area Alarm Involved a Period

One woman pointed this out directly:

“My crotch got flagged and I wasn’t on my period 🤷🏼‍♀️”

Someone replied: “It can also be triggered by heavy perspiration 😅”

And another person responded: “That happened to me 😅🤣”

Clothing came up too. One commenter had a very different explanation for her alarm:

“It alerted my whole right leg one time, they pulled me aside quick. Turns out that thick plastic-y print they use to put graphics on pants is like, a total scan blocker. It was my Inuyasha pj’s.”

Others were simply surprised that menstrual products and airport screening could overlap at all.

“WHAT DO YOU MEAN MY PERIOD CAN SET OFF THE DETECTOR 😭💀”

“You genuinely learn something new everyday on this damn app.”

“New fear unlocked.”

One woman, however, was happy to have learned about the possibility before experiencing it herself:

“Honestly, thank you for the info. My anxiety already goes through the roof when I’m on my period. Now I’ll know what to expect if this happens!”

Another had a memorable response when she was offered a private room:

“I got flagged in the same area. The lady asked if I wanted to go in a private room. I said no ma’am I want witnesses.”

And one airport stop became a family story immediately:

“This happened to me and my daughter yelled, ‘Are you going to airport jail?!?’ 😂”

Then Came the Iron

Lindsey had wondered in her video whether the iron in menstrual blood could have something to do with the warning, and the comments quickly ran with the idea.

“My iron levels are so shit that I don’t need to worry about this.”

Another commenter joked: “My iron levels are so good, my period got flagged at security 😂😂😂😂”

Lindsey herself replied: “For real. I felt a lil confidence boost.”

Not everyone agreed with the iron explanation, though.

One commenter gave a much more detailed explanation:

“I really hate to be this person… 🫣 but it is HIGHLY unlikely, like basically impossible, for anyone to have the levels of iron necessary to set off a metal detector. The scanners we stand in at the airport do not just check for metal — most of those body scanners aren’t for metal at all — they look for unusual objects or areas that differ from the expected outline of the body. A very bulky pad, a heavily saturated menstrual pad, or folds in period underwear could occasionally appear unusual enough to prompt additional screening. The scanner isn’t detecting the iron in the blood, it’s simply flagging an unexpected shape or density. If your iron levels are high enough to set off a metal detector, then that is concerning and you should seek medical attention. I’m sorry for being this person!!!! 🩷💕”

And on this point, the commenter was right: the iron in menstrual blood is not what an airport body scanner is detecting.

Was the Scanner Detecting Iron in Her Blood?

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Lindsey suggested that the alert might have been connected to the iron in menstrual blood.

According to TSA documentation, Advanced Imaging Technology is designed to identify metallic and non-metallic anomalies concealed on passengers. Current TSA checkpoint systems use millimeter-wave technology and show the officer the location of an alarm on a generic body outline.

The officer is not looking at a detailed image of the passenger’s body. TSA’s current Checkpoint Requirements and Planning Guide says the systems protect passengers’ privacy by using a generic outline of a person to show officers where an alarm was detected.

Dr. Lora Shahine, a board-certified OB-GYN, later discussed Lindsey’s video and explained that the iron in menstrual blood isn’t metallic iron that an airport scanner would detect, according to Glamour UK.

An airport spokesperson has confirmed that this type of situation can happen, too. Fakt asked Marcin Wesołek, spokesperson for Poznań-Ławica Airport, about Lindsey’s case. He explained that newer body scanners can flag a thicker layer of underwear or material as something requiring an additional check. He also said this happens rarely and confirmed that the warning is not caused by the iron in menstrual blood.

Shape, density, fabric, and material around the body are more relevant to this type of screening. Thick absorbent underwear, a menstrual product, bunched fabric or another unexpected contour can potentially appear as an anomaly that needs to be checked.

What Happens If You Are Flagged in an Intimate Area?

TSA says passengers can request private screening for a pat-down. Its guidance also says pat-downs are conducted by an officer of the same sex, and travelers can ask to speak with a supervisor if they have questions or concerns about the process.

If you know you are wearing a menstrual product and feel comfortable mentioning it, telling the officer may make an already awkward situation easier to explain. You can also ask for privacy.

For me, the useful part of Lindsey’s story is knowing that something like this can happen at all. Imagine looking at a security monitor and seeing an alert over such a personal area without having the slightest idea what caused it.

Knowing that harmless clothing, products, and even body-related factors can lead to additional screening won’t prevent every pat-down. But at least you won’t be standing there thinking: What on earth did the scanner just find?

You can watch Lindsey’s original video here.

Violeta Loredana

Violeta-Loredana Pascal is a communications expert, business mentor, and the founder of Earth’s Attractions and PRwave INTERNATIONAL. A pioneer in the Romanian digital PR landscape since 2005, she holds a degree in Communication and Social Sciences from SNSPA Bucharest. Violeta is a senior trainer at AcademiadeAfaceri.ro, where she leverages over 20 years of experience to teach professional courses in PR strategy and workplace productivity. By blending high-level business consulting with a passion for holistic travel and wellness, she empowers solopreneurs to overcome procrastination, build profitable brands, and design a life of purposeful adventure.