Period poverty is real - how to deal?

To be fair, as a cup user but tampax hatter. (Other brands seem ok.) No way would I have got on with a cup at 14. My first experiences with tampons were bad enough. (before I realised other brands were ok.). But info on them and reusable cloth yes,

Mooncups handed out in schools and available at dr's clinics etc in the same way tampons etc are. Anyone who can use a tampon can use a mooncup and they're reusable so don't have to keep buying. I appreciate Tampons are touted by the company's who make them though so funding would be needed first but it's essential for many.

I've always said that if men suffered period (like) pain or PMT there would have been a 'cure' by now!

It's interesting about the period pain. As a line manager I've always used the approach that if it (period/menopause symptoms etc) is too painful or so difficult to manage that you need time off work, then you also need to see a doctor. Being a woman and having these biological functions interfere with every day life is not acceptable. I wonder what message girls are being given in school. Many women with endometriosis are not diagnosed quickly enough because we are all encouraged to just get on with it.

www.heygirls.co.uk/ - this company does a lot of good.

mobile.twitter.com/BristolOneCity/status/1190313460204220416

But have not read it through properly yet

#periodpoverty -- It is often said that this is a major cause of school absenteeism by girls in UK. What is the evidence?

Interesting white paper by PHS (company awarded the Department for Education contract to deliver 'free' products to all schools)

phs.co.uk/media/2401/phs…

There’s an interesting thread about this on Twitter.

By the company that supply free products to schools for the government

And it seems the overwhelming reason why girls miss school is not why that can’t get products

It’s because their periods were so painful

Will try to link

50p for a pack of pads may as well be £50 if you are 13 and have no access to money at all. If you dont have the type of relationship with your parents that you feel comfortable asking for pads then what are you supposed to do.

13yr old me still remembers the mortification of my dad or brothers finding out about my periods. 'Luckily' we had a drawer in the bathroom that was always stocked up by my mum so it was never an issue for me.

Why does Period Poverty exist when supermarkets sell them so cheap?

From supporting schools with Redboxes, I've heard first hand accounts from girls as to why they need sanpro.

Yr 8 girl, sister in yr 11 doing her exams. Mum a single parent works as a cleaner p/t minimum wage 0 hours contract. Paid weekly. They all got their period within a day of each other. Literally no money for more Sanpro, the yr 8 girl stayed at home so her sister could go to school and mum to work. If mum didn't work, they'd be no food next week, and certainly no sanpro.

Yr 7 girl lives half the week with each parent. Very difficult divorce. Mum doesn't let kids take anything to dad and vice versa. Mum would turn up at school with one change of clothes and take the school uniform. To make a point. Dad had not been buying uniform and she was forcing his hand. There were many arguments about money in front of the girl. Her sanitary towels were counted out but her mum, and she was told her dad HAD to buy them for when she was at his house and to use at school during 'his' days. She was too scared and embarrassed to even ask him.

The 'cervix havers' comment was more from schools, not here on MN! Some schools ask me not to specifically say girls in any talks I give about managing periods. I've always asked to speak with mixed sex groups about the need for a Redbox, it's never too early for boys to begin to understand their male privilege. I then do a girls only practical q&a with the school nurse. I'm a big advocate for reusables, as a mooncup user myself, I don't think its suitable for most younger teen girls and certainly not if there are issues around poverty and chaotic homes/access to washing machines etc. Not everyone has access to a saucepan and hob to boil a mooncup. (Think hostel/hotel/shelter) Cold water sterilisation is easiest but still needs a cup/glass and some Milton.

For those female gender non-confirming children who ID as trans, I actually have a lot of sympathy when it comes to getting a period. It's a biological sign that cannot be ignored or wished away. Period pants are amazing for these kids, giving them time to deal with emotional issues without having to be overly aware of, and deal with, the period itself. Simply carrying pads etc was seen by one kid I spoke to as being triggering and just changing a pad was "too emotional" for them. I hope that in a small way, being able to fund some period pants through the Redbox for them to try, has helped keep them away from the puberty blocker pathway.

I started my periods at 11, early 80s. Lived with paternal GM who had only raised sons and it was very taboo. I got into the habit of hiding soiled clothes and using toilet roll. Even when I went back to live with my dm a year later, a packet of pads and an instruction booklet was left on my bed. No discussion. My dm would've been a young woman herself then but it just wasn't talked about.
I was in a mixed comprehensive school. The older girls used the toilets to bunk off and to smoke in. They sneaked boys in to smoke.
There was no way I could change in a cubicle without it being noticed and being ridiculed. So, when I had a period, I would wear the big navy gym knickers and leave home with toilet roll wrapped around the pad. By the end of the school day, dried blood would form at the leg seams of the knickers and cut into my thighs like razor blades. I'm actually crying remembering 11-13 year old me. The pain was horrible but humiliation of being found out was worse.
What changed? My peers started their periods around the age of 14 and everyone suddenly became mature and open about menstruation.
I've just remembered a long forgotten memory of going on a 5 day trip with school aged 12. We were staying in a 30 bed dorm. A very quite girl was ridiculed and scapegoating for "coming on". I don't recall if she actually did. But I did the next day. I wore the same dark coloured jeans for the week and wore near a whole loo roll wrapped around the gusset of my knickers for bed. I barely slept for fear of leaking. The jeans were like glass cutting into me by the last day. Why I didn't tell a teacher I don't know. I've always been shy and introverted. Perhaps, just being seen talking to a teacher scared me.
I told my own dd when she was about 8 and told her never to be ashamed. I taught my own 2 ds at a similar age and told them it was a natural part of growing up and I hoped they would never embarrass a girl.
My dc went to single sex schools and have left now. The thought of shared toilets makes me feel sick for girls.
I'm sorry I've digressed away from PP but I live in a city with diverse cultures and periods are still taboo in some families, unfortunately. As for cost, yes I have been that poor that I couldn't afford Sanpro as a young woman and through ill health and not working, here I am again. However, I've used a mooncup for the past 5 years and it's been a saviour when I've been counting pennies and deciding wether I needed bread or milk more. Apologies for long post.

Sanpro is available free for women in police custody (new rules as shockingly late as 2018

20 fucking 18?

Razors in prisons for either sex are subject to regulation because they are bladed and potentially could be used in attacks or for suicide.

Rules depends on the category.

Sanpro is available free for women in police custody (new rules as shockingly late as 2018) and can be requested from guards in prison (or at least used to be - has it really changed across the board?)

Women in prisons have to pay for their sanpro.

Is this true? I'm having the rage just thinking about it. Surely it's not the case all the time?

But then saying that, I work in very unpredicatable conditions and it does amaze me how difficult it can be for women to access public toilets let alone sanitary products. They ought to be freely available in major restaurants, train stations, pubs etc. Was in a pub a few years ago at xmas and given a bloody bag of free condoms without asking

This is yet another reason why gender neutral toilets in schools are a terrible idea for girls- they will need privacy to deal with leaks if they have inadequate sanpro, they are using proper sanpro but substituting and there are boys who might mess about with freely available Sanpro supplies if made available in a gender neutral toilet.
The alternative of requiring young girls to ask an adult at school for supplies (instead of leaving them in the toilet for them to take) isn’t going to work for everyone, lots of girls are really shy about talking to anyone else about their periods, so this could be a barrier for them.

A few things, give to the hostels fodd banks.
Schools keep a stash. (I remember my friend going to the office for some but better if more openly available except teans would abuse this.)
Make your cloth. Easy with upcycled cloth lots of instructions on you tube including hand sewn versions. And can be washed in a bathroom sink so no need for washing machine.
Buy cheap. I have got backs or as cheap as £1.00 .
Not sayng period poverty doesn,t exist it does but someties its also about choices. I remember a women spent £50 on hair rather paying an outstanding bill. (She was poor.)

I never knew that women in jail had to pay for SP FFS

I very much doubt that is the case in UK prisons.

Oh I wish they had had things like Redbox when I was a teenager. I remember the cheapest pack of pads costing 89p and wondering if I could scrape together enough change to buy a pack. Padding them out with toilet paper, praying you don’t leak in class etc it sticks with you.

I totally agree they should be free like condoms, should be a voucher scheme or something 2 free packs per month given to each woman. Use of reusables taught at school too.

On the mixed sex toilet thing, I think I would have rather died than tried to change a pad or tampon in a toilet with boys. My daughters feel the same. I think a lot of girls will simply just stop using the toilets at school!

This issue really bothered me. I bitch and moan about the price of sanitary products but ultimately I can afford them and its never been an issue for me. A few months ago I posted on a few of my local Facebook groups for charities supporting this and have started donating. It's mainly homeless charities as most schools in our region now provide these products free of charge through a government scheme. Causes also worth looking at are womens refuges. Local libraries usually collect for this cause also.

Hi can I ask please why there is period poverty when you can buy Tesco own brand sanitary pads for less than 3p per pad. We grew up extremely poor but we always had pads and this was 4 women in the house. I am not trolling or looking to goad anyone, I genuinely don't understand

I was supporting a young woman recently who had been suddenly been made homeless and moved into a hostel. After she bought the basics she needed (no bedding, plates. cups, cutlery or pans provided by hostel) and the hostel service charge she was left with 32p a day. Luckily she was able to access a project for food and toiletries but you can see exactly why some women simply can't afford it.

You also need to think of transport. I live in a village where a return bus ticket to town to access Tesco would be around £6.

I am in Scotland, free san pro in schools, colleges and public buildings. I have seen mooncups in the college when I visit as well as pads and tampons.

TARSCOUT I agree that in more recent years sanitary products have become available very cheaply in supermarkets. It does seem strange to talk about period poverty, but its real.
lots of families struggle to buy basics. Many working families have to use food banks. People waiting for Universal Credit payments, people with no disposable income after basics, people with larger families hit by the 2 child rule. Distance and cost of getting to supermarkets may be an issue. its not the whole picture. Some girls live in chaotic homes with chaotic parents and do not receive the support they need.

I thoroughly wash my mooncup in the shower (with lots of soap) at the end of each cycle. Have done it for years with no issues - just make sure the soap is completely cleaned away.

Girls can definitely do that - it takes seconds and means that they don't need embarrassing (if they would be embarrassed by it?) sterilizing equipment.

Hi can I ask please why there is period poverty when you can buy Tesco own brand sanitary pads for less than 3p per pad. We grew up extremely poor but we always had pads and this was 4 women in the house. I am not trolling or looking to goad anyone, I genuinely don't understand.

The branded sanitary products are really expensive. I have found the supermarket own brand ones really cheap and good quality. It's all relative though of course. If its the difference between food/heating and the basics, and other items such a sanitary towels, it's obvious what comes first.

In other countries fabric reusable (washable obviously) pads are used. This is a great idea, but easier said than done (like buying reusable or disposable nappies for babies). Hygiene and convenience v reusable. You could actually harm yourself with poorly cleaned, unhygienic products.

I personally found moon cup very hard to use (yikes very painful) and don't think they are nessesarily best for adolescent girls.
There is also the assumption that girls are getting help and support at home around this, not necessarily the case. Like a previous poster I too had horrible early experiences af trying to manage periods. I used to exclusively use toilet paper so I didn't have to ask for money to buy pads. I would hide blood soiled clothes. It might sound ridiculous now, but at the time I didn't really understand what was happening to me and found it distressing.

Great to see this subject being so public. Considering half the world has periods and all that entails, it's still a strangely taboo event. Sounds like there are some fantastic schemes out there.