Would you appreciate reusable.sanitary items for your dds?

[DrMadelineMaxwell]

Period poverty measures mean that our county funds sanitary products for the school kids. Brilliant news.. they give them out to.all.as they have so many and I have not had to buy dd any at all.
The school nurse explained that a percentage has been spent on reusable pads and these arrived at my school this week for our y5 and y6 pupils..
I'm not sure how practical they are. They come with a bag to out used ones in it ideally they need a rinse first and in our school the sinks aren't in the cubicles so it's not a private thing to do. In my dds high school their sinks are communal and she was horrified at the thought of having to use and then store used.pads until they could be washed.
And yet I think for home they would be a good idea.

*For girls in period poverty a menstrual cup would be better because it requires no laundering.
*
I'm in my 30's and I found it tricky to get the hang of using a cup don't think they're really suitable for that age range.

As for using reusable pads if families are in poverty they may not have the means to launder them?

Period pants would be more practical, especially for lighter days. I think as an option it is fine. Just because a child doesn't have much money it doesn't mean that they are not wanting to reduce their disposible plastic use. There should be choices though.

Reusable tampon applicators might be a workable idea instead of those Tampax pearl types if you want to encourage young girls to reduce the amount of single-use plastics they use and throw away (the card applicators just fold and squash)?

I really don't think that young, vulnerable, poor, bleeding girls ought to be guilted into only using reusable pads.

Sadly, as a school we get no choice. That has been made at county level and we just get whatever has been ordered. We even have to do our growing up talks a lot earlier in the year (probably a good idea anyway) to then be able to give them away as we get 3 deliveries a year to use up..and the same next year at least.
Mostly we have been provided disposables in packs of 5 or singly wrapped.

I think it's a brilliant idea, it's good to eat young girls used to it from the get go

they don’t stay put

I'm so glad someone else thinks this. I tried a brand recommended on MN and they were rubbish (and bulky!)

Having had to teach and encourage DD to use tampons, there is no way a cup would have worked 😂

For the purpose of period poverty, I do think disposable is the way to go.

Young girls are self conscious enough about carrying sanpro around in their school bags ... they're supposed to carry about blood filled reusables, to take home to wash?

Oh I can't see how that could possibly go wrong in a school full of immature morons. 🤔

These educators have so little empathy and common sense.

I am a huge fan of my reusables but I don’t think they’re practical for girls dealing with their first few periods
If they forget one in their bag it will get smelly
If they make a mistake & throw it out it’s an expensive waste (& environmentally wasteful)
They have to have someone at home who is on board & will wash them for them

No need to pre soak/rinse after use btw I just chuck them in the wash

We’d have to change the narrative of shame and disgust around menstruation before we could expect young girls to adopt reusable Sanpro.

All of us on here who are parents have a duty to ensure our children grow up understanding that there is no shame in having a period.

Not suitable for those experiencing period poverty?

I wash my daughter's periods pants by hand and they are easy to look after. Cold water, a sink.. can be done.

I’ve used them for years. You don’t need to rinse them right away, can just roll them up and popper them closed and throw them into the bag they came with. I don’t even bother pre rinsing now as modern machines are so good. Use your regular laundry stuff but no conditioner as it messes with absorbency.
My 12yo hasn’t started yet (though I’m certain it’s coming ) and she knows I use them. She’s very environmentally conscious and is determined not to use disposables.
Mooncups wouldn’t be great for young teens.

I use a mix. Reusable for everyday, but disposables for convenience when travelling and far from a washing machine. Reusables are so much nicer to wear though

Another who doesn’t think they are suitable for period poverty. A lot of the factors leading to this are complex and this would seem to be adding another layer of complexity to someone already in a shit situation. Seems ridiculous. A lot of the girls would then need to deal with the pads themselves with no assistance which is not really going to work for a lot of primary age students who may have challenging home situations.

It’s also not great for girls that age in a communal toilet block situation. They tend to find this sort of thing embarrassing as hell and best to have things that can be discretely used/disposed of in the cubicle.

I’ve used them for years. You don’t need to rinse them right away, can just roll them up and popper them closed and throw them into the bag they came with. I don’t even bother pre rinsing now as modern machines are so good. Use your regular laundry stuff but no conditioner as it messes with absorbency.

That’s great for you. Seems like it will be a great option for your DD. However I question whether it would be a viable option for a girl that didn’t have a supportive mother, doesn’t have a modern washing machine or indeed a washing machine at all, doesn’t have laundry detergent in the house, the power had been cut off etc.

Oh I can't see how that could possibly go wrong in a school full of immature morons. 🤔

That's my issue with it, and also I don't think (as a longtime user of reusable towels) that you can get them really clean without access to a washing machine. I can get through a school day-equivalent without changing mine but I appreciate that my periods are only moderately heavy compared to some I have read about. Cups should be offered as well but I never got on with mine. I now tend to wear non-applicator cotton tampons when out and reusable towels at home and at night so it would be hypocritical of me to demand that kids who can't afford their own wear towels all the time.

Threre should be options - but with young people all being so woke, green & striking from school for climate change, would have thought they'd welcomed reusables; if they all have them, hopefully the subject is becoming far less of a taboo subject than it was a few years ago?

I once worked in a charity that assisted woman that had been through the prison system, several colleagues had also been beneficiaries. The list that one colleague shared of what sanitary products could be used for in prison was astonishingly long and mind boggling

They are not something my 18year old is interested in using.
She favours tampax pearl and Always towels.
Reusables aren't always practical and/or sometimes women just don't want to use them.
I don't think we should shame them.
Periods are awful enough as it is.