Period pants at school

[fatsatsuma]

13 year old DD has just started and I think period pants may be the way forward for her. She is a young 13 and isn't coping well with the whole thing and I think period pants will be easier at school.

I'm looking at the Primark ones and they recommend rinsing rather than soaking, but I'm not sure DD will cope with the rinsing at the moment. If she puts them in a bucket with cold water at the end of the school day and I do a machine wash each evening, will that be ok rather than rinsing? She also stays late at school some evenings for sport etc so may need to change during the school day. Can used period pants be stored in a waterproof bag until the end of the day? Advice gratefully received!

Watching with interest.
I have just bought these for my DD (not started periods yet, but will likely be soon) so would like a bit of advice on the practicalities!

Mine takes the waterproof zip up bag from modibodi and we rinse at the end of the day - I would never ask her to do it at school.

One idea is that you could pre clip one a reusable period pad for her? So the first time she needs to change, she can just put that period pad in the zip lock bag, the second time she can use new pants etc.

I would use a fabric zip lock bag, one that can be washed too. You can get them for reusable nappies if you can’t find them for reusable pants / pads.

I’ve tried the reusable clip on period pads as well as the pants (I use the pads when I have my period but only during the night), the pads are so much more comfortable than the throw-away plasticky ones.

While I don’t have the primark pants, mine are also supposed to be rinsed and I don’t always get round to it and it’s totally fine. But I reckon a shallow bucket of water would do it, too?

Just changing them and bringing them home in a bag would be fine.
I've never rinsed or soaked the ones we have at home, just bung them straight in the wash. It hasn't affected how they work at all.

We use reusable pads with pants here but often the pants alone are fine for the whole day for my 13 year old.
We don't tend to rinse them to be honest, we have a clip lid tub that they go in then I just bung them in the wash.
If she is using a pad with the pants she has a little waterproof bag but the pads fold up tiny too.
We both use Cheeky Wipes pants. Wish we had them 30 years ago!

Most of them are absorbent enough to last for a school day. I'm obviously not at school, but I rinse mine through in the shower each evening, then put them in with the rest of the washing. It's an easy way to do it, I find. Would she be able to do something like that?

I use pants for the last 2-3 days of my periods (and with a cup for the heavy initial 2-3 days)

Our washing machine has an 11 minute rinse cycle and weighs the load first so minimum of water needed. I just chuck them straight in there when I take them off, hang them by the machine to dry then put them in with whatever load is going on next. Probably sounds pretty grim by MN standards but they look and smell clean and it works for me. If I was changing them more often I’d throw them in a bucket or sink of cold water, then run the rinse cycle at the end of the day, then wash as normal.

I don't rinse mine immediately afterwards, just put them in a bucket with a lid to soak. When I change them at work, I put them in a little zip up pouch then deal with them at home.
I find that they do need a good rinse before going in with the rest of they washing - I usually stick them in on a short cold rinse cycle, then add the rest of the laundry afterwards.

Is it so bad to not put them through a cold wash but a 30 degree one?

Is it so bad to not put them through a cold wash but a 30 degree one?
I wash mine with the rest of my laundry so they've always been washed at 30 or 40. I suppose a cold wash might help with staining, but mine are black so any stains aren't noticeable.

I find they’re much more absorbent than disposable pads, and more comfortable, so unless she has a very heavy flow she may not need to change them at all during the day. They take in a surprising amount and because you don’t get the wet icky feeling you get with disposable pads, it doesn’t get uncomfortable.

If she did need to change, she could just pop them in a zip-up bag or pouch and pop them in her bag for when she gets home.

I just rinse mine under the cold tap until it runs clear when I take them off (only takes a couple of mins), hang them up on the laundry basket to dry, then put them all in a cold wash together when I’ve finished (but I have a short period, 2-3 days).

They don’t smell when rinsed out and it isn’t a big deal - because it’s not plasticky like a pad it’s just clean blood when you rinse it out. I understand if the thought is a bit off putting for a young teen, though, and think you could probably just put them to soak or bung them in a quick cold wash straight away instead if you wanted.

I so wish they’d been available when I was a teenager! They didn’t even have sanitary bins always in my (girls’!) school, so often you had to carry your own great big wodgy used towels around in a plastic bag in your school bag all day to take home as well!

@Serenissima21

Is it so bad to not put them through a cold wash but a 30 degree one?

I cold rinse mine first, then they go in a 20 or 30 degree wash.

I don’t rinse mine either I put them in pre wash on their own then on full wash with full load. Soaking on own does little as you need water flow and wringing to rinse. Don’t think save any water with tap running over machine.

Wow, thanks so much everyone. This is brilliantly helpful and reassuring - thank you!

Can those who've mentioned reusable clip on pads recommend any brands?

I just put my dd’s ones in their own wash at the end of each day. She does change them once at lunchtime and pops them into a ziplock bag to bring back. All works fine. No rinsing or soaking.

They can last throughout the day but I don't think I would trust primark ones for that. I could be totally wrong because I haven't tried them myself but usually you get what you pay for and in this instance you want to be sure they're reliable enough to last all day.

Modibodi are good. Cheeky wipes also offer full gusset protection (front to back) which is a big benefit for me.

DD (10) wears cheeky wipes ones. She adds a reusable pad in the morning and removes it in the afternoon, putting it in one of their mini wet bags. At home the pants and pad get rinsed in cold water and then washed at 30 and air dried. They do take a while to dry so she has several sets. If she can cope with it I’m sure your daughter would.

She could just stick them straight in the wash on a rinse cycle rather than rinsing herself?

I really wouldn’t recommend the primark ones.

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/style_and_beauty/4247920-Primark-Period-Pants-A-Review

Here for recommendations for my DD

Just remember NOT to use fabric conditioner in the wash (with either reuseable pads and pants) as it messes massively with the absorbency. With a lot of people who say they are having issues with leaking it turns out they are still using conditioner which just coats the pads / pants so they don't "work".

Thanks @MrsFionaCharming for the heads up. Does anyone else have positive or negative experiences of the Primark ones?

I was considering these for dd. Are the ones sold in tesco any good?

I use the Primark ones on mid flow days and they are fine last a good 8 hours for me. Apart from MN I hear all good reviews on them as well including multiple cloth pad groups I'm on.

I'm picking my first pair from M&S today! Peri menopausal so probably a bit late in the day but I am sick of flooding through my clothes.
Thanks for the heads up about the fabric softener.