At a water park in Spain and periods just started

[Laliga518]

FFS😡 do not use tampax or mooncup. , any suggestions or am I sitting watching everyone have fun?

Oh you poor thing!

I second the ibuprofen tip. I've had awful periods for ages and it definitely lightens the flow.

I didn't like Transexamic (sp?!) Acid - it gave me HUGE blood clots.

I'd have another go with tampons. I always felt them if they weren't pushed up high enough. Maybe try a tiny one and make sure it goes right up there?!

Good luck.

PS I no longer use public pools. I have never been so poorly at the end of every summer here. (Used to use the pool every day)

Are you suggesting that if there is blood 'only on wiping' that swimming in a pool with other people is okay? Yuck! Or have I misunderstood?

That was my question too - such a gross inconsiderate suggestion.

OP, I sympathise, but for the sake of enjoying the day, I think go with tampons, even tho uncomfortable. Just for today.

The problem is not the period blood, hair or floating shit and urine.

It is the vats of chemicals they put in every night. The sheer volume of bacteria.

Pools get used so much, for so long and the volume of traffic is so high. It is quite disgusting.

You must wear earplugs or you are guarenteed otitis, in this heat wave.

Not particularly.

Unless any of you have never had blood on a wipe and not actually started losing blood for a while.

Blood on wiping is no different to urine or stool on a tissue and if she hadn't been to the toilet she wouldn't even know it had started.

I've been wiping blood on tissue for 18 months on northisterone until my hysterectomy last week.

Ive not once had a "bleed"

Wow you’re lucky , day 1 for me is niagra falls, kind of like the waves of blood in The Shining. I have to change my lad every two hours and have massive blood clots.

Even if I push a tampon tight up to my cervix I can feel it. I have a tilted cervix.

Wow you’re lucky , day 1 for me is niagra falls, kind of like the waves of blood in The Shining. I have to change my lad every two hours and have massive blood clots.

I was every 20 mins and that was tampon and maternity pad.

However on northisterone I've had spot bleeds all the way through - had a hysterectomy last week.

Spot bleeding can happen in peri and as op bled before coming away it was purely a question about if she's bleeding or had a spot bleed.

How does period swimwear work?

it’s not water tight, and there’s no way it can differentiate to absorb blood and not pool water. Same way if it’s not water tight there will be leakage into the water.

how is it different to swimming with a pad? Doesn’t it just get waterlogged?

yes some blood may be absorbed into the costume, but it can’t be all.

Good question. My DD had worn period swimwear for around 8 years now and never had any visible in the water but no idea how they actually work.

When I had periods 3-4 years ago and was on holiday in Barcelona (Montjuic) my periods suddenly started and I was at a hotel with a pool. I was slightly freaked out (period was a week early) but reception got me some small tampons from reception.

Worth a try.

Having tried them, I don't think they really "work" in that sense. The gusset part isn't really absorbent, it couldn't be as pp says as it would absorb water. It's more textured plasticy fabric, so it sort of catches any little clots and stops blood running straight out. When I rinsed them out afterwards there wasn't really any blood, unlike when you rinse period underwear. So it hadn't caught any. I think the only reason you don't notice blood in the pool is that the pool is so big, it's less than a teaspoon in to thousands of litres of water.

I have recently started trying this out over the past six months and do notice I am in less pain but also does lighten the flow. It's true.

Doesn't regulate my peri cycle. At all!

So it hadn't caught any. I think the only reason you don't notice blood in the pool is that the pool is so big, it's less than a teaspoon in to thousands of litres of water

this is what I kind of figured. Much like swim nappies they don’t actually do much other than catch big particles. Everything else leaks out but you don’t notice because of the volume of water.

more psychological in that people think they are using sanitary protection and assuming it works, when you pretty much could wear normal swimmers with the same result.

actually, having said that about normal swimwear;

possibly the main reason is it stops blood leaking through to the outside of the costume so you aren’t worried about a blood stained gusset when you get out. Rather than it doing any sort of effective job in stopping blood getting into the pool.

not actually started losing blood for a while.

Point is, no-one can be sure when they'll start bleeding a little more. (Unlike wee or poo)

It's completely gross & so disrespectful in a public space.

Agreed. In fact I don't really enjoy public pools at all for this reason...don't get me started on swim nappies (yuck!) or the disgusting hygiene (or lack of) of some people.

Are you suggesting that if there is blood 'only on wiping' that swimming in a pool with other people is okay? Yuck! Or have I misunderstood?

what’s wrong with that? A minuscule droplet of blood in an absolute ton of water? Water that is pumped full of chemicals that stop bacteria anyway. What on Earth would happen? People wee in public pools ALL the time

With its usual poor timing, mine arrived this month just as I was touring the forum in Rome. The one loo block had no loo seat so I had to sit down on the (wet) seat and, worse still, no paper so I had to fish used toilet tissue out of the bin to use. Totally gross.

Mine are very heavy - at its worst, I'm changing the super (red) tampax every hour. I don't think I could manage any other way but tranexamic acid is also a life saver. Just one or two stems the flow to a manageable level. The poster is right though, the first time you see a clot is quite grim.

Peeing in a pool is also disgusting. Therefore I avoid pools as much as possible. And no, I don't want to swim in somebody's blood, regardless of how much there is and where it comes from! It's nothing to do with bacteria for me, it's more the attitude of 'there's only blood on wiping' as above. A crowded pool with people with this attitude? Yuck.

Peeing in a pool is also disgusting.

Absolutely.

Some of the views here are eye-opening.

Have to say that I'm surprised people don't want women on their period swimming. Mine can last 10 days, which could mean I can't swim for the whole of a holiday abroad.

I wear Tampax when swimming but I doubt that means no blood gets into the water. I have a pool and I agree that people peeing deliberately is a bit grim (not least because you pretty much never change the water apart from topping it up). I'd have no issue with friends on their period swimming in our pool and the chlorine kills any germs.

It isn't the fact that it's a period, I feel the same way about any blood or other bodily fluid in a pool. It is nothing to do with bacteria as I said before, it's the fact that it's someone else's bodily fluid! To me it's just disgusting to swim in a public pool knowing that you are bleeding whilst wearing no sanitary protection. It is the act of deliberately doing it. Just like peeing etc. It's yuck.

I have absolutely no issue with women swimming whilst wearing a tampon, I do it myself. It's more the PP stating that if there's only blood on wiping that it is ok, or swim nappies etc. knowing that they only stop the solids....that's just unpleasant.

I'd rather you felt uncomfortable with a tampon rather than leak in to the pool.

You'll probably feel better yourself too, even though uncomfortable.

Alternatively - pads, pants and a pair of shorts and don't go in the water.

Most holiday pools are not chlorinated.

There is a huge difference between blood and wee.

What if OP miscalculated and has a sudden gush?

I've only ever had heavy painful periods though. I've had the same Mirena in for 13 years now and still no bleeding 😀. Yes am single and happy 😁