Am I the only one who thought tampons were flushable?!

[sunseaandme]

I'm 32, and only recently have I discovered tampons aren't flushable. I always thought they were, I can't remember where this thought came from, I assume my mum told me they were when I started my period, but that pads were obviously not flushable. I feel so guilty for flushing them all this time (obviously I won't do it anymore!). Am I the only one?? I realise I probably sound like an idiot as it probably says on the packet not to flush them but I never thought to check 🙈

Where did you think they flushed to ?I'm 52 and we knew in the 80s and 90s that if you flushed them ,they ended up in the sea. For God sake buy a cup or some washable pads please!

I'm struggling to understand too. I thought it's just common sense.

I genuinely thought they disintegrated. I think most people did. There wasn't the general knowledge about so many things in the early 90s - no internet and limited media.

@Pixiedust1234 I've just checked 3 different packs of facial wipes (ASDA, Primark & Superdrug) & all say do not flush.

As for tampons definitely when I started my period way back in 1989 (fuck me that was 34 years ago) we were told to flush tampons but i don't remember being told to flush the applicator or pads.

As for reading the box - once I figured out how to insert a tampon (so after the first one or two) I'm not sure I bothered looking at the box & usually decanted the tampons into the pretty boxes in my bathroom rather than have the ugly blue box on display.

No thank you. I've no wish to switch to either of those. They may suit some people but not everyone. I'll stick with tampons & disposable pads thanks. (No, I don't flush them.)

Tampax we're flushed many years ago...I always found flushing the paper applicator an odd idea. You'd sometimes see them floating around. It flushed. I never flushed the applicator, even in the 80s. I think some people used to flush pads too. I find plastic applicators odd. I get that they're comfortable, but so much plastic.

We read about in girls' magazines and newspapers. We knew about it from tv programmes. One of my brother's pals da's worked in the sewers and told everyone about the horrors of shoving stuff down the toilets. We used our brains.

The plastic applicator ones are wasteful aren't they. But so much more comfortable than cardboard applicators. I'd buy them as a treat!

My high school definitely told us in the early 2000s that tampons could be flushed. I did for a while too and I had stopped using tampons by the time I found out you weren’t supposed to flush them about 5 years ago- ish.

I'm all for cutting back on the use of plastics but in the grand scheme of things the plastic used for these applicators is a drop in the ocean. I really struggle with the cardboard applicators. And non-applicator ones. Periods are difficult enough as it is, I'm not prepared to make them even tougher to save a tiny amount of plastic when so many other (unnecessary) products are wasting huge amounts.

Always flushed them. Never the applicatior or pads. Only became aware of it recently, too. I don’t think it was known as much before?

@Whisper23 if only they were a drop in the ocean - they are a plastic applicator in the ocean. Maybe not from you but millions of them do end up there just because some small thing is a bit easier for humans

In fact @Whisper23 this really pisses me off - how so many people are simply not prepared to make the smallest of changes for the greater good. It is so, so selfish. All of the small plastic items add up to billions of tonnes of plastic waste and you're a part of it. What is more by writing it so plainly on here you're sending a message to the tampon manufacturers that you won't accept cardboard applicators. Please reconsider.

It pisses me off that women are expected to prioritise ecological choices over comfort and avoiding difficult circumstances over and over again. It's always our fault. More guilt upon guilt upon obligation.

Do you actually recycle everything or throw away some plastic? Do you drive a car? Do you have kids (not having them is the greenest thing to do)? Do you take long haul flights? Do you eat meat?

If so stop bitching at someone making their vagina a bit more comfortable during that time of the month.

@Yorkshirelass04 thank you.

@whichwayiwonder for me it isn't the "smallest of changes", it's the difference between my periods being bearable or awful. I've tried cardboard applicators many times from various brands and they just don't work for me. If they come up with a cardboard applicator that works (first time) and doesn't pinch I'll gladly swap. Or maybe they could come up with some other alternative to plastic that works well. They probably won't though, women's bodily functions and comfort have never been a priority. Please remember that what works for you won't necessarily work for others, our bodies are all different. You can be as pissed off with me as you want, I care not. You know nothing about my lifestyle so you're not in a position to judge me.

Thinking about how updated messaging gets through ie the change from flushing to do not flush!

I was told by my Mum to flush and there was no bathroom bin at home. She'd have been taught that in the 1960s or 70s when making the switch from those enormous pads that hooked onto a belt - I can remember her saying how much better pads were now whilst showing me how to tear and flush!

If you've been shown how to do something you're unlikely to see any need to read the instructions again years or decades later.

I never bought a teen magazine, which may have been the most up-to-date information available. I didn't have the money and my parents disapproved. I occasionally saw someone else's tattered copy at school but we'd all be avidly reading the problem pages!

My school barely provided any bins for disposal in the 90s. Maybe in 10% of cubicles.

I find it outrageous actually. You better make sure your carbon footprint and personal damage to the environment is zero before you start dictating to me about how I manage my periods.

I don't get periods anymore because of the contraception I'm on, but they are absolutely miserable. It took all my headspace just to get through the day, and now people want to guilt us into changing something that works for us?

I can guarantee men would not be manipulated to "think of the environment" during a period.

@Yorkshirelass04 the prioritising of human comfort over the environment is to blame for so much ecological damage. In answer to your questions, no I don’t drive a car. I haven’t taken a long haul flight for five or so years but I will do next year. I avoid buying anything with unnecessary plastic in it or on it. Obviously. I'm a woman too, I have periods. I know cardboard applicators a crap - they stick, I understand the pinching. But single use plastic isn't the answer. Manufacturers need to develop better cardboard applicators but as long as people keep buying the plastic they won’t.

Its not bitching - I really just wish people cared more about the damage we’re doing and get upset/angry when they don’t.

Based on your response, I'll assume you eat meat. It would be better for the environment for you to give that up before lecturing others on plastic use (not just once but in two replies) as part of an unavoidable menstrual cycle. Fuck off with the sanctimonious posts.

@PsychoHotSauce You bet men wouldn't be policed into ecological choices in the way they manage their bodily functions. Condom flushing anyone?

@Yorkshirelass04 You literally asked though. I didn't say I don't fly long haul, I said I was planning to. Yes I have children. I eat a bit of meat. You're just sounding more like somebody who doesn't give a shit. And really agro too.

Exactly who is policing women into making ecological choices??! This isn't an anti-woman issue! It's an anti single use plastic one ffs.

Plenty of forums / sites / threads where men are told not to flush condoms down the toilet.

www.quora.com/Why-do-guys-flush-condoms-down-the-toilet

Both tampons and some pads used to be marketed as flushable. My expectation was that flushed waste would be treated before going into the sea and that these items would be biodegradable. I occasionally still flush a tampon when there’s no bin available. What else are you meant to do, half of mumsnet refuse to have a bathroom bin 😆