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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

To think sanitary pads are the work of the devil?

364 replies

theimposter · 10/05/2014 01:53

Just had an op and not allowed to use tampax for a while so for the first time ever having to use pads. The most uncomfortable thing ever if you actually want to move around and do outdoorsy stuff. Who actually chooses to use these?! Any tips on brands and what doesn't irritate your lady gardens gladly received. I don't wish to have to go totally bald down there to reduce irritation as re growth will be even more painful!

OP posts:
goodasitgets · 12/05/2014 16:33

Tampons don't work for me at all. I thought I was odd. It just comes down the side of the tampon and leaks out

SirChenjin · 12/05/2014 16:45

Well, not really 'mental' - I just use towels rather than tampons (which wick for me).

goodasitgets - exactly! Why??! Do us 'wickers' have odd shaped vagines? Confused

TaliZorahVasNormandy · 12/05/2014 17:15

I cant use tampons either, although I hate towels, just rather not have a period.

usualnamechanger · 12/05/2014 17:18

Don't use always, use the other ones, stayfree I think they are called?

whatever5 · 12/05/2014 17:20

Get a mooncup now (or other brand).

I find mooncups very uncomfortable as well.

confuddledDOTcom · 12/05/2014 21:18

If a cup is in properly I find there's less to feel than a tampon. I've had to go and reposition once or twice because it hasn't gone in right.

Normalisavariantofcrazy · 12/05/2014 21:33

Moon cups are very uncomfortable if you have any form of a prolapse I've found. If I could use one I would

JackShit · 12/05/2014 21:50

Mooncups are the business. Change just twice a day and you can wear them pre-emptiveley :)

TequilaMockingbirdy · 12/05/2014 22:58

Just been posting about these

www.beppyusa.com/product.htm

I've used them a couple of times, they're quite useful if you've got a date night planned and you're on.

Cherryblossomsmile · 14/05/2014 16:16

I ordered a mooncup based on this thread....

It arrived this morning and I LOVE it already.

My period is v heavy first two days and I'm changing tampons every 45 mind. I went out today for 3 hrs, just got home, checked it and it was only 3/4 full.

Cherryblossomsmile · 14/05/2014 16:16

Mins

EBearhug · 14/05/2014 21:58

What I want to know is how does my period - usually pretty regular - know when it would be a particularly unhelpful time to be a couple of days early? Just arrived in a hotel for two days training, then a weekend with friends. And so my period comes now, rather than Sunday. When did it last do this? The day of my 40th birthday. Never a normal week at work or something.

Oh well, at least I brought everything just in case.

Paula123456 · 28/05/2014 11:03

Well, I'm a bit different from all the 'anti-pad' people here - I actually ENJOY wearing sanitary pads, mainly because it's a key part of my femininity.

I also find them quite comforting to wear. However, there are reasons for that and also for probably why many of you don't find them comfortable.

  1. I always use pads that actually feel soft and comfy inside my knickers, due to how they are made. I absolutely hate thin, scratchy pads. In that respect, my chosen brands are Kotex Nightime and Dr Whites, both of which are thick and padded, and made from materials that feel soft against the skin, and crucially, are very absorbent.

  2. Wearing the right type of knickers, with a pad, is absolutely essential if you're going to feel comfy and protected during your period, and so many of us don't, out of sheer laziness or just lack of preparation. In that respect, I wear hi-leg cotton Sloggis. For me, they are the perfect 'period pants'.

Sloggis have a high lycra content, so are nice and stretchy, as well as being super-soft, so they hold the pad really close to your body, and as the Sloggis are designed to fit you closely, almost like a second skin, the pad stays in place, no matter how active you are, and crucially.

Even if you're wearing a thick pad (of the right type, as discussed), you can't really feel it, and so because you're not aware it's there, it's not annoying in any way - in fact it can feel rather soft and comforting, during a time when, as we all know, we're not at our best and have the tendency to feel a bit sore 'down there'.

  1. When I'm on, I always wear a 'floaty', non-clingy dress and tights - never trousers, jeans or tight skirts. First of all, with any type of trousers or leggings, I'm always worried that my pad will show, but also because as I get a bit bloated (as we all probably do) at that time, tight fitting clothes, simply aren't comfortable.

Therefore, wearing a nice floaty dress not only looks smart and feminine, but also hides any possible 'pad bulge', and feels comfy and non-restrictive as well. The tights also help keep the pad snuggy and secure inside your knickers, as it has the effect of 'pulling everything in', but in a way that makes you feel comfy and secure.

I guarantee that if the pad haters here tried some of my tips, you'd soon change your mind about pads. The key thing is to stop using those horrible thin scratchy pads, made of rough feeling synthetic materials and use nice soft 'old-fashioned' ones instead, made with proper cotton wool, along with the right knickers for the job!

The biggest problem I have, when on my period, is that I always feel horny during that time, but won't let my husband go near me, as I get embarrassed sharing things like that with him, therefore I often have to pleasure myself in private, as it were. However, that's a different story, lol!

Anyway, I hope that my pad tips help some of you.

Love and kisses,
Paula.

WhoKnowsWhereTheTimeGoes · 28/05/2014 12:09

I'd rather stick with tampons and just wear my normal clothes.

CoteDAzur · 28/05/2014 12:18

LOL @ "Sanitary pads are a key part of my femininity"

Love and kisses,

Cote

(Are schools already on holiday in the UK?)

Paula123456 · 28/05/2014 12:25

Lol... What's your definition of 'nornmal clothes'? A dress, to me, is 'normal clothes', or are you one of those tomboy types who lives in leggings, 24/7? Wink

Paula.

CoteDAzur · 28/05/2014 12:30

She obviously means her normal everyday clothes Hmm

WhoKnowsWhereTheTimeGoes · 28/05/2014 12:30

It means whatever clothes I feel like wearing to suit the day rather than having to base it round sanitary wear. I would not wear tights in the middle of summer for example.

CoteDAzur · 28/05/2014 12:32

This reply has been deleted

Message deleted by MNHQ. Here's a link to our Talk Guidelines.

LancashireTea · 28/05/2014 12:53

I don't like tampons and have tried and tried over the years to use them, but alas, I find they are uncomfortable.

I got some respite from leakages when I had my Minera in for 4 years, needing only a panty liner, or a slim light pad on 'bad' days.
Now, having had the coil out the red flood of revenge is back and I'm forced to wear 2 night time pads for the first 2 days, otherwise my clothes and bedding look like an out-take from a horror film.
After that I just wear a Bodyform green (super?) with wings. No probs. Occasional chafing goes with a bit of sudocrem or the likes.

Am tempted by re-usable pads though.

LancashireTea · 28/05/2014 12:55

Oh, and big pants are best for horrible 'on' days. My OH always looks horrified at my period pants when they're drying on the airer after a wash! (TBH he only ever sees big knickers! Sooooo much more comfy than a little stringy thing up my bum!)

Notso · 28/05/2014 12:57

Well that was a great infomercial from Paula's Pad Tips now, let's continue with the discussion while we all try and erase the image of Paula with her hand down her Sloggis indulging in private pleasures.

WhoKnowsWhereTheTimeGoes · 28/05/2014 13:17

To be honest, it's not much of a concern for me now as I'm late 40s and with a Mirena coil. I'm more worried that my DD will have to go through the horrendous experiences I did as a teenager with heavy periods and towels. Unfortunately floaty dresses aren't on the school uniform list and I can't imagine she'll want to wear Sloggis.

Paula123456 · 28/05/2014 16:12

@ CoteDAzur. I'm 24, but what business that is of yours, I'm not sure.

Paula.

Paula123456 · 28/05/2014 16:15

@Lancashire Tea, lol, I've always been a 'big pants' giril, or at the very least tangas. Hate thongs with a passion - it must've been a man who invented those horrors!! Hmm

Paula.