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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

AIBU to not have 'guest' sanitary protection in bathroom?

999 replies

EasyCube · 29/05/2014 18:16

Long story short, a relatively new friend and teenage daughter visited I later received a text

'Thank you for having us, unfortunately you have caused xxx embarrassment as she could not find the guest tampons and had to come home with toilet paper in her underwear'

Confused

Is this a thing? I have never once thought before that I should have pads/tampons in the bathroom, easily accessed by guests

My mum was great and I loved her a lot but we never talked about periods (I bought my own stuff from pocket money/paper round money) and now I'm wondering if this is just another thing I was never told about and feel a bit stupid to be honest Sad

Does everyone else have things available in the bathroom for guests? I'm thinking about other bathrooms I've been in and can't say I've noticed this before?

OP posts:
mathanxiety · 30/05/2014 00:28

It's not even a question of 'guest' tampons/pads in my bathroom -- I keep the cupboard stocked and anyone who needs any of it is welcome to help themselves.

MrJollyLivesNextDoor · 30/05/2014 00:28

I always go everywhere armed with sanpro after the encounter at the hotel in Cornwall for OH's 30th birthday

Having gone out for the evening, we returned back to the hotel pissed at 2am to be met by the police, fire service and hotel management

We couldn't go back to our room due to an incident in the hotel, we were being transferred to another hotel for the night, manager asked us if there was anything specific (i.e. strictly medication only) that we needed from the room that night

I had no choice but to pipe up that I needed some tampons, cue a number of burly men suddenly perusing their boots and mumbling while she trotted off to the ladies to get me a box

This bit is non sanpro related but can you imagine, the next morning we woke up with almighty hangovers in the clothes we went out in, reeking of booze and fags, no toothbrushes etc, mascara panda eyes the full works Shock going downstairs and the lovely B&B owners who we had been transferred to at 2am-ish asking us if we wanted breakfast. We couldn't inflict ourselves on them or their poor normal family guest-type holidaymakers Grin

Anyway I digress, like I said I always go armed ARMED with the stuff ever since

FidelineandFumblin · 30/05/2014 00:29

I think I love you math. I was beginning to think I was some mad tampon enthusiast, forcing them on my guests against their will like Beverly in Abigail's Party "Another panty liner anyone?"

NadiaWadia · 30/05/2014 00:33

'It is rude not to provide them' seriously?? .......

ToysRLuv · 30/05/2014 00:46

I think having a few pads (or whatever you use) accessible is courteous and nice, but I wouldn't expect everyone to do it, e.g. post-menopausal women with no visiting female family.

Having said that, I imagine I will still have my stashes of awful, but perfectly useable pads and the tampons I didn't get on with, when in my 80s. Post-menopausal DM's sanpro kept in a basket in the bathroom cupboard reads like the history of sanpro from the 80s to the noughties. Not the cutting edge stuff, but fine if I haven't got anything else.

Xihha · 30/05/2014 00:47

I actually do have guest sanpro but only because I have much younger sisters (16 and 10) who visit a lot so I keep towels in the bathroom for them just in case.

mathanxiety · 30/05/2014 00:48

Mum threw a wedding reception at home for DSis and was surprised at my suggestion that a bathroom bin might be a useful thing to provide, at least on the day. I think she genuinely expected guests to march through the house clutching used pads or tampons and dispose of them in the kitchen bin Hmm. She is in many ways a sensible woman but off with the fairies in some respects.

CorusKate · 30/05/2014 00:52

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

ToysRLuv · 30/05/2014 00:53

Yes, a bin, if only you can fit one (however small) in the toilet, is a must, as is a loo brush.

mathanxiety · 30/05/2014 00:53

Yes, just as rude as not keeping toilet paper on the grounds that if you need it you should bring your own, or cross your legs until you get home.

ToysRLuv · 30/05/2014 00:55

Oh, yes I did, Corus! I'm now 110 and still no menopause. Ds (4) keeps me young.

ToysRLuv · 30/05/2014 00:58

Tampobs. Isn't that an acceptable alternative spelling Wink I know I've used it once or twice..

CorusKate · 30/05/2014 00:59

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

NadiaWadia · 30/05/2014 01:02

Well Math you are entitled to your opinion of course. If you provide this in your home that's nice, but I am sure most people wouldn't be expecting it, and wouldn't occur to them to be looking for it. But I think you can see from this thread that most people don't agree, and find it bizarre and entitled of the OP's 'friend' to expect this. Toilet paper is very different, as has been already explained by someone upthread. Only a minority of the population menstruate, and even then only once a month. Whereas everyone needs toilet paper. Besides that there are all the different sizes of tampons, pads etc, are you seriously expected to provide a comprehensive selection? You don't even get that in a hotel!

LadyOfSomewhereElse · 30/05/2014 01:04

(Not read all the posts, sorry)

...surely this can't be real. Shock The text sender must have been joking? It's simply too bizarre to have been a real 'complaint'

NadiaWadia · 30/05/2014 01:04

On reflection, I think you're probably joking?

ToysRLuv · 30/05/2014 01:05

CorusKate: Good nught, I mean night.

I am ill: had nausea all day, and running a fever now, so can't sleep

CorusKate · 30/05/2014 01:08

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

LadyOfSomewhereElse · 30/05/2014 01:09

I don't have a bin in the guest loo and I would never consider having one. Tampons can be flushed down the loo and pads can be wrapped and taken home.

I would not dream of leaving a used pad in someone else's bin. Confused

It's different if guests are staying longer or overnight. I have a bin in the guest bathroom.

ILoveCoreyHaim · 30/05/2014 01:09

Math my DD uses teen lilet pads, she's too young for tapax. I use super tampax. Do you provide a selection? I make sure DD knows to take her pads if she is sleeping at a friends house and she pops some in her bag. If her friends are here and tell DD they need a pad she will happily give them some of hers out her top draw. I'm not happy to provide tapax to 11 and 12 yr old unless their dm tells me otherwise

ToysRLuv · 30/05/2014 01:11

Yes I have a headache too.. [suffering]

Lovecat · 30/05/2014 01:12

Bwah hahaaahaaaa!

Sorry I haven't read all 16 pages, but this has reminded me of what our cleaner did one day...

If I was on, I used to leave all my sanpro out on a low shelf by the loo. On top of the loo itself was a china bowl full of pot pourri. It was getting a bit old and dusty so I chucked the pot pourri out, thinking I'd either buy some new stuff or get one of those wick-thingies instead, and left the empty bowl on top of the loo. In the meantime, our cleaner (a wonderful woman in most respects) came to do her weekly clean.

I returned home to a sparkling clean bathroom with all the tampons and towels taken out of their various boxes and arranged in the china bowl in a lovely pattern of colours and sizes... Confused

I was torn between hysterical laughter and utter mortification.

Perhaps your guest was a relation of hers...?

CorusKate · 30/05/2014 01:12

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

ILoveCoreyHaim · 30/05/2014 01:13

Yeah as a teen, I said 11 and 12

ravenAK · 30/05/2014 01:13

I actually do have 'guest sanpro', but only because I'm a teacher & our head of PSHCE was being crowded out of her book cupboard by surplus free samples, so dumped them all in a huge box in the staffroom for everyone to help themselves.

I grabbed a few of each kind (well, a lot, actually - this was over a year ago & I haven't had to buy anything since) & put some in our downstairs & family bathrooms, in a basket with bog rolls, hotel shampoo sachets etc.

I was really thinking that they might come in handy for me, if dh was using the bathroom that goes with our bedroom, but they do gradually disappear so I assume my friends & their daughters are finding them useful.

It would never occur to me that this was an expected thing, though. That is weird.