To have told son I couldn’t go swimming as I have a period

[Bouliegirl]

This morning DS8 asked if we could go swimming. I told him no, as I have a period. But we could probably got at the weekend. He was happy enough and shuffled off

My MIL was horrified that I told him this and said that I shouldn’t be talking about periods with a male relative

Why not?

Well, no, obviously, so others posters can’t have meant you then…many other women can, myself included as a young woman

Would your MIL object to you telling him about a bodily function like the runs, for instance, which would definitely mean you couldn't swim? A heavy hard-to-manage period is little different from that, no reason why you shouldn't tell an 8 year old about it. YANBU for normalising something half the population experiences.

So aside from her being horrified at this

you presumably have a close relationship?

As an example for why I can't swim

I flood, heavily and unexpected
I also feel faint, need opioids plus other medication
Sometimes I can't move from off the floor. I can go from fine to not in 5 seconds flat with no warning
Randomly I will get pains that leave me unable to move let alone swim or drive or walk safely
It's impossible to wear anything around my stomach so I live in pj type bottoms for a week as I swell up like a balloon
I don't want to risk getting pain that leaves me screaming on the floor in public

This isn't unusual, I'm one of the women that has endo and there's a years wait for gynae

Maybe your user name could be prudey

I told him no, as I have a period.

he now thinks that no woman on her period can ever go for a swim!!

So you'd rather your child worried about you being ill than mentioned a period?!

You know he'll most likely already be aware of them and there's potentially a girl in his class, and plenty in his school already started?

@parkrun500club

i don't want to depress you, but mine were like that at first, during menopause, then the erratic flooding started!!

Some people are so old fashioned. Dd needed a sanitary towel and my friend went to get her one. Her dh asked where she went and I said she went to get dd a sanitary towel and he acted repulsed. We have known this family for years and were just round their house with no one else. It's not like I announced it at a wedding reception

I am unsurprised but disappointed in how many posters think they know others bodies better then they do.

If you think I’m able to swim on my period then don’t complain when I leak heavily in the water despite using one of the 16 - 20 daily tampons I use on days 2-5 of my period. 👍

Period blood isn't dirty, but anyway, if you go swimming in a public pool, you can't be worried about other peoples' bodily fluids (and washed off body cream, suncream, hair conditioner, whatever). Swimming pools are soups of disgustingness. You just can't think about it!

i wouldn’t have said my DD needed one

i would have said i need one

fine to shout from the roof tops that I have my period

not someone else and sure as heck not my daughter

I was responding to this post:

Redshoeblueshoe · Today 15:00
I've voted YABU - of course you can go swimming.

I assume you've read the thread?

I've already had that bit - hopefully!

I couldn't swim on the first few days of my period - tampons weren't sufficient. Many women have that problem. And no - period swimwear wouldn't have worked either.

I recall wearing a tampon plus night pads and still bleeding through my clothes within the space of an hour. (I remember the timing because I was teaching a class when it happened.) Thank God I was wearing thick tights and a suede skirt.

Much easier to explain to a child that Mum has a period.

and he now will think none of them can ever swim if they have their period

the op needs to address that

It's not odd at all don't worry. So many people can't read or think outside of their own assumed-right-ness

The OP said SHE couldn't go, not that women in general don't.

No I’ve not.
i literally told him that I couldn’t go swimming today as I had a period.

I didn’t say “no woman can swim on a period”.

Frankly this thread is a very good explanation of why so many in the medical profession don't believe women who complain about heavy periods. Just wear period pants with a tampon etc. If even other women on a website primarily aimed at mothers (ie people with experience of menstruation) don't believe that some women bleed more heavily that others and some are gorier with it than an abbatoir.

Which I'm sure he'll be disabused of when and if the need arises.

It's not the end of the world!

I'm sure he'll find out some women can. And the OP can simply say ''but some women can'' if she really thinks it matters while he's only 8 ...

No, she really doesn't.

Right now, he's not bothered about other women

He's 8.

This