To celebrate that I don’t buy period products anymore and wish that it was this way for all women!!

[Loveduppenguin]

I’ve just realised that I haven’t had to buy period products for well over a year! My workplace now provides them free in our toilets, so a surprise arrival in work is catered for. Lidl Ireland now provide free sanitary products once per month to each customer. It’s actually amazing and I feel like it’s a great change. AIBU to think this should be the case for all women!? Anyone else have them free at work? Long may it last/continue!

How can you manage your period by using the free products from work?!
we have them for free at work but it’s not like you take handfuls

I haven't had a period since 2006 due to various contraceptions. Another way not to bother with sanitary items.

Me too! Opted out entirely, highly recommend.

Been using cloth for I don’t even know how long (7 years?) and haven’t bought any in all that time.

Because I use them…that’s what they are for. I use a pad/tampon going in and I usually change after lunch. Then I change again in the evening (using my own that are free from Lidl) and so the cycle continues…

I refuse to pump hormones into my body, it never worked well for me. I’ve managed to get to 40 without them so here’s hoping it continues 🤣

My work provides free tea/coffee and cans of pop. I take my flasks and bags in to top up everyday, extra on a Friday. Means I never have to buy beverages any more

At our work they are meant to be for emergencies only. They are paid for from funds people pay to the union. But as soon as they're put out, one or two people take the whole lot, I think the union may well stop paying for it.

Ours provides free tea and coffee too yeah. It’s bloody great 🙌

My workplace has free period products too, but I find the applicators are ridiculously hard to open so buy my own.

I switched to reusables: pads and period pants. I find them much comfier and nicer to wear than disposable pads. I do keep a pack of disposables in the bathroom for visitors though,

I’ve definitely noticed an increase in free period products in the toilets around here, which is great.

You can take handfuls at my workplace. Just big containers in the toilets

No these are provided by the company (pharma) they are restocked daily as the toilets are cleaned, the provide wipes and deodorant too.

Team reusables/ pants/ cup. And I haven't had thrush since switching over a decade ago.

A cup's much easier to deal with when I inevitably clash my cycle with holidays and camping trips.

If you take the pill daily then you don’t have to have a period without any issues

when the pill was invented they told women they had to take a week off to have a period

it was completely unnecessary but was forced by the church at time in the 60’s

millions of women falsely thinking it would affect them otherwise

The ones my work provides are horrible. The back of the pad sits just in the right place to rub you irritatingly as you walk. They are also really cheap and plasticky.

I thought you were advocating for hysterectomy!

I had one in 2022 after years of using more san pro than the average person does in a lifetime.

After 82 days of having a period I was almost broke 😂

My work does have tampons and pads available in the toilets (England)

I’m not interested in taking the pill unfortunately they just don’t agree with me…

I haven’t bought them in years either, I have cloth pads and a mooncup

The coil also stops periods with no hormones. Personally, I only use the organic tampons and I don’t think Lidl provide these (I didn’t even know they gave out free tampons!).

My work has them too. I’m terrible for remembering to take my own so they are a lifesaver for me.

I can’t say it’s something that has ever bothered me or something I would notice if I didn’t spend it anymore anyway, it’s like £2.5 a month.

I've always said that women should never have to buy sanitary products full stop. We don't choose to bleed 🤷‍♀️

It's not a matter of choice. I ran my packs of pills together years ago before it was a commonly done thing but I'd still bleed partway through pack number two, not as badly as a normal period but still enough to need dealing with. Not everyone's body lets them get away with it.
The only advantage the pill had for me was that I could move my periods around to avoid holidays and stuff by taking extra or fewer pills per pack so if I was due on at the start of a trip, I'd only take 14 days of tablets so I'd get my bleed 7 days earlier than normal, be period free for my travels and then take 28 tablets before my next period.

I use a cup and washable pads. No waste, comfortable, haven’t spent a penny on my periods in years.