12 year old and period on holiday

[SquirrelRed]

Hi, My 12 year old has just started her periods last week. We are due to go holiday in May but I am worried about her getting her period while we are away.
She would want to be in the pool all day every day and there wouldn't be much else for her to do.
I don't think there's any chance she will use tampons by then, and there's not an awful amount of time between now and then for us to track/predict when her period will be.
Any advice on how I can best manage this so she can still have an enjoyable holiday please?

The lubricant helps with the tampon and I guess we are all a bit different but the instructions in the pack are pretty good.

At her age, definitely period swimwear. DD has modibody, they've got various nice styles. The period knickers are good too.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0C857QLYB?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_1&th=1&psc=1

https://www.amazon.co.uk/MEILONGER-Shorts-Compression-Cycling-Running/dp/B0FJDMS7Z5/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?crid=BLDAKGW13YPQ&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.mGHIghrTs5pxrWZ8k5KaSJ0mhZF7KlbdOqcT5o2rKEhIi7eLw64VfU_c7Iez03j060M1IR_NW6PQ-NCozSx4e0qYdZETWui7lurcQbBpIB4ushs_cY8ywQ9oGdQ6jZehO8tPgRXtuBhzRVbO_UK_v6KY0C21EpY3Q3Vhq8_xu9wLu0c6Zfi8bcqp70J91OqekwSSMR_WI3ZGc_ZD7QfWMHK8iX6oTVkawY2cgf64gJIQb88B2YZLbmzqb9vr16GO3vGM-5JM1N2xB8L43f3lDLfcY6-HqZKHzGJ1Ziz-5fo.fV2P_9bfzQFcUeUYX0B2JynrkC_9tMaH5OqA2jpSsH0&dib_tag=se&keywords=swim%2Bshorts%2Bgirls&qid=1768772712&sprefix=swim%2Bshorts%2Bgirls%2Caps%2C110&sr=8-1-spons&aref=4C0LExi7LG&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9hdGY&th=1&psc=1

@SquirrelRed we had this with dd in the summer and used these, worked v well, only thing is you need more than one set unless you have access to a washing machine everyday! i think she wore washable sanitary towels as well, can't remember. but there were no leaks, no issues, she was v comfortable and enjoyed her holiday

My dd swims 5 times a week and has never had to miss it for this reason due to period swimwear - excellent invention!

I was about her age when I started my periods. My mum just gave me a box of tampons and left me to it, I've used them ever since. Why would she not use them? It's shit that women have to go through it but it is what it is so just tell her that's what we do and move on. It's no biggie so son't make it one.

DD will have 40 or so years of navigating holiday time and periods so best start as she means to go on. Taking whatever protection works best for her and also suitable clothing for whatever she decides to do, and accepting that sometimes you can't do exactly what you want during a period, is a better option than starting strong medication which messes with hormones.

Yes I agree...I used them straight away as did my daughter and I think most of her friends. I think pads are a bit "icky", they smell and the whole idea of period pants is horrific to me!

wow, mature

that doesn't sound great from your mum so i wouldn't be surprised if the OP didn't want to do that

Definitely period swimwear. We try to manage our days so that we’d save a sightseeing trip for the heaviest day. My dd wears a pad in her period swimwear before her first swim (to make it last longer). Never had any issues.

"accepting that sometimes you can't do exactly what you want during a period, is a better option than starting strong medication which messes with hormones."

I agree with this.

Tampax is an option. Maybe Tampax lights up try just for holiday purpose. X

Definitely this. Assuming nothing hideous like endometriosis, a period is only as big a deal as you make it. How you react to situations like this, will shape her perceptions.

Fwiw too, I used tampons from not long after starting, also because I like swimming. Took a bit of getting used to, but was fine.

There’s not a huge reason why she couldn’t be using tampax by then.

my mum used to essentially teach me to make a swim nappy when I was on holiday. She would tell me to put a maxi pad in my swimming costume then a pair of shorts. Change as soon as out of the water and it would work okay.

in fact, she once buried a pad on the beach in gran canaries when I was about 13

Period swimwear. My daughter thought it was great

I hear what you're trying to say here, in that we don't want to artificially limit girls or make them think periods are always hard or difficult, but I do actually disagree quite strongly with this.

I have never been diagnosed with any particular illness, and my periods are alright-ish as an adult (they still give me cramps and diarrhea but I am on the pill so I run them together and only have one every few months), but even that limits somewhat what I can do. As a teenager I used to have such bad period pain that even ibuprofen + paracetamol + codeine couldn't fix it, and I used to get dreadful clots and floods etc.

Plenty of girls and women have pretty difficult periods no matter how big a deal they make of it or otherwise, and plenty of the time it falls outside the extremes where healthcare will help.

In the end, as a teenager, mine got so bad that doctors were prepared to intervene but there are plenty of women and girls who don't get to that point but who are still suffering.

My 12 year old had one period and then didn’t have another for 6 months so no guarantee she will be regular. I just bought period swimwear bottoms she could wear underneath her swimsuit if she needed them. I wouldn’t do tampons or mess with hormones at this stage

I’ve had periods for 40 years now (ffs) and the ones I had in my early teens were by far the worst. DD was the same, coming into her late teens they are much more manageable now.
I can’t use tampons, never could.

My daughter started her period at 10 and a few months later she came on whilst we were on holiday. I had thankfully took some period swimwear but get the heaviest absorbency & take some handwash liquid and you can wash them whilst there in the sink with hot water

Why won’t your dr prescribe it? Ours did for dd1. She had it twice for holiday and is now on a pill that she takes and only has a mini period every 3 months.

If she does go with tampons PLEASE teach her to throw them away and not flush them!! It's staggering how many people flush them and it's absolutely awful for the, already fucked, sewerage system.

It’s not ‘weird’ for a 12-year-old not to feel ready for tampons. I started my periods at 11 and started using tampons when I was about 12, but it’s an incredibly personal choice, and all girls are different and have a different level of confidence or comfort.

I would not do this. They will absorb a ton of pool/sea water and she'll come out looking like a toddler in a full nappy. The swim ones are different - they're not really absorbent. I don't understand how they work TBH, it's like magic.

I have black Modibodi swim bottoms and just bought a couple of different bikini and tankini tops to wear with them. Don't see why anyone would be wearing them under another swimsuit (unless they have a team uniform etc), especially at that delicate age as it pretty much screams ON MY PERIOD!

Its not just the bleeding its the cramps the migraines the irritability. I remember periods in my teens being absolute hell going on contraception was the best thing I ever did no periods whatsoever and no period symptoms. I'm not saying put your 12 year old on the pill I'm saying don't underestimate how horrific periods can be for teens. So she takes norethisterone for a week and actually enjoys her holiday i don't see the big deal. Taking a pill for a week isn't going to effect her long term health

This