Can anyone offer some practical advice in delicate situation for 14yo DD going camping/surfing?

[twentyten]

Hi-could anyone offer me some advice to my DD who has been invited camping and bodyboarding in cornwall?She is going with a good friend and her lovely dad but her period is due and she doesn't /won't use tampons?
Can she just wear wetsuit over swimsuit(with towel?)I'd really appreciate some advice from you waterbabies!

The dad is lovely but I want to save DD any embarrassing moments!

Thank you!!

She could go see the GP and get the pill thing that delays her period?

Has she tried tampons? Could you get her a few different types so she can experiment?

'That pill thing" is The Pill - not sure that it's a good idea to put artificial hormones into a developing body. Or is that old fashioned of me?

I'd do the period delaying pill thing, as a one off. I don't think a wetsuit will actually stop you getting wet, just keeps the warmth in.

Lots of 14yos are on the pill, seeker. Also I think the one Golly mentioned is something similar but different, it's a one off rather than a longer term thing.

Seeker, I think as a one off it wouldn't be damaging. I was on the pill from the age of 14 and I'm ok (so far, fingers crossed )

Sorry, I didn't know that it was The Pill. I had an idea that it was something hormonal. I had friends in the past who, instead of having the week's break from the combined pill would take it continuously if they were going on holiday where they might do a lot of swimming.

Don't advise surfing with the towel, will be cold and unpleasant as will be waterlogged very fast, and then not soak up what it is suposed to if you get my drift.

The pill is an idea, but it's either take the risk of going without any protection which might be fine as long as she has a private place to change out of the wetsuit (but guess that is unlikely) as urban myth has it that the water pressure will keep the blood in. Never tested that myself though and not much good if she's surfing and in and out of the water.

Or she'll have to face up to using some sort of internal protection, mooncup or jamsponge as an alternative to tampons?

Woooooooaaaaaaaahhhhhhhh! Bodyform. Think you can ride horses, rollerblade and dance but a sanitary towel in a wetsuit is a disaster, it will absorb the sea and there won't be any left for the rest of us.

www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Periods-heavy/Pages/MedicineOverview.aspx?condition=Menorrhagia&medicine=Norethisterone

She can take norethisterone which will delay her period. It is not the same as the contraceptive pill.

Agree with Bluebell - norethisterone is a period-delaying medication; yes it is a hormone, but not the contraceptive pill, and has none of the 'risks' we sometimes associate will the contraceptive pill.
Many teenagers up and down the land will be taking it for a week over the holidays to delay their periods.. basically, as long as you are taking it, your period won't come on, certainly taking it for a week, and then stopping once she is back home and can more subtly have a period should be unproblematic.

I second Bluebell, she doesn't have to get the contraceptive pill, she can use norethisterone which will delay her period until she gets back. It's only a one-off and most GPs are very sympathetic about it, especially women GPs. I got it once when I was due to go on holiday. They say you might have spotting but I had nothing and I usually get heavy periods.

Other than that, I don't see the point in wearing a pad underwater. It would have to be a very slim one which wouldn't absorb much. I would suggest she tries inserting a tampon a few times so that she's comfortable with it and then take a box of high absorbent ones as the last thing she wants is to get paranoid about bleeding in the water.

If she's not that heavy you can get away with just going in the water, with nothing. as others say, dark swimsuit, wetsuits are dark anyway (as long as it's her own wetsuit not a borrowed one, maybe).

That's what I always did in my teen years.

I'd encourage her to try a tampon.

Thank you all for your wise words! Will go and see gp as suggested.
You have all helped me a lot- thank you!!

Have another go with the tampons then the problem won't come back next time she want to do something - I'm hopeless with them myself and it's been the bane of my fertile life, but I proud to say that my little girl (well...she's 14) is absolutely fine with them and she did it all by herself. Her wisdom is that she prefers applicator ones to lil-lets because she doesn't want to touch herself (I tried to do the whole feminist getting to know your own body thing, but she just went EEEEWWWWWWW! for a while :-) And she prefers tampax pearl because the applicator is very smooth and comfortable, unlike the older style tampax, which she says don't slide in as easily. She also likes these Moxie Tampons because the box looks cute and girly:
www.sainsburys.co.uk/groceries/index.jsp?bmUID=1312408083682

off topic, but I never got the whole applicator not touching myself thing. I use a lilet by pushing my finger in to the cotton. NO mess. An applicator come out all bloody and skanky and you then have to dispose of it... and not all stalls have bins in them.

"She can take norethisterone which will delay her period. It is not the same as the contraceptive pill."

This was what I was going to post but couldn't remember how to spell it!

Thanks again!Will pursue the tampons with your good ideas:)

I used norethisterone several times as a teenager but you do have to take timing into consideration - you have to start it before (a week or so I seem to recall) your period is due, and it isn't a 100% guarantee that your period will be delayed - I was told that it works for most but not all people. And as another factor to consider your "delayed" period will quite often be a bit heavier and more painful than usual.

It's still a very handy drug though - I'd recommend she try it as long as this trip isn't starting tomorrow!