Dealing With Bleeding: A Breakdown On Sanitary Products
PSA: This is all about periods and blood and stuff you stuff up your vagina to soak up the blood and get through your day. If this is irrelevant to you, well, don’t read.
Last year, a friend convinced me to try the menstrual cup. Caught up in the mo(ve)ment and also knowing how indestructible sanitary napkins are, I bought one. If you want to know more about how environmentally-friendly menstrual cups are, you can read more about it on my friend’s blog, here.
That said, I haven’t been able to use a cup continuously. I trialled it for a few cycles (let me emphasise, not just one), so I’d be able to form a better, more holistic opinion of the experience. I’m just running through what I feel about the products available in CMB — mainly pads, tampons, and the cup — but with more of a focus on the cup tbh.
Sanitary Napkins AKA the pad
Hands-down the most easily accessible product here, without counting cloth which is used outstation and in more poor families. It’s ridiculously taxed, and options we have are limited (small, stuffy ones as opposed to the paper-thin pads I’ve gotten from friends abroad) and rather uncomfortable. It’s also difficult to dispose of, but is a very convenient thing when you’re in a rush or using shared washrooms.
Except when you need to get into water, in which case, being on your periods suck.
Tampons
I remember feeling a lot of pain and discomfort when I first started using it a couple of years ago, and asking friends how they dealt with ‘shoving something up there.’ One girl said she doesn’t think about it, and to just ram it up, men. For some weird reason, that did away with all the cringe and taboo and grossness in my head, and now it’s just a technical thing I need to do to get through life. It hurts a bit, but once you figure it out, you don’t feel it in at all (and yes, it is quite creepy to have a bit of string hanging out of you).
This also takes up less space than pads, and easier to move around in. Especially if you’re travelling, I suppose.
Cups
I have really mixed feelings about this one. The gist is, it’s difficult/ impractical most of the time. YES it’s great for the environment, is a cheaper option, and seems like a planet-saver overall.
So what’s so difficult about it? Insertion, and mostly, removal. You know that rim around the cup? It bloody hurts when you’re pulling it out. Also, it’s a silicone cup, so there’s suction which hurts. And which can become messy — an accidental spill can look like a bloodbath.
Then, there’s cleaning it — this is definitely not something you can wash in your communal office (or any other public) toilet. You have to sterilise it at the beginning and end of every cycle, and you can wash with soap in between; but if you’re going to be out and on the run the whole day, you can’t wear this unless you’re sure of having facilities to clean it. Good luck trying to change in the restaurant, or in a mall.
Also, Toxic Shock Syndrome. Please read up on it, and make sure whatever you insert into your body is as clean and hygienic as can be. It also has unpredictable leaks, which is worse than predictable leaks, because it’s unlikely you’ll have backup where the cup is concerned.
Third, it’s not something you can use if you’re spotting — at least for me. Because, well, silicone, non-penile shape, so insertion when you’re dry is abrasive and again, painful. You get the idea. TBH, tampons are just as impractical when you’re spotting, so there’s that.
On the plus side, if you’re a heavy bleeder, and have a desk-job or are at home, (or can be assured of having a place to clean it or change every 04–12 hours) this is definitely for you.
For everyone curious, I hope this helps decide/ figure out how to switch between products. I had a couple of people ask me about how the cup was over the last couple of months, and while it definitely does have its plus points, I’d have appreciated knowing the inconvenient bits of it too.
