I wore a pad today.

A huge overnight pad that reached well up my front and quite high up my rear. It filled the crotch of my panty and bunched between my legs.

You can see in the picture how huge it is compared to my hand. Imagine how huge it felt in my size 6 panty!

I placed the pad this morning and wore it until early evening.  When I check the mirror, from the rear the pad was quite evident and in the front it made a bulge in my jeans.

It was over-sized, bulky, uncomfortable, ill-fitting and touched me in places I preferred a pad not touch me.  My hands continually went to my waistband to pull up my panty, to adjust the fit, to shift the pad – and to my rear to pull the pad away from my upper hip. When I sat, it bunched in the front and when I stood it sagged in the seat.

My day found me at a local hospital, in physical therapy, shopping, driving, sitting, standing, walking – and never once did I NOT feel the pad.

It was present with me physically – and mentally as well.

I felt like a girl wearing her mother’s pad.

Yesterday, at the grocery I stopped on the feminine hygiene isle and stood looking at the many options women have for managing menstruation. The huge 15 inch long purple pad I wore today was only one.  There were pads of various shapes, sizes, absorbances and colors – all meant to meet the needs of women.

But, not all who menstruate are women.  Many girls are entering puberty early and it’s not unusual to hear of a girl who has begun by age 7, or start menstruating by age 9 (or even earlier).

Just as I need a pad designed for my body that meets my menstrual needs, tweens and girls need products designed for their bodies, that meet their menstrual needs.  Kotex recognizes this need, and now sells U Tween – especially marketed to girls ages 7 to 12. 

The next time you place a pad – or whatever menstrual product you prefer – consider for a moment who you were at age 8 and if your product of choice would have worked for you at that age.  And, consider also that there are many girls who experience periods just as heavy as yours but who do not have product choices equal to their physical and menstrual needs.