Tag Archives: cups

Solution to the Ongoing Problem

This is my fifth post on the Galesburg High School concealed carry story and the #ConfidentCarry campaign to raise awareness of the plight of menstruating girls and women everywhere.

My comments would be incomplete without offering a solution to the ongoing problem of inappropriate and inconsiderate behavior toward menstruating humans, and the lack of confidence many who menstruate have regarding themselves and their experience.

What’s the solution?

As I see it, the answer is multifaceted.

  1. Girls / teens / women must become comfortable with their own cycles and with menstruation.  (So what if someone knows!?!? It’s normal, natural and good. It’s okay to be on your period. Truth!)
  2. We all (men and women – young and old) need to stand up against negative views of menstruation and attitudes.  These attitudes are degrading, demeaning, belittling and we shouldn’t stand for them.
  3. We need to release the fear of discovery and embrace the wonders of menstruation in ourselves and in others.
  4. If someone forces rules and regulations upon us that inhibit our ability to function in a healthy manner (physically as well as mentally/emotionally) then we need to stand together against it even if it means we protest. (Yes, I said the P word.)
  5. Alternative products must be viewed as normal, healthy options if they are to become the norm.  Girls must be taught that there are options available to them besides disposable pads and tampons.
  6. We must work (all of us) to end menstrual taboos and embrace menstruation.  If the world sees that we are no longer afraid to menstruate and refuse to be defined by the myths and silly rules that shame us into hiding the wonder and glory of menstruation, the world will change for the better.
  7. The need for period wise school administrators, teachers, nurses and student advocates is staggering.  If you are one…please, be one! If you can help educate one, please take the time to do so.

Join us on May 9 for Confident Carry.   #May9  #ConfidentCarry

Why Try a New Product?

I’m often asked, “Why would I want to try a different menstrual product if I’m happy with the one I’m using?”

My reply?  “Why wouldn’t you?”

All too often we settle for what is because of fear.

Yep.  Fear.

  • I’m afraid I won’t like it.
  • I’m afraid it will be money wasted.
  • I’m afraid it will be a waste of time.
  • I’m afraid I will have issues with leaks.
  • I’m afraid I won’t be able to use a…(cup, sponge, tampon, cloth pad, ultra thin pad, pad with wings…)
  • I’m afraid it won’t work for me.

How will you know if you don’t try?

When did we become afraid to try new things? Hey, we’re women! We’re fearless!  We LOVE new things!

New shoes, new purses, new hair styles, new clothes, new panties, new cars, new friends, new experiences, new social media groups….

We’re all about change and innovation.  So, why do we stick with the same old menstrual product year after year after year?

Hey, I have friends who are still using the SAME product they began using when young teenagers.  Times have changed.  Bodies have changed.  Menstrual needs change. And, so do menstrual products.

I’ll bet you have shoes for every event and activity – work, church, play, exercise, beach, pool…and I’m guessing you have one menstrual product (at best two) that you have used for years and years.

Question – what will you do when the company stops making them…changes them…store stops carrying them?

(I remember the panic I felt when OB Ultras were not available.)

Take a look at what’s out there. Don’t be afraid. Remember – you are fearless! And, truly, there’s nothing to fear.

And, while I’m on this soapbox, encourage the girls in your life to explore and experience many options.  Don’t let them settle for just one. And, don’t let them be afraid to try new products. Encourage menstrual openness and creativity via all the options available. Menstrual fear should not be a part of their experience.

Why try a new product?  Because your period is worth it!  And, so are you!

Besides, It’s period wise!

7 Ways Lindsey’s Menstrual Cup Changed Her Life

I came across a blog on So Easy Being Green that I simply cannot resist sharing.

Perhaps it’s the colors. Or, maybe it’s the beautiful pictures. Or…it could be that the topic is reusable menstrual cups.

It could be that it’s all that and more – the “more” being Lindsey and her delightful way with words.

Lindsey describes herself as a “green Mommy blogger” whose first and foremost roles are “Mommy” and “Wife.”

7 Ways My Menstrual Cup Changed My Life describes Lindsey’s experience with a Lunette cup – (size 2 according to the pictures) and her thoughts concerning it.

“It has literally changed my life and I finally found freedom from my period.” — Lindsey

If you’ve never given reusable menstrual cups much thought, do the period wise thing – be open to change.

Currently, three companies of reusable menstrual cups have received US FDA approval: Lunette, Moon Cup/Keeper Cup, and DivaCup.  Instead SoftCup has also received FDA approval for both the disposable and the reusable cups.

Why are we hesitant?

Your menstrual product of choice is not working as well as you would like…leaks, frequent changes, itching, irritation, cost…you’re not completely happy with it, but you are not open to change.

Why not?

If we are dissatisfied with clothing, what do we do? Continue to wear what we’ve always worn?

If we don’t receive service we like at a restaurant, what do we do? Go back to the same place time and again expecting different treatment?

If we don’t like a particular brand/type of food, what do we do? Purchase it again and again, eat it and complain about how much we dislike/detest it?

If we are watching TV and don’t like what’s on the channel, what do we do? Settle in to view something that doesn’t meet our needs or speak to our desires?

No!

Then, why do we continue to use the same menstrual product for years even though our needs change?

There are some awesome menstrual products available now and if you’re stuck in the rut of using the same product you’ve used since X, I encourage you to open yourself to the idea of trying something new.

What do I recommend?    I recommend that you shop your options.  Take a chance. Try something new.  Explore the new pads, consider cloth, and give menstrual cups a look.

As always, I welcome questions and will help you find answers as you look into the options available to you.

Aching to Start

I crave chocolate.

Yes, I do. I could eat it by the pound right now, slowly savoring the taste, the texture…the feel of it on my tongue….

My breasts ache…no, make that HURT…my breasts hurt.  They passed “aching” hours ago.

And, my bottom feels heavy.

Fingers are so puffy that I can hardly type and my legs, well…they look like over-stuffed sausages.

My appetite?  Ha! Ravenous! Not only do I crave chocolate, I crave corn as well – cut or cobbed, creamed or chopped, Doritos or Fritos – I crave corn.  And, tomato.  Oh my…. You know…tomato as in pizza, spaghetti, ketchup….

I’ve eaten 4 Hershey Kisses since I began writing this post.  My corn allergy prohibits me from indulging in any corn products, so I’ll head back to my Kiss stash and partake of a few more….

A nap would feel so good right now. To just curl up and snooze for 15 minutes, or 30 or an hour…or two.

Hang on while I throw away my small pile of silver Kiss wrappers…get more…brb….

Back.

Ah…where was I?  Oh, yeah…hang on again while I open and pop another kiss into my mouth.

M-m-m-m-m-m…so-o-o-o-o g-o-o-o-od….

I have not yet begun the runs to the bathroom – they will come in waves as my bladder becomes sensitive and urination picks up as all this excess fluid leaves my body. And, of course, there will be the “check” trips because my vagina feels “leaky.”  Oh, and at some point, diarrhea will result…just too much fluid for my kidneys to deal with at one time, I guess.

Ouch my boobs hurt!

Perhaps removing my bra will help.  Ah…it helps somewhat.  Good thing I’m small breasted.  😉

My “seat” is aching like it’s been spanked.  Labia hurt, vagina hurts, everybody down there is cranky.

My mind is crazy today, for lack of a better word.  I type things I don’t intend to type.  Mispell simple words.  Change that to: Misspell simple words. My mind can’t get herself together no matter what I do.  5 cups of coffee by noon and still I’m fuzzy around the edges.

And, my bottom feels like it’s going to fall off of me.  ARGH.  This is getting on my nerves.  First the boobs and then the bottom.  It’s like they take turns calling my attention to them – boobs then bottom, boobs then bottom.

And, no…orgasm did not help. One did not.  Two did not. I’m certain three would not either.  If anything orgasm made matters worse.

What I would really like is to…ah…what time was it Hubby said he would get home?

I feel like my vagina is expanding within me…like everything is swollen…lush…ripe.

Usually, I’m able to control my cravings, but this weekend really did me in.  The family ate Kentucky Fried Chicken – a NO NO for me but I ate it anyway (sans skin and coating).  Saying “no” was just too difficult for some reason.  I wish now I had.  The swelling would be far less than it is if I’d stuck to my natural foods diet and the other issues would be nearly non existent as well.

Ah, well, it is what it is.  I gave her what she wanted and she’s doing a number on me now.  Ha ha!

You go, girl.  Enjoy every sensation.  Enjoy the cravings, the aches and pains, the fullness and bloating. One day all this will be a faint memory, if that.

Oh, I forgot about the bloating.  I’m in sweatpants today.  For the first time in ages my abdomen is bloated.

I’m miserable.

And, having light cramps, too.  They originate near my ovaries and extend down into my vagina.  Not really painful…but not all that comfortable either.  They end with a profound ache/tug at the top of my vagina.

My lower back aches.  A heating pad would feel nice against it but I’m too lazy and sluggish today to get up and get one.

Boo me.

I just want to go to bed and sleep…or eat.  Eating is good, but I’m tired of chocolate.  What else is there that I can nibble on?

No, no, no…I don’t want an apple….  I might make some fries….  Oh, or a chocolate shake…or fries AND a chocolate shake…OH!! I know…fries dipped in the chocolate shake….

And, a spoon of spaghetti sauce…I wonder if I have any in the cabinet….

I wish my period would start.  That would make my body so happy.

The chips…I found them hiding on the microwave.  Forget the fries…forget the shake.  I’ll go with greasy, salty crunchiness.

Several times I’ve headed to the bathroom to check and see – stopped myself because I knew flow had not started.  But, it felt like it had…such an odd sensation.

Crampiness is increasing.  CD 1 can’t be far off.

My breasts ache, upward into my armpits – I find myself with my hands cupping them, lifting and cradling them…attempting to ease their pain and find that I only add to it.

I’ve not checked my stash of menstrual products or cleaned my cup for use.  I’ll not place a pad, tampon or cup “just in case” I start. I won’t worry about bleeding on or staining anything I wear. And, I won’t insert my finger to check my cervix’ progress toward menstruation.

Why?

Because I no longer menstruate.  But, I do still cycle.

My cycles have become irregular in the past year and I thought I had reached menopause a couple of months ago as I experienced a cessation of symptoms associated with the various phases of my cycle.

It’s odd to experience everything up to the moment that flow should arrive – and for there to be no flow.  And, to experience everything during the period of time in which I should be flowing except for flow itself.

I lost my ability to menstruate when fibroid tumors enlarged my uterus to the size of a 26 week pregnancy and filled my abdomen and pelvis with softball sized tumors. Shortness of breath, intestinal worries and difficulty emptying my bladder signaled it was time to put my health ahead of menstruation. It was a sad day.

A very sad day.

My ovaries were uninvolved so I begged to keep them.  They have functioned well since surgery – at least up until late last year when I noticed changes in myself and in my cycle.

Each and every cycle, since the hysterectomy, has been a blessing. No, I don’t flow, and, yes – I miss it greatly.

It’s one thing to cycle through all the various frustrations and changes and arghs associated with the menstrual cycle and be rewarded by flow – and quite another to go through it all and not experience flow.

One day I will no longer cycle.  I’ll admit – I’ve wondered who I will be and what I’ll be like when I stop.  I can’t imagine living without the changes…without waiting for certain days in my cycle when I KNOW certain tasks will be easier to accomplish.

After all, I’ve cycled for 40 years.  That’s a long time.

But, that day has not arrived yet.  I am awaiting the start of my “period.”

No, I won’t bleed.  No, I won’t become menstrual in the truest sense of the word.  No, I don’t have a uterus to get grumpy and irritable – and crampy – as she goes about her business of expelling the old as she renews herself.  No, I won’t flow red.  But, I will flow.

Yes, I will flow. With all that’s in me, I will flow.

(This is the second in an occasional series that began with “Finding Normal.”)

Life-Changing Cups

Kim Rosas, the menstrualcupsfbbrains behind Dirty Diaper Laundry and Cloth Diaper Finder, wrote a delightful and informative piece – “Menstrual Cups: What Every Woman Should Know.”

“In all honesty using a cup can change your life for the better.  All women should know this is an option, especially teenagers who have decades of periods to look forward to.  This video will answer all of your questions about how and why menstrual cups are the greatest things since sliced bread.  If not I have some more information for you to read in this post and links to even more helpful resources.”  

In her post you will find

  • The video
  • Choosing a Cup
  • Using the Cup
  • Benefits of Using the Cup
  • Troubleshooting the Cup
  • Getting over the ICK factor and “Owing it”
  • Where to buy?
  • Win one!

Take a few minutes and view the video.  It’s well done and well worth the 8 minutes you will invest in it.

Left Out

No one likes to be left out…for any reason.

 

Especially not when that reason is as easily resolved as…

http://d12xzpun4kqsb2.cloudfront.net/gen/constrain/500/500/80/2012/08/24/19/60/ku/poms9hr4001t0eb.jpg?imageId=24120997

Don’t be sidelined – check out menstrual cups.

If you use them, don’t be shy – be period wise – tell your friends.

No one likes to be left out…for any reason!

Periodic Resolutions

New year.

New resolutions.

New opportunities.

New vision.

New growth.

New you.

                                    As you look toward embracing the new year, consider resolving one (or more) of the following:

  • try a new Eco-friendly product
  • learn more about menstruation
  • explore your own menstrual experience
  • take the leap to a new/different product
  • begin a cycle day (CD) journal
  • live fully into the strengths each CD brings
  • examine your menstrual taboos and ask “why”
  • become more period wise
  • greet and celebrate each period

All I Want For Christmas

With Christmas a week away, I’m making my list and checking it twice.

If your list is anything like mine, there’s one person missing – YOU!

Take a moment and look at the gift ideas below and see if any are on your wish list. Maybe it’s time for your wish to come true.

 

Gift yourself this holiday season!  You and your period deserve it!