Tag Archives: Keeper

What’s in YOUR Tampon?

What’s in YOUR tampon?

Don’t know?

Then why is it in your vagina?

Seriously, Ladies – why is it in your vagina if you don’t know what’s in it?

Hello? Can I get an amen on that?

Please, stop and think what it is you are placing inside of you.

I know tampons are convenient – believe me…I know.

But, when you slip a traditional tampon (think Playtex, Tampax, Kotex, U, O.B.) inside of you, some very nasty chemicals leach out of the tampon and into some of the most delicate tissues your body possesses.  And, these chemicals can and do cause a wide array of health issues.

Take a look at your tampon box.

Do you see a full list of ingredients?  What about chemicals involved in manufacturing, bleaching, creating, disinfecting the materials used in these tampons?  Do you see them listed?

Ever wonder why not?

There’s good reason for companies not to list these harmful ingredients.

If you knew what you were doing to your body each time you inserted a tampon that is anything other than 100% natural, certified organic cotton (no defoliant, no chlorine, no chemicals, no synthetic fibers) – you would choose a more health and body friendly option.

And, that would mean less revenue for big companies.

It’s all about the money.

BIG money.

Big, big money.

It’s not just tampons.  No.

What about disposable pads?  Ever think about the chemicals that are in those things?  Ew…and we place them snugly against our lady parts without consideration to what they are releasing into our bodies each time we sit on them.

And, diapers…disposable baby diapers.

What are we doing to ourselves, to our children…to their children?

It’s time these companies, that have taken our money for oh so long, to come clean about what they have been and continue to sell us.

And, it’s time for us to say “NO MORE!”

If they want our money, then they need to be open and honest with us about everything that’s in them.  We deserve that! YOU deserve that. Your daughter and granddaughter deserves that.

And, until they do – we need to rethink our menstrual hygiene in such a way to avoid using their products.

And, we need to warn others.

Buyers beware.

What’s in your tampon? It could be killing you and big business doesn’t want you to know, doesn’t want to lose your business…your money.

Sounds to me like they really don’t care about us…they just care about our money.

Be period wise.

Tell big business to stick it up theirs and you go find an alternative menstrual hygiene option that’s safe, healthy and reusable. Save the money you’ve been giving them and invest in yourself – invest in your dreams, not theirs.

That’s period wise.

Concealed Carry

A day ago I posted Concealed Carry or Confident Carry? and suggested the girls at Galesburg High School confident carry until the rule banning purses was rescinded, and ended with a call for a day of confident carry for us all on May 9.

In some instances and settings, concealed carry is not possible and confident carry could generate negative and unwanted attention.  So, in light of that, let me say this:

Menstrual cups rock concealed carry as well as confident carry.

Why?  How?

Menstrual cups can be carried within even before your period starts.  That’s concealed carry as well as confident carry!

What a difference it could have made for the Galesburg High School student, suspended for concealed carry of menstrual supplies, if someone had shared with her the wonders of menstrual cups.

Lunette, SoftCup, Keeper, DivaCup, and others offer a safe, discrete concealed carry option (internal) that other menstrual products can’t.  Cups are a great option whether you are new to menstruation or have years, or even decades of experience.

For more information on menstrual cups, click on the links above / contact the companies via email or through social media, visit the Menstrual Cup Support forum, and read Why it’s time to give ’em a try.

Concealed carry shouldn’t put you in suspension at school or prevent you from doing what you love.

#ConfidentCarry  #May9

What Does it Cost You to Flow?

In the past few days I’ve heard from two women who have extreme flow during menstruation.

The amount of product used is staggering.  (And, the amount of trash produced is, too.)

Imagine using 98+ individual products – overnight pads and ultra tampons often used concurrently – for one 7 day flow period.

Now, imagine the cost involved.

  • The last time you purchased tampons or pads, how many did the box(s) contain?
  • Now, divide 98 by the answer in the previous question (number in the box of pads/tampons you bought).
  • And, finally, multiply that number (that you got by dividing) by the $ spent to purchase your product of choice.

What’s the total?

The total $ is the minimum cost you would incur for EACH period if your menstrual experience was similar.

Could you handle that financially?  I couldn’t.

Can you see how reusable menstrual products can literally be a financial savior to women with heavy menstrual flow?

Did you know they can be for you as well?  How much do you spend each month on menstrual products?  Come on, be honest.  Now, multiply that by 12 (or however many periods you have in 12 months time.  What’s your total?

Did you have a “wow” moment when you did the math?

Now, multiply the $ amount by the number of years you will probably need menstrual products – 40.

Did you have a WOW moment just now?  Mine came out to almost $7000. (And, that’s not counting the gas used to run to the store, incidentals purchased while out that I wouldn’t have purchased if I’d not had to make that period run for product.)

Wow!

That’s a down payment on a house…a new/used car in the garage…educational needs…a new beginning…a new location…a dream vacation….

Now, imagine yourself unable to pay the amount you initially gave for each month’s menstrual needs because finances were too tight, or the expense too great.  And, so you relied on a credit card to meet your needs.  How long would it take to run up credit card debt for menstrual products alone?

What’s the solution?

Reusable menstrual products.

  • menstrual cups
  • cloth pads
  • sponges

A quick search online of “cloth menstrual pads” reveals many options and sellers – too numerous to mention here.

Sea Pearls are, perhaps, the best known menstrual sponges, at least according to Google.

When it comes to menstrual cups, 5 reusable cups have FDA approval for sale in the US.

  1. Lunette
  2. Diva
  3. Sckoon
  4. Keeper
  5. SoftCup

Flowing should not be costly, but it is for so many women.

Make the change to reusables and keep your dollars and change where it belongs – in your control.

Reusables are the way to go with heavy flow…with any flow.  It just makes better sense, for your wallet and for the environment, too.

Be period wise – be dollar wise.

It’s Time to Talk about Menstruation

Sarah Ogden, a Staff Writer for Everyday Feminism, recently wrote an article.that screams  “PERIOD WISE” beginning with her first sentence: “All right, folks, it’s time to talk about it.”

“Breaking News: Menstruation Is Awesome!” is loaded with timely and important information – and chocked full of encouragement.

“It’s a beautiful thing.” That’s what she said about menstruation.

She said a lot more, too, like…how her boyfriends knew more about her body than she did and that the products we use help us remain disconnected from our bodies.

How’s that for a teaser? She packs quite a punch in her piece.

Here are some highlights.

  • We need to reclaim this experience and find power in the blood that unites us.
  • Menstruation is natural, beautiful, and powerful.
  • Some companies try to make us feel bad about our periods to buy their products.
  • Vaginas are not dirty.
  • Some companies try to make us feel periods are “inconvenient” to buy their products.
  • Menstruation is not a disease, and there should not exist a “cure.”
  • Our periods connect us to the moon and to the sea.
  • Menstruation is a shared experience amongst women and trans people who menstruate.
  • What’s a menstruating person to do? (She shares 3 tips.)

I encourage you to take a few minutes and read Sarah’s post.

If you use tampons as your main menstrual product, I hope Sarah’s words below awaken you to the possibility of trying other products (esp. reusable menstrual cups like Lunette, Diva, Keeper, Instead SoftCup, or pads like Always Infinity or cloth).

We use plastic to put tampons in our vaginas, pull them out by the bottom of long string, and then throw them away, all without getting our fingers bloodied.  We are almost completely disengaged from our blood and our bodies.

Period wise women redefine menstruation by breaking taboos and challenging long held beliefs and assumptions.

Period wise women personalize menstruation through the acceptance of their own experience and in sharing their experience with others.

Think.

  • How have you redefined menstruation?
  • How have you personalized it?

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.