Ladies, we’re going to get real here. We need to talk about menstruation, and our preparedness for it. It pains me to say it, but there are a lot of us out there that are completely unprepared for the regular visit of Aunt Flo, and it just blows my mind. When I was at WalMart earlier this week, I was shocked to see the tampons and pads were almost completely cleared out. Really? We get our periods monthly (for most of us at least) for decades. Why are we so unprepared and shocked when it shows up?

Now, I was completely not expecting it back in January when the crimson tide arrived, 29 months to the day since I last got it (hooray pregnancy and extended breastfeeding!). Yes, I had a brand new box of SoftCups that I bought when I thought I was having bad pre-period symptoms before I found out I was pregnant with Little Man, and I had my stash of cloth pads, but I did not have my preferred Diva Cup or peri bottle.

SoftCups, Diva Cup, [shiver] cloth pads, WTF is a peri bottle [haha…you’ve never had a baby!]? Seriously woman? Damn right, ladies. I have not used tampons in almost 10 years. The pantyliners I do have are unbleached cotton. The current trend of using disposable tampons and pads is completely unsustainable in the long run, especially when there is a crazy situation going on, like this COVID-19 pandemic. It is also financially irresponsible; I know, menstrual cups are expensive, but one purchase will last you years!

• Cloth Pads
  • Let’s start with cloth pads. They have been used for ages. What do you think the women used before the tampons and pads we currently sell in stores? They would use cloth to collect the blood. You can find these pads online (I got mine on Amazon), or you can make your own. I still plan on making additional inserts for the pads I have; just take some flannel, cut it, hem it, and boom, cloth pad insert. You can make the actual pad as well, just use some buttons or snaps on the wings so they stay in place in your undies.
• Peri Bottles
  • Ahh…the peri bottle, or as I call it, the poor man’s bidet. These bottles are given to women when they are in hospital after having a baby. I still have mine, in my first aid kit in storage. When Aunt Flo made her appearance back in January, I went online and ordered one off of Amazon (you cannot find them now, and the ones that are there are SUPER pricey). Yeah, I’ve gotten funny looks from my family when I’ve mentioned it recently, with all of the toilet paper shortages, but they are great for more than that. If you are not using a menstrual cup or tampon, you have blood to deal with when you’re visiting the toilet. Take that peri bottle and squeeze, and you can clean up quite well down under. Try it for number 2 as well. All you have to do is lightly dab a few pieces of TP to dry yourself up. It saves on the amount you use in general, and leaves you feeling refreshed!
• Menstrual Cups
  • So many types of cups are out there: SoftCups, Diva Cups, Lunette…I could keep going for ages. What they do is collect the blood INSIDE for up to 12 hours. Yes, you do have to “get all up in there” in order to place it, but once it’s in, you don’t have to worry. I always like to wear a panty liner or just the pad part of a cloth pad, as a “just in case,” but I really don’t need to double up. When it’s time to change, you reach up, break the seal, pull out, and dump the contents in the toilet. Then you rinse the cup, fold it, and reinsert it. Bada bing, bada boom, you’re done for another half a day. Price is high, but $40 over the course of several years is a much better investment than the (I don’t even know what pads or tampons cost anymore!) monthly cost of all the other items out there over decades.

You’ve got options, ladies. Step away from the bleached cotton and plastics in conventional tampons and pads. Help the Earth out, and go reusable. It’s just blood, for gosh sakes, just like what you clean with water when you cut your hand or leg, why is the fact that it comes out of a vagina make it so disgusting? Get over it! Then, when the next pandemic hits and you cannot find feminine hygiene products in stores, you will be all ready to go! (You bet your ass I keep my Diva Cup in my bag at all times. You never know when you’ll need it!)