You've read about it in books! You've heard about it from friends! Maybe you even have one of your very own! That's right ladies! Its...It's...It's... YOUR PERIOD!
Believe me, I really don't want to have this conversation either. But facts are facts and having a period means throwing away way more stuff than you probably like. I haven't made the sustainability switch yet so, let's break it down and see what the options are.
1. Pads: The only choice for some, but OMG so much waste!
Options: Lunapads and GladRags seem to be the two most available options out there. Both offer organic cotton liners, which can be purchased in a variety of absorbencies and designs, and carrying bags for both clean and used liners. Just throw them in the wash and they're good to go again.
Lunapads Organic Cotton Sample Kit: $69-$97
(low end does not include laundry bag)
(Low end does not include last 2 items)
Most people would shell out this much over the course of a year for regular pads, but it seems like a pretty expensive initial investment.
2. Tampons: Probably the most common choice. While more of us are choosing organic cotton, applicator free options, there is still a lot of waste created by these things.
-Step #1 is to stop flushing these things. The water system is NOT a trash can. Adding solid waste in the form of Tampons, Applicators, Condoms, Qtips, Cotton Balls, etc...makes the water that much harder to clean for future use. So put that shit in the trash can already!
Moving on. -
Options: Sea Pearls Menstrual Sponges, seem to be a big hit. These sponges are 100% natural and sustainably harvested. Each sponge is good for about 4 hours of use and lasts about 1 year before needing replacement. Recommended disinfecting is with water and tea tree oil. Cool.
Sea Pearls: $15- $34
3. Menstrual Cups: This is a newer option designed to allow women to go up to 8-12 hours without changing. The Instead Softcup is the first product I remember hitting the market back about 2000. I tried it, but never got the hang of it and you still have to toss at least 2 plastic cups per day during your cycle.
Options: The Diva Cup and The Moon Cup look about the same to me. The only really different product I found is The Keeper which is made of organic latex. All come in a variety of sizes to account for changes resulting from giving birth.
Diva Cup $25
-I ended up purchasing the Diva Cup. I absolutely love it. Its super easy to use (after an initial learning curve - be prepared) and very comfortable. The manufacturer is required to recommend that it be replaced every 6 months, but I did some additional research that makes me comfortable with the fact that I still have the same one a year later. The basic recommendation I have been following is to boil the cup each month after use and again before use the next month to ensure silicone is sterile.
As an added bonus, I no longer have issues with BV or yeast infection as was common before with tampon use! Yeah.. Proving, once again, that those things are a bad idea.-
So, looks like we have quite a lot more options than even a few years ago. Having grown up in the era of failed silicone breast implants (probably not the same thing), I'm inclined to try the sea sponges first. I would still count any of the cups a close second.
The only question I have now is: What's with the names of these things? Diva and Moon? Why does anything related to my period have to have a huge attitude or be an earth loving hippy? I don't get it.
Believe me, I really don't want to have this conversation either. But facts are facts and having a period means throwing away way more stuff than you probably like. I haven't made the sustainability switch yet so, let's break it down and see what the options are.
1. Pads: The only choice for some, but OMG so much waste!
Options: Lunapads and GladRags seem to be the two most available options out there. Both offer organic cotton liners, which can be purchased in a variety of absorbencies and designs, and carrying bags for both clean and used liners. Just throw them in the wash and they're good to go again.
Lunapads Organic Cotton Sample Kit: $69-$97
(low end does not include laundry bag)
- 2 mini pads & 2 basic liners
- 2 maxi pads & 2 maxi liners
- 1 mesh laundry bag
- moon pad bag (for used pads)
(Low end does not include last 2 items)
- 3 day pads
- 2 panty liners
- 1 night pad
- 1 classic carry bag
- 1 mesh laundry bag
Most people would shell out this much over the course of a year for regular pads, but it seems like a pretty expensive initial investment.
2. Tampons: Probably the most common choice. While more of us are choosing organic cotton, applicator free options, there is still a lot of waste created by these things.
-Step #1 is to stop flushing these things. The water system is NOT a trash can. Adding solid waste in the form of Tampons, Applicators, Condoms, Qtips, Cotton Balls, etc...makes the water that much harder to clean for future use. So put that shit in the trash can already!
Moving on. -
Options: Sea Pearls Menstrual Sponges, seem to be a big hit. These sponges are 100% natural and sustainably harvested. Each sponge is good for about 4 hours of use and lasts about 1 year before needing replacement. Recommended disinfecting is with water and tea tree oil. Cool.
Sea Pearls: $15- $34
- 2 Packs Sea Pearls Sponges $24
- Upgrade to Ultra Durable Premium Sea Sponges $3
- Sponge Tote $7
-Tried the
Sea Pearls in a pinch while home a few weeks ago. While I was happy to
have an alternative to the bleached cotton with a plastic something or
other micro mesh crap.. I wasn't totally impressed.
Pros
-Super Comfortable and Portable
-100% natural sea sponge
-good for light days
Cons
-difficult to tell when sponges need changed
-sponges are challenging to fully clean
-tend to shift in position and create leaks
-sponges fall apart 3 or 4 after a few uses
-sponges fall apart 3 or 4 after a few uses
All in all, I will most likely use this item for the very end of my cycle. -
3. Menstrual Cups: This is a newer option designed to allow women to go up to 8-12 hours without changing. The Instead Softcup is the first product I remember hitting the market back about 2000. I tried it, but never got the hang of it and you still have to toss at least 2 plastic cups per day during your cycle.
Options: The Diva Cup and The Moon Cup look about the same to me. The only really different product I found is The Keeper which is made of organic latex. All come in a variety of sizes to account for changes resulting from giving birth.
Diva Cup $25
- medical grade silicone cup
- carry bag
- medical grade silicone cup
- carry bag
- organic latex cup
- carry bag
-I ended up purchasing the Diva Cup. I absolutely love it. Its super easy to use (after an initial learning curve - be prepared) and very comfortable. The manufacturer is required to recommend that it be replaced every 6 months, but I did some additional research that makes me comfortable with the fact that I still have the same one a year later. The basic recommendation I have been following is to boil the cup each month after use and again before use the next month to ensure silicone is sterile.
As an added bonus, I no longer have issues with BV or yeast infection as was common before with tampon use! Yeah.. Proving, once again, that those things are a bad idea.-
So, looks like we have quite a lot more options than even a few years ago. Having grown up in the era of failed silicone breast implants (probably not the same thing), I'm inclined to try the sea sponges first. I would still count any of the cups a close second.
The only question I have now is: What's with the names of these things? Diva and Moon? Why does anything related to my period have to have a huge attitude or be an earth loving hippy? I don't get it.
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Found the Diva Cup locally at Nature Mart in Los Feliz! for $30.99. They only had model #1 though.
ReplyDeleteThey also had a few options of GladRags, but I forgot to take a detailed look at those.