Menstruation hygiene

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Nelia86

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As a female, I was wondering what is the best of way for a Catholic woman to deal with her periods, when it comes to the hygiene issue: should we use (disposable) pads, tampons, cups, or just give the good old cloth pads a try?

I’m asking this question because, besides being a Catholic, I’m also worried about the amounts of garbage we generate, so I’m considering to rely on a less damaging hygiene item, such as a menstrual cup or cloth pads. What’s your opinion/experience?
 
For health reasons, pads are the best because you aren’t keeping the menses inside your body and you are letting them out. So if you are concerned about waste, I would go with cloth pads. They are a little bit of a nuisance to clean, but they generate a lot less waste than normal pads of tampons. Plus tampons can contribute to more cramping as well.
 
I have heard someone who says tampons take your virginity away. True story.
 
Nelia86 said:
As a female, I was wondering what is the best of way for a Catholic woman to deal with her periods, when it comes to the hygiene issue: should we use (disposable) pads, tampons, cups, or just give the good old cloth pads a try?

I’m asking this question because, besides being a Catholic, I’m also worried about the amounts of garbage we generate, so I’m considering to rely on a less damaging hygiene item, such as a menstrual cup or cloth pads. What’s your opinion/experience?
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I think this might be better suited to another forum, as well as some of the previous posters…

I use a menstrual cup (well, not currently, as I’m pregnant ;)). I like it. The health risks that exist with tampons aren’t present with a cup, it’s comfortable, I’ve never had a leak, they don’t need to be changed as often, and the one I have only needs to be replaced every ten years. I can’t remember how much it cost (maybe $20?) but even after a few cycles it pays for itself. It is easily cleaned in hot water.

Buying disposable pads and tampons is expensive and I agree that I don’t like the waste it generates. We use cloth diapers and family cloth, but for some reason the idea of using cloth pads is uncomfortable for me. Maybe because of how difficult I find it to wash blood out of clothing. I know it CAN be done, but I’ve never had much success with it, and to purposefully have cloth for that purpose seems strange to me.

I do know, however, that menstrual cups shouldn’t be used for lochia (postpartum bleeding). I plan on using disposable pads for that (just like I will use disposable diapers for meconium, but after that switch to cloth.)

I think it’s wise to consider the simple ways you can use less and generate less waste and very moral, but it is not necessarily immoral to not do those things. I find, though, that the reasons to go ahead and use the less wasteful thing are usually more compelling than not (except in unusual or rare circumstances).
 
See, I tried the cup and it rode up every time (and I have a high cervix) and it created suction as well so it was always hard to get out and ended up spilling everywhere most of the time . Also it is hard to change when you have to be outside of the house for long periods of time (like work or school). I generally had to change mine once every 5 or 6 hours because I always bleed heavily. So it was a waste of 30 bucks. I know it works for some women, but anatomy and the rate of flow really affect if it would work for you.

I changed to cloth pads and it is a pain to clean, but it works better for me.
 
This isn’t typically an issue specified by confession manuals or the Church. However we are to care for the natural environment. Recycling is good. Using energy effecient things are good. Etc. lunapads.com has cloth pads and sells the diviacup. I’ve considered it and may eventually go to cloth pads. That said, there are debates over increasing your laundry load (using more water) versus filling a land fill. They both can have negative effects on the environment.

Its not manditory to use such alternatives, but I think its good the alternatives exist.
 
smndtupidisaftr said:
I have heard someone who says tampons take your virginity away. True story.
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Definitely not true. From age 14 and up, I used them. Then when it came time to see a gyn, he confirmed that the hymen was intact. A second gyn confirmed that at a later time.
 
1ke said:
This is not a “Catholic” issue.
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My Catholic grandmother would strongly disagree with you: to her Catholicism affected all of life, so everything is a Catholic issue. I had a strange conversation with her on this subject some years ago, one which was fairly oblique, as this is not a subject one discussed with anyone. In her opinion, using tampons was a mortal sin. I did not follow why she thought that, as her pronouncement more or less put a definite end to the conversation. Perhaps it was her generation (I’m 55 - I think she would be 110 or so if she were still alive). She was strongly Irish Catholic, if that matters.

As I sit here I wonder how the confession would go to a priest…
 
Nelia86 said:
As a female, I was wondering what is the best of way for a Catholic woman to deal with her periods, when it comes to the hygiene issue: should we use (disposable) pads, tampons, cups, or just give the good old cloth pads a try?

I’m asking this question because, besides being a Catholic, I’m also worried about the amounts of garbage we generate, so I’m considering to rely on a less damaging hygiene item, such as a menstrual cup or cloth pads. What’s your opinion/experience?
Click to expand...
If you have been having excessive periods you may want to see a gynecologist. I have never heard of using a cup except for birth control. They used to have “granny rags” which were cloth.
 
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