Per the flyer that comes with Lunapads orders, "Approx. 20 billion pads, tampons and applicators are sent to North American landfills annually. On an individual level, each of approximately 73 million menstruators in North American will throw away 125-150 kg or 16,8000 disposable menstrual products in their lifetimes." These numbers are huge. Personally, I try to live a more sustainable lifestyle: I don't drink from disposable water bottles without necessity, recycle my plastic bags, and often shop at thrift stores to recycle clothing/prevent waste. However, I couldn't help but notice all the pads I was throwing away each cycle. It seemed like so much waste and I was always running out of pads. Not to mention, I was leery of tampons because I have a busy lifestyle which leads to me not always being able to replace them as often as I like and they are associated with TSS with long use.
I stumbled onto a sponsored Facebook post for Thinx underwear, an underwear that claims to be able to replace pads and tampons. I was so amazed by this new technology. I'd only ever seen pads and tampons advertised on the television commercials. I didn't know such underwear existed- and it was just as cute as the Victoria's Secret underwear I loved so much with its lacy hiphugger style. I saw that for every pair of underwear that was sold, 7 pads were sent to a girl in a developing country. The only problem is being a full time college student that just quit her job, I couldn't help but think $34 for one pair of underwear was a little steep (-don't get me wrong, I love the company/idea/technology, I just can't afford it right now!).
Look how happy she looks riding her bike in her brand new Thinx!
This opened my eyes to all the different kinds of reusable menstrual products there are out there. I did research on different pads and menstrual cups from different companies. At first, I was a little grossed out by the idea of having to deal with bloodied pads and just wanted to try out menstrual cups instead. However, I realized if I wanted to get off of disposable products entirely, I would need a stash of pads for the days I didn't want to stick something up my lady parts. So we'll see how that goes! Anyway, so I watched hours of videos about reusable menstrual products (or RUMPs) on Youtube. Then for Christmas this year, I decided to ask my fiance for two sets of pads, a wet bag, and a menstrual cup. I've already received my TreeHugger pads, my wet bag, and Lilly Cup and reviews will follow. I am still expecting my Terrapad Stash Sampler as well.
I started this blog to share my experience trying out reusable menstrual products. Maybe it won't seem as scary anymore if people talked about it more. I'm definitely excited about this new experience and to share it with you! Now just to wait for my period to start so I can try out my new goodies.
As always, have a happy uterus! #tamponliberation # helloflo
References:
lunapads.com
shethinx.com
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