Let's Talk Cloth

This is a post many of you may not want to read. Consider yourselves warned now. We'll be talking about cloth. What kind of cloth, you ask? Well, if you have to ask, then this may be a new (stretchy) topic for you. We are not talking about cloth versus leather seats in your new beamer. Nor are we talking about cloth versus disposable diapers....though we're getting warmer.....

We are talking Mama Cloth. Yep. Reusable cloth menstrual products. (respectful pause as all the men run for hills to gouge out their eyes and kill something for dinner...which might be difficult with no eyes)......

Ok ladies, are we all back now? It's not really that scary, I promise. Once you get used to the idea, it's a fun topic. Trust me. Ok, now think back to that first traumatic experience most of us share: the first time you bought your own pads/tampons. Wasn't that awful? It was for me. Actually, it still is for me. And I feel particularly badly for you if you had to accomplish this onerous chore:

• With your dad
• With a male checkout clerk
• With a blushing make bag clerk whom you recognize from your 4th period Algebra class

And were any of you like me and hated this chore so much that you put it off a little too long and then found yourself making the dreaded late night/early morning run for JUST pads/tampons?  Isn't that the worst?! You can practically feel your uterus screaming "I'm bleeding RIGHT NOW!!!" Ahhh the lonely tampon box on the running belt....all alone....with nary a box of cereal to prop up next to it to conceal the tell-tale symbol of your procrastination. Ah yes. Fun times!

So what if I told you that those desperate runs to the corner market with a wad of t.p. in your undies could be a thing of the past? What if pad shopping could be.....(dare I say it?).....fun?

Let me set your mind at ease right now. I know what you're thinking. If this is a new idea for, you're probably pretty grossed out at the idea of reusable cloth menstrual products. That's okay. Right now you are just reading a blog about it. I promise no one is sneaking into your bathroom right now and replacing all your Stayfrees with a paint rag box.Relax, and just take in some information. That's all. We're just girlfriend having a chat. You might want to pull out that breathing technique you save for Pap-smear-day. You can do this. I believe in you.

Ok so first off, we'll take a brief foray into the wide-wide world of reusable menstrual products. There are many different kinds of reusable menstrual products (breathe....breathe...), but we are only going to cover two today.

You might have seen the Instead product by your Kotex in the grocery store. That is actually a disposable product but it functions similarly to our first product type: the cup. There are Diva cups and Moon Cups and several other brands. They are just little flexible rubber/latex/silicone cups that fit in the vagina about half way between your cervix and vaginal outlet. They are held in place by the muscles that reside in the area.

I used a Diva for a while and it was awesome...for a while. I'll spare you the details but I don't use one anymore. They are handy in that they are internal so you they are more versatile (you can go swimming, etc). They don't usually leak but they do have a learning curve to use and they are messy to empty/rinse. If you bleed heavily, you need to plan for short trips to town only or stay home for a few days because, trust me, emptying and reinserting in the Wally World bathroom is a no-go.

So the second type of reusable menstrual product is the cloth pad. There are a million different kinds but they are all just variations of a cloth pad in varying thicknesses and shapes. Some are hourglass shaped, some are long and thin. Some have snaps or hook and loop "wings." There are night time pads, day use, and pantyliner. There are pads with a waterproof layer and those without. There are even smaller pads for younger girls.

And, here's the fun part, some are really pretty! They are! They come in all different colors and prints. Some are really funky and some are all feminine. There are thousands of women (called WAHMs for Work at Home Moms) who make them from their homes or small businesses and make custom or special order pads. So if you want pads with little girlie skeletons with pink bows, you can find that. If you love frogs or dragon flies, you can find that. If you Love Your Ducks, you can probably even get UofO pads! (Is that sacrilegious? I'll probably get comments on that. I sure hope all the guys are gone). Just take a quick gander on Etsy for some wonderful WAHM creations to see what I mean. Fun, right? Well, at least, if you're not ready for "fun" at least you must see that they are cute.

So why would anyone (except maybe a hippie) want to make the switch to cloth??? Here are a few reasons:

• They breathe, so they are less stinky, sticky, and sweaty, and they are less prone to causing yeast infections.
• They are  A LOT more comfortable to wear.
• They are (eventually) cheaper
• No more late/early desperate runs to the store, and hence, lead to a significant reduction in blushing and stammering
• No bleach/chemicals/toxins next to you skin (or inside you), so they are healthier. 
• They are NOT associated with Toxic Shock Syndrome (TSS).
• They are hypoallergenic
• They are totally GREEN!
• They are waaaaaay cuter in your purse than plastic pads/tampon tubes.

Ok, now comes the part you've been waiting for. How do you care for these things? I mean, that must be a deal-breaker, right? Nope. They are easy-shmeasy. There are obviously more things you have to do, but not much. Here's what I do. If I'm out and about, I just take my pad off and put it in a ziplock bag in my purse (yeah, if you weren't afraid of purse snooping before you will be now, huh?). There are even little "wet bags" that are pretty and more discreet that you can put your pads in. I just hide the baggie in a zippy compartment in my purse (our you could use a makeup case) until I get home. At home, I place the pad in a container I keep in the bathroom and cover it with cold water to soak. You have to remember to change the water each day (by dumping it into the toilet and refilling) to keep them from getting stinky. It is handy to have an opaque container about  a half gallon or so in size, with a handle and a lid. Ok, I'm really going to stretch you now. Some people use the soaking water to water their plants. Apparently plants love it. I haven't tried it but some people swear by it.

Anyway, you can soak them this way all week if you want. Of course that depends on your preference and number of pads you have (referred to as your "stash"). You probably won't need as many pads each cycle as you're used to using in disposables because they are more absorbent and more comfortable. You should probably start with about 8-10 pads of varying thickness, depending on your cycle needs. I would suggest two overnighters, two pantyliners, and about 6-8 thicker day use pads to start. You can add to your stash where you find you need to.

To wash your pads, you just drain the water out in the toilet again. Then you just toss them in your washing machine with a towel or two (they won't tend to stain the towels because they are already soaked....though you might want to hand rinse the newcomer), and wash on cold, then again on hot. And dry. Voila! You're ready again for next month!

The first time you use them you might want to hang around the house for a day or two to see how quickly you need to change them to avoid leaking. Leaking is rare but you can't gauge on the looks from up top, the blood will spread out less in cloth and tends to sink in more and them spread out, which means less blood by your skin so you stay cleaner, too. So just be aware and peek at the underside of the pad if you are unsure. If in doubt, change the pad, but don't worry if a little blood gets on your panty, I have another hint for you. While cold water and some hand soap usually takes the blood right out, you can also splash a little hydrogen peroxide on the spots and watch them disappear! (That's a homebirth trick, btw). It may bleach your undies, but I haven't had this happen yet.

A couple more laundering tips: make sure you don't overdo the soap when you wash your cloth pads. You only need a little otherwise the soap will build up and can cause problems and NEVER EVER EVER use fabric softener or dryer sheets, they will ruin the absorbency. Also, putting a half cup or so of vinegar in the rinse load of your washer will help keep the PH neutral and make the pads super soft.

I realize that most of you won't run right out and switch to cloth immediately (or at all)....so just sit with this info for a while, come back and read it again if you wish, and just let it linger in there and see what sprouts. If you have any questions, feel free to ask. There is a lot of information online, too. But do think about it. You never know, you might just take the plunge one day (and if you do, be sure to drop me a line and let me  know!). You might even find yourself looking forward to your next cycle.