Alternative Female Hygiene Ideas(?)

[JohannaStarr]

Not sure where to post this and feel bad about doing so but didn't know where else to ask! (and sorry if this has been posted elsewhere, I did look and couldn't find related articles)

In a disaster senario type thing I have been wondering a lot about this so apologies but this is quite an important / worrisome topic.

So if the shops go bare any tips on alternative female hygiene? How do 'native tribes' cope? Is it cloth and wash technique? Apologies for my ignorance :O

Maybe PM's will be better lol.

[MorningSong]

Good point and well worth exploring!

I know that there were threads on this topic a good while back....maybe even on Av1... but here is as good a place to start:

http://readynutrition.com/resources/...alth_13012011/

[red_rose]

In the victorian era they would make 'sanitary towels' by making a washable pocket from cloth and stuffing it with sphagnum moss. Moss is awesome for absorbing liquid.

Also look into 'moon cups'.

Hope this helps.

[Wings]

Posted by JohannaStarr (here)
Is it cloth and wash technique?

Cloth and wash. ..... And, before disposable diapers came along for babies, there were cotton diapers that had to be washed.

[JohannaStarr]

thanks for all your posts, panic over lol.

[jjl]

my grandmother used to dry them on the grass after washing, she said the chemicals in the grass resanitized them

[w1ndmill]

How about ... ?

[Tane Mahuta]

Posted by Wings (here)

Posted by JohannaStarr (here)
Is it cloth and wash technique?

Cloth and wash. ..... And, before disposable diapers came along for babies, there were cotton diapers that had to be washed.

Yes...I remember the cotton diapers/nappies. Cause it was my job to wash them!

My Sons have grown up now.....and we still have the diapers/nappies to this day.

Good idea.

TM

[RMorgan]

Also, there are many plants and fruits that, after dried, have natural spongy properties. There are some sea plants and animals with the same properties as well (Bob Sponge!).

[Marianne]

Johannastar, did you find patterns for making sanitary napkins?

There are loads of free patterns online. They are shaped better than just folded ones, so are nicer to use. I have a couple of patterns if you need help finding something.

[Nenuphar]

Soft, colourful, reliable pads that will save you a lot of money in the long run and will prevent thousands of disposables from cluttering landfills!

Source: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YA82FHUV9P8

Luna Pads (Canadian)

http://lunapads.com/

Lunapads actively supports girls in African nations in a unique and important way...please read on for more information: http://lunapads.com/about-us/donate-pads

New Moon Pads (Canadian)

Great flat shipping rate worldwide


Glad Rags (American)

http://www.gladrags.com/

There are several more companies like this online, these are just a few.

[Dawn]

Perhaps a little off topic, on the other hand very important. Did you know that using menstral blood on all 4 corners of a garden dramatically enhances production? REALLY! This makes Diva cups or something like them have more importance than you might have thought. Because they 'harvest' the blood, it can be saved to use on the garden.

It has something to do with the life giving energy of the womb which prepared to nourish a new human life each month. You can use that live giving energy to form an energy grid in your garden.

So sad that my body is too old to do this these days.

[Lancelot]

Not exactly my forte but have you tried moon cups?

http://www.mooncup.co.uk/

[write4change]

The people of Oceania used natural sponges. Apparently worked as birthcontrol also. Having read about it you can wash them out in water and pour the water over plants. To make them sterile again you boil them in water with a little vinegar. There is also (been a long time) how the sex of the child is influenced by the acidic or alkaline condition of the vagina in one sex sperm does better in one than other. I would get a lot of sponges now while we have them and care will cause them to last a long time. While most of the West used cloth, reading about the courtesans of Venice and Florence they also used sponges for both cleaniness and birthcontrol. They were also the only women who were taught to read and write and allowed to use the library. Men did not want their wives educated but hated boring mistresses.

I had a daughter in 65 and one in 80. 65 they just started using paper diapers in the neonatal units and they were considered expensive. My MIL actually gave me my husband's diapers that is how people from the depression saved. Nothing good or reusable was thrown away. She considered my using a diaper service an extravagence. Big canvas sacks put rubberized containers and picked up twice a week and returned wrapped, sealed, and sterilized. Cloth diapers not sterile leads to a lot of rashes etc which is why the paper diapers were invented for the neonatal units in hospitals.

[Jenci]

Posted by Dawn (here)
Perhaps a little off topic, on the other hand very important. Did you know that using menstral blood on all 4 corners of a garden dramatically enhances production? REALLY! This makes Diva cups or something like them have more importance than you might have thought. Because they 'harvest' the blood, it can be saved to use on the garden.

.

I learn something new on this site every day


Actually Dawn, .....about the point you make about being sad that your body is no longer going through this cycle. I enjoy watching the changes in my body during the month. So many girls and young women are conditioned into believing that the very thing which makes them a woman is bad. That's very sad. The "curse" is one term that is used.



Jeanette

[Nenuphar]

Agreed, Jeannette! A great book on this subject is called, Taking Charge of Your Fertility by Toni Weschler. Not exactly a sexy title but really good information. I wish I'd read it in my early 20s.

[Jenci]

Posted by Nenuphar (here)
Agreed, Jeannette! A great book on this subject is called, Taking Charge of Your Fertility by Toni Weschler. Not exactly a sexy title but really good information. I wish I'd read it in my early 20s.

I've got that too, Nenuphar. It is a fantastic book for anyone looking to not to conceive or to conceive naturally.

Weschler talks in the book about the words we are conditioned to use. Men have fluid but women have 'vaginal discharge' and 'cervical mucus'. When we are using words like discharge and mucus it is no wonder that many women have no idea what is normal and what is not.

Looking at this again now, knowing what I know about everything else, I'm guessing that this has not been accidental.
Jeanette

[write4change]

When I was young the woman's conscious movement at Stanford has some very private sessions where women looked at themselves for the first time in a mirror. I know I had just turned 30 and looking back on it; you would be appalled about what women did not know then. Most sex education was focused on not getting pregnant or diseases. We were never taught about the clitoris and its functioins etc. Most women today do not know that the clitoris is the only organ in the body that is designed solely for pleasure. Now why would that be if sex were solely for procreation? It is something the fundies do not want to address. And if we are the creation of god in his image--he was into recreating pleasure.

In my lifetime of observing cats, it is the Queen who stolicites the mate when she is ready or wants to. And she is both verbal and physical in her demands. I had one queen who drove my male crazy with her demands and she was the worst mother. She had no problem abandoning her kittens at birth. You had to hold her down to let them nurse. I have also had one horse that I knew was absolutely gay. He was a pretty big horse that had the most effeminate verbal communications. He loved music and he made a great dressage horse because if you played his music he would practice by himself. He knew he was beautiful and loved to strut. He was a John Travolta horse and worthless to the herd where he had low status in the pasture. The mate I bought for him Lilly became the herd leader. She was fanatically clean and would round the herd up in the six acre pasture periodically and make them poop in one corner. You did not poop in her pasture.

Loosing touch with the wisdom of animals and their feelings and humor is a great loss. It was easy for me to become a recluse with my animals. I had a tee shirt that said the more I know about people, the better I love my horse.

[CdnSirian]

"Sidestreams

For many reasons, including environmental concerns (desire to use reusable products), comfort, and fear of toxic shock syndrome (TSS) and chemical residues, many women use alternative products. These include all-cotton (preferably organic) chlorine-free tampons, chlorine-free disposable pads, washable cloth pads, and devices that collect rather than absorb the menstrual fluid. All-cotton and all-organic cotton, chlorine-free tampons are often sold in health food stores, online, and by mail. Also, you can make your own cloth pads: There are make-your-own sites online (see "Resources"), or you can use cotton handkerchiefs or old flannel shirts or T-shirts (very economical alternatives!).

Some women use natural sponges that work like tampons. Sea sponges often are available in health food stores. They are reusable and relatively inexpensive. Unfortunately, many pollutants are dumped into the oceans from which sponges are taken, and it’s possible that sponges may absorb some of these pollutants and cause us problems. Therefore, some women boil a sponge for five to ten minutes before using it for the first time and between uses. Doing so, however, shrinks and toughens the sponge and reduces its lifetime.14

Some women prefer products that collect rather than absorb the menstrual fluid. The Keeper, one example of a menstrual cup, is an elongated cup made of gum rubber, held in place by suction in the lower vagina, to collect menstrual fluid.15 It can be worn during swimming and other physical activities but not during intercourse or other penetrative sex. Some women use a diaphragm or a cervical cap in the same way as a Keeper. Instead is a disposable device worn in the upper vagina to collect menstrual flow. The rim softens in response to body temperature and creates a seal to protect against leakage and slipping.16 (For more information, see "Resources.")

Those of us with disabilities that limit our mobility and our ability to do self-care often find all of these methods frustrating or difficult to use. As best we can, we adapt existing products to our needs. We may use very large pads, diapers, and panty liners designed for urinary incontinence. However, these often contain plastic, which can be a skin irritant, and most are bleached with chlorine. We hope to find products we can use with more satisfaction. All menstruators need to use consumer power to influence the industry that brings us the products we use. We should not have to settle for options that don’t meet our needs.


14. See http://www.jadeandpearl.com/catalog/sea_pearls_faq.php
15. See www.thekeeperinc.com or call 1-800-500-0077 for product information.
16. See www.softcup.com for product information.

Excerpted from Our Bodies, Ourselves: A New Edition for a New Era, Copyright © 2005, Boston Women's Health Book Collective.
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