Okay, you've made it this far. Let's talk about how we can avoid some of these high dollar price tags associated with your period. In particular, we want to focus on how you can avoid spending roughly $6,000 on tampons and pads throughout your lifetime.
Not only is your period taking a financial toll, but we're almost making a pretty significant impact on the environment. On average, 45 billion pads and tampons are used around the world in one year. That shakes out to produce 3.2 million kg of waste (or 705,479 pounds). That's a lot of garbage, and it's a bunch of trash that will take a long time to decompose. Your typical tampon, you know the plastic applicator kind, will live in the landfill for roughly 500 years.
And some of you might be thinking, but plastic is recyclable, why don't we just do that? I would say you're a clever girl. Even though some packaging may say it's recyclable, products like these will be rejected at recycling facilities for sanitary reasons. Go figure.
Alright, let's get to the good stuff. How can I save money when my period comes knocking?
Menstrual Cups
The first options we think you should 100% look into are menstrual cups. I switched to menstrual cups a few years ago, and I'll never go back to tampons and pads. There's definitely a small learning curve initially, but once you get used to it, I promise you'll never look back.
A menstrual cup is a small flexible cup with a stem at the end. These cups are usually made of silicone or latex rubber. The great thing about these cups is they can be left in for 12 hours and will last 5 - 10 years. As a friendly reminder, tampons should be changed every 4-8 hours, and they could potentially lead to Toxic Shock Syndrome. Sounds neat, right?
So, let's say, on average, you spend $13.25 a month on tampons or pads. If you make the switch today to a menstrual cup and take good care of it, you could save $1,590 on sanitary products over the next 10 years.
I use the Lena Cup because it tends to be less expensive than other brands, but I've listed a few more below to get you started.
● Intimina Lily Cup - We love this brand because they support women through all stages of life. They sell great products, and they have their own blog to help educate others on all things vagina; sexual health, pregnancy, and even menopause. Not only do they sell menstruation cups, but they also sell products to help you strengthen your pelvic floor. Pelvic floor health is essential.
● Saalt Cup - The one thing I don't love about my Lena Cup is it stains pretty severely. So if you're worried about other people seeing your stained menstrual cup (I wish we didn't feel this shame), you should consider the Saalt Cup. It comes in a chic grey color to conceal stains and donates 2% of their proceeds to charity.
● OrganiCup - These cups are made from 100% medical grade silicone. They also come in recyclable packaging to reduce your environmental impact. Like the Saalt Cup, they're also trying to do their part by continuously donating to charities worldwide.
Reusable Pads & Panty Liners
If tampons and menstrual cups aren't really your thing, that's perfectly fine. Now we'll cover the alternative - reusable pads and period-proof underwear. If you stick to mainly pads and panty liners for your period, remember you could be spending nearly $1,100 on disposable cotton!
But if money's not enough of a motivator for you, consider this. When taking a closer look at the ingredients used in tampons and pads, research shows many of these chemicals are associated with "cancer, disrupt hormones, and unnecessary allergic reactions." And unfortunately, the FDA does not regulate the chemicals put into these products even though we put them in or around very intimate parts of our bodies.
If you're interested in participating in the movement to demystify your sanitary products, check out the Detox the Box campaign.
● GladRags - This company is a great place to source your reusable pads because they are a certified benefit corporation committed to environmental and social justice. I mean, they even use local bike delivery to receive their finished products from their local sewing source — very west coast, very cool. Oh, and did I mention they're entirely female owned? Boss.
● Aisle - You can head over to the period "aisle" to pick up your next reusable pad, panty liner, or even period underwear. The best part about this company is they respect all genders. So whatever stage you're at in life, they have a product for you to help with menstruation. They are also actively involved in donating and supporting multiple charities spanning 18 countries.
● Thinx - Or switch to period underwear, which enables you to ditch tampons and pads altogether. One pair of Thinx underwear can hold the equivalent to 4 tampons or 2 pads. By purchasing from this company, you'll be directly contributing to their company mission - "better access to puberty education, amplifying grassroots activism, and donating our undies and time."
Pass on The Period
One of the male gynecologists, John Rock, invented the artificial period that helped develop the pill. This 7-day anxiety-riddled nightmare of a week was introduced into our lives to please, shockingly, another man. That man was the pope of the Catholic church. Rock hoped that if he was able to show the pill gave women stable periods, the pope would be more receptive to the drug because the Catholic church supports the "rhythm" method of birth control.
Hint - the rhythm method is also known as natural family planning. This means women need to track their most fertile days to plan to not get it on on those days.
I'm sure you won't be shocked to learn; the pope didn't go for it, and still, to this day, the Catholic church does not promote the pill as an acceptable form of birth control. Well, Rock's idea might not have stuck with the pope, but it certainly stuck with the pill.
So if you're one of the 10.6 million women in America taking the pill, I highly recommend you reach out to physicians and ask for a continuous birth control pill that doesn't have the sugar pills.
Round-Up
Okay, so by switching to reusable, sustainable products, we can:
Reduce the costs associated with our periods
Reduce our environmental impact
Enable women around the world to better manage their periods
Such small changes can have massive impacts on your financial future and for women around the world. What will your first steps be? Leave a comment below to share your experience with saving money, reducing waste, and giving back.
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