Are you a man? Are you squicked out by talk of monthly cycles and bleeding and lady bits? Back away slowly. I’ll wait.
OK, ready? Really. Last chance.
Prior to the birth of my third child, I wasn’t terribly motivated to switch to reusable menstrual products, though I was worried about the chemicals in disposables as well as the environmental aspect. There is an initial cost, just like with cloth diapers, while I was getting the disposable products free or nearly free with coupons/sales. I also wasn’t sure about the bulk of mama cloth, or how the absorbency would be. Between pregnancy & breastfeeding, I hadn’t had enough cycles to really try more than a cloth liner in the time since I’d learned that mama cloth existed and come around to the idea.
Following my third child’s birth, I had very little postpartum bleeding. After just a few days, I didn’t need much more than a liner. Made me a little glad I had nixed the idea of buying postpartum mama cloth since he was my last baby and it can be pricey. However, I was worried that to balance out my easy recovery, I was getting a horrid yeast infection. The discomfort was terrible! Imagine my surprise that within 20 minutes of removing those disposable products from my underwear, the discomfort went away. Completely. Gone.
Although I didn’t get my cycle back until he was two (TWO! Talk about lucky this time! Nearly three years without a cycle!), I occasionally wore a liner. Every.darn.time, I almost immediately felt like I was in a “feminine itching” commercial. I made a comment to my husband about it while suffering two cycles ago and he said “why aren’t you using your ‘hippie’ stuff?”
I have a handful of mama cloth from reviews but not really enough to get me through – plus I’m still figuring out exactly what I like best. I tried a menstrual cup, but I need to keep searching for just the right one (I need a shorter style), so I’ve continued to use disposable products. I think I’ve had about 7 cycles now, and every time, the discomfort from the pad was worse than the cramps.
I am pretty certain that I’ve developed some weird sensitivity to disposable feminine products. I don’t know if ingredients/materials have changed (I’ve tried a few brands, all of which I’d used in the past) or what. It’s so strange. I had annoying breakthrough bleeding this month, so I put a liner on. Within 5 minutes I thought, oh no way am I going to be able to sit through the kids’ swim lessons feeling like this. Grabbed a Lunapads liner & snapped it on. Boom. Itching gone.
It really makes me wonder if disposable diapers make babies poor parts feel the same way. What an awful feeling! Do you think it’s possible to be suddenly sensitive to these products? What’s your favorite mama cloth brand?
Maria wants to live in a world where cloth diapers are the norm and moms can make parenting choices without judgement. When she’s not chasing her 18, 14 and 11-year old kids around, you might find her checking out the latest gadgets, organizing something (again) or exercising in the fresh air. 
I love my homemade mama cloths. I would be curious to ask your readers about their washing routines. Now that I have a toddler, I want to change from a wet pail to a dry pail (I’ve always used a dry pail for CD). But a dry pail for mama cloths will require a more rigorous wash routine, right? Any ideas out there?
I’ve heard several interesting methods. One person kept a small tub under her bathroom sink with water in it, A.K.A. wet pail. One mom would just put the mama cloth on the shower floor to rinse them while she was showering! I’ve just wrapped mine up and washed with diapers, but that probably led to more staining. They are definitely clean so I’m not worried about it. 🙂
Yep! Reusables are the bomb. I could never go to back disposbales now for sure. P.S. I see the blog got a make over and it looks awesome!! Simple and sweet. 🙂
Xo
Thanks! 🙂
After reading many reviews (I loved Kim’s videos on DDL), I finally broke down and bought a Lunette last December. I was still using disposable pads, which have made me really itchy for the past few years, but I need them for overnight backup. I finally sewed myself some mama pads with PUL and fleece (with microfiber & flannel interior).
I’m trying to figure out whether I’m up for sewing (and taking care of) post partum pads — I’ve got a little over six months to figure it out, but I can’t imagine going back to disposable pads, particularly when I’ll be even more sensitive!
pink lemonade although I have a domino and a party in my pants liner and they work fine.
Tampons always say 8 hours. I never knew if that meant total in a day or for one. I won a cloth pad and then bought more. I really need another liner or 2 for beginning/ending times. My cycle is very different than it was before kids and disposable products don’t meet those needs.
I have always thought reusable menstrual products were gross. Never researched it just had that in the back of my mind but after reading this I’m thinking I need to reevaluate my views. I use cloth diapers so I’ve come a long way with what I consider gross. The part that stood out to me is the itch you were talking about. I use to always joke that around the 3rd day of my period I would feel like I had a diaper rash. I actually went as far to use diaper rash cream and surprisingly that helped. Felt weird since at the time I didn’t have a child so I just had diaper cream in my bathroom like toothpaste. I may not be ready for a diva cup since I don’t even like tampons but mama cloth is going to be something I’m going to have to look into. I guess once you go cloth you don’t go back 🙂
I don’t like tampons but once I got used to how to use the cup I do like it a lot. It’s weird at first but before you know it you don’t notice it. I recommend trying it at home first. Mine was slipping out. I now use it with stem cut off and inside out. Takes a cycle or two to see how it works best for you.
I have a similar experience wearing disposable pads. Ive always wore tampons with thin pads & had terrible cramping. I was incredibly thrilled to find that I barely cramp at all with mama cloth & my diva cup. I was in so much pain before that I would miss school or work a day every other month due to the unbearable pain. I even got checked for endometriosis- it felt that extreme. I will never go back to disposable.
I want to try a shorter cup – it’s just one of those things…they’re kinda pricey and no resale value if one doesn’t work for you!
I used this site to help compare length, rigidity, and other features of cups before purchasing. If you trim the stem all the way off your cup and turn it inside out, it will make the one you have shorter and might fit better. Also, after boiling and disinfecting, some people will buy used menstrual cups through some resale site. http://menstrualcups.wordpress.com/category/comparisons/
It takes a few cycles to get used to the cup, in my experience. And I trimmed the stem- which then irritated me. Then I read about turning it inside out. Worked great inside out while I used it between baby two and three.
Oh that would be nice to go two years after birth without a cycle!