“You’re not a real woman if you don’t use tampons,” “Using a DivaCup is better for the environment, so if you actually care about the environment you would use them,” and “Ew, using pads is like using a diaper.”
These are things I’ve heard from different women regarding my choice of period products. If you search “period product shaming,” you’ll find articles from various news organizations about this issue.
I’m curious why my choice of period product affects another person. A women’s period is a very personal experience, and each period is different for each woman. Periods are hard enough to navigate. Once a woman finds something that actually works for them, it should be a good thing, not something that warrants shaming.
Every woman knows the feeling of getting your period unexpectedly and needing to ask someone for a tampon or a pad. In this situation, you’re in a dire circumstance and most of the time other women will help you out and offer a pad or tampon to you.
I don’t know how many times a woman has asked me for a tampon and then immediately looks disgusted when I tell them I wear pads, and I don’t have any tampons.
Many people think pads are gross, tampons are gross, DivaCups are gross or any product that isn’t theirs is gross. Many women need to realize that we shouldn’t shame or get grossed out by another woman’s choice of period product.
Many women, including myself, can’t use anything but pads due to medical issues that won’t allow for it. But that shouldn’t matter. It’s my choice to decide how I handle my period every month.
Having the experience even once of being shamed for your period product can affect you. For me, it got to the point of me carrying around tampons from my mom out of the fear that someone would look grossed out by the fact I wear pads.
Periods are natural and shouldn’t be viewed as a gross thing. Periods are already a taboo topic, especially for men. But why should they be? We don’t have to talk about them 24/7, but we should at least be comfortable with the way a woman chooses to handle her period.
Nicole Hindberg can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @HindbergNicole.