When I first thought of trying (I wasn’t committing at that point) reusable period pads the thing that I just couldn’t get past was having to handle my own period blood *gag
With disposables I had mastered the rip and roll, rip from my pants, roll and stuff it into a bin never giving it another thought, so why would I actively choose to stuff my pants with cloth that I would have to rinse out *still gagging
So, how did I go from the unconscious ‘rip and roll’ to the conscious, happy to wash, happy to wear, hell, I was even happy enough to manufacture (in the UK tbw)
It took time babe, change is never made overnight (comfortably), we’re hard-wired to resist change, to stay in the comfortable, to do what we’ve always done, but, in the current climate (the one that’s changing) we have a duty to make a change, whether it’s fast or slow, huge or small, change is where we should all be heading and then when ready, committing
My first change was reading up on why I needed to make the switch to reusable period products. The facts that I found were more gag-inducing than the thought of rinsing out my own blood, I mean, I didn’t think there would be anything worse, turns out, there was
I found out that;
200,000 tones of menstrual products hit UK landfills every year
4.8 pieces of menstrual waste is being found per 100 Mts of beaches being cleaned (NEVER flush any menstrual waste, or wipes)
Each pack of sanitary towels has 4 carrier bags worth of single-use plastic in them, in fact disposable menstrual products are 90% plastic when considering the wrapping, backing strips and applicators
There is said to be up to 3,000 harmful chemicals in disposable pads (not the organic ones obvs)
So, to summarise, our planet is soaking up a horrific amount of menstrual waste, and our bodies are soaking up an equally horrific amount of toxins
On with my switch I went.
I bought a few pads to try, my plan being that I build my stock up overtime knowing that in the long run I’d be saving around 40% off the money I’d be spending on disposables, but still accessible for my current budget, and I would say by my 2nd reusable period I was sold. It really wasn’t that gross, after all, in fact, I started to feel pretty darn smug that I was now part of the solution to what is a catastrophic problem.
Fast forward 3 years and here I am the owner of a globally reaching reusable period pad brand that I built from the ground up. I used my experience of wearing reusable pads as a template to create the pad that I wanted, a pad I would feel proud talking about in any set of circumstances, and a pad that worked as hard as I do
Our pads were 10 months in the design process, I was picky as hell about the fabrics we used, the size and thickness and the stability of them, our pads were designed with working women in mind who need confidence in their pads so they can get on with life
Since our launch 8 weeks ago (Jan 31st, 2020) we have served 1,095 customers, here’s some quick maths and a whole lot of feel-good….
On average women use up to 22 menstrual products per month, over *3 years that number is 792, for every one of our customers who have made the switch to reusables they have saved up to a potential 867,240 disposables from going to landfill!!
If you’re one of those customers give yourself a huge pat on the back, you’re small switch is creating huge change, your planet thanks you
If you’re yet to make the switch, let’s talk, I’m here for all the questions
We’re the bloody (pun always intended) change-makers, the power is in our pants babe, it’s time to switch
*our pads are expected to last up to 3 years when cared for as recommended
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This Post Has 2 Comments
I haven’t had a period since the early 90s (full hysterectomy due to endometriosis) however I am now of an age (61)where I need extra support (for want of a better word) for the daily sneeze and dash for the loo, so am looking forward to using the mini pads ~ loving the colour! Why on earth would disposables be white!..
Hey Yvonne, thanks for your review, we also love our Mini Flo for those ‘oops’ moments and yes, all the bleaching the disposables to make them white seems pretty unnecessary – Team WEO