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What pads are best for young girls?

66K views 92 replies 58 participants last post by  chickabiddy 
#1 ·
I have been wondering about it for some time now. My oldest will be 13 in July and I'm kinda expecting something to happen soon.

Now I really don't want to scare her with the "matress size" pads I use :LOL
And I really don't want to buy every pad on the marked to find out wich one is best.

What is the best brand or size for young girls, so they don't feel like there back in diapers? :LOL

Cinnamon
 
#2 ·
I just ordered some of those WeMoon pads from Australia in the nighttime size, I'll let you know how they are. I think super absorbency is important for young girls so they feel secure and the cloth pads usually dont feel like diapers
 
#9 ·
I like the Kotex thin ultra with wings, too. They are very thin. I'll probably try those for dd when the time comes. I like the Always, too, but they make me itch - don't know if that's just my sensitive skin or a general problem. Some of the disposables pads tend to make a plasticy rattly type noise when you move, you'd definitely want to avoid that for a young woman, I think. The Kotex wrappers aren't plastic, either, so they don't make a lot of noise when you open them. A friend's young dd had an awful time with that - she was just sure every one in the bathroom could tell what she was doing, and she started her menses at 10, so their wasn't a lot of support from friends yet.
I can't imagine a young girl figuring out a menstrual cup, even though I think about switching myself.
 
#10 ·
another vote for always with wings. they come in a variety of sizes (lengths) for day, night, heavy and light flow. (they even used to have a box that contained three different sizes if you can find it.) and they're super skinny so they can be packed around discreetly in backpacs and little purses. and they come in a wrap that can be reused during the disposal phase.
 
#12 ·
I vote for cloth pads bc they are so much more comfortable, and not at all crinkly or diaperlike (among other reasons) I think a teen could be taught to soak and clean them at an early age. I just rinse mine in the shower and then put them in the reg wash. Many clothies have wings.
 
#13 ·
Kotex is an good brand if you are going disposible. NEVER NEVER use ALWAYS or CAREFREE. The material on their liners gives many women a "diaper" rash. Kotex has more of a cotton feel against your skin. The LAST thing a young girl needs is her period and a rash! They have very thing super absorbancy ones with wings.
 
#14 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by doctorjen
I like the Kotex thin ultra with wings, too. They are very thin. I'll probably try those for dd when the time comes. I like the Always, too, but they make me itch - don't know if that's just my sensitive skin or a general problem. Some of the disposables pads tend to make a plasticy rattly type noise when you move, you'd definitely want to avoid that for a young woman, I think. The Kotex wrappers aren't plastic, either, so they don't make a lot of noise when you open them.
My 11 yr old Dd (who just started her period for the first time this morning!) gives the
so far to Kotex thin Ultra w/ wings too.
 
#15 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by Angierae
Kotex is an good brand if you are going disposible. NEVER NEVER use ALWAYS or CAREFREE. The material on their liners gives many women a "diaper" rash. Kotex has more of a cotton feel against your skin. The LAST thing a young girl needs is her period and a rash! They have very thing super absorbancy ones with wings.
My Dd's friend got a rash from using Always. Ughh what drag that must have been.
 
#16 ·
Thanks for all that info!


Now I know what to consider.

I have tried Always once and was not impressed for the same reasons as some of you mentioned here.

I will hunt for Kotex and also check out the cloth pads. I have to read up on the diva cup. I have heard about it but that's about it.

Thanks again

Cinnamon
 
#17 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by tabitha
how about a menstrual cup? i have never bought one for myself, but they seem comfortable and easy.

http://divacup.com/ here is one example.

tabitha
I bought some of these that they sold in the drugstore. They were just reusable for a few times, so probably different from the ones that you use month after month, but they were huge. Now I have used a diaphram and a cervical cap so I was familiar with how to get them in and I had given birth a couple of times, but I just could not get them in comfortably.

About pads, I am in the same situation with my oldest turning 13 this summer. But I remember that my mom (who had had a hysterectomy years before I started menstruating) only had mini pads on hand for me and no way were they enough. Because I am little she thought I wouldn't need the bigger pads.

I am thinking about making some cloth ones for my DD out of old diapers (talk about the great circle of life!), but I will just offer those as an option because I have a feeling, at least when she first starts, that they might just seem too out there for her.
 
#21 ·
3girls1boy- the kind you can buy in the store, the Instead-type cups, are not the same as menstrual cups like the diva cup and so on.

doctorjen- what's to figure out? i mean, any roadblocks some of us adult women have arent inborn, they are learned- starting from the beginning with a healthy sexual self image is the way to go!! (at least i think so...)

tabitha
 
#23 ·
I've tried Always a few times and I always ended up with a irritating rash. Are those things made of fiberglass
: ?

Now I use either Kotex or Stayfree, but I like Kotex the best. It has a nice soft, blue wrapper!


When my 13 y/o started, she changed her pad a zillion times a day! :LOL I think, every 5 minutes or so?

I'm going to make some cloth ones for myself when I get my sewing machine fixed. Lord knows I use enough old socks! :LOL
 
#24 ·
It's sort of making me cringe to hear women recommending Kotex and Always for a young girl who's just started her period. I don't know how it is in your area, but in mine it doesn't cost any more in the store for natural pads and pantiliners which are made with organic cotton (the most pesticide-sprayed crop in the world), not bleached with chlorine (a serious irritant, especially for young, sensitive skin) and without toxic, bioaccumulating ingredients added as fillers that are never going to break down in the environment. Not to mention the fact that they are much softer and more comfortable, and they come in the same styles and sizes as the big-box brand counterparts.

On another note, when your daughter is a little older, you may want to suggest the diva cup, but I have tried both sizes (one for women under 30, and one for women over 30 or women who have given birth), and I found both to be a little painful to master at first. I can't imagine a shy new woman fiddling with a silicone cup in the school bathroom. She needs to become comfortable with that aspect of herself first.

Now, I know I came off as sort of opinionated or insulting with those replies, but this is a topic I feel strongly about and have given much thought to. Sorry if I threw anyone off. In the end though, it is your daughter's choice and it may take some experimenting to figure out which is her favourite.

Good luck and give my blessings to your daughter in this sacred time in her life.

Namaste
 
#25 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by blissful_maia
It's sort of making me cringe to hear women recommending Kotex and Always for a young girl who's just started her period.
Me, too, although for me it's the whole idea of disposable pads. This board seems so gung-ho on the cloth diaper thing, so it's odd to me that cloth pads aren't high on people's lists.

My daughter started her period about a year ago, at 11. She picked out some nice cloth pads about 6 months before that, and then bought her more later after she knew what she liked. They've been great. We use disposables occasionally, like if we run out of clean pads, or I stash a few tampons in my purse in case I get caught away from home, but 95% of the time we both use cloth... healthier, better for the earch, and prettier, too. And no, no one has ever given my daughter a hard time about it... but then, she's pretty independent-minded and so are most of her friends.

dar
 
#26 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by blissful_maia
I don't know how it is in your area, but in mine it doesn't cost any more in the store for natural pads and pantiliners which are made with organic cotton (the most pesticide-sprayed crop in the world), not bleached with chlorine (a serious irritant, especially for young, sensitive skin) and without toxic, bioaccumulating ingredients added as fillers that are never going to break down in the environment.

Any particular brand names you could recommend? Dd hasn't started yet, but we've certainly talked about it. (I started at 10 and I don't think she'll be too far off.) She's already announced that she doesn't want to use cloth, but I really don't want her to use the regular disposables, for the reasons you've mentioned. Any natural brands you prefer?
 
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