So, today Kotex put those on the shelves, pretending it’s just an innocent new package rebranding, while in fact they totally changed the pad material and texture. What the heck? Like why did they felt the need to lie about it as if we wouldn’t notice?

The soft cotton like material I used liked so much is now some rough artificial garbage that doesn’t breathe nor absorb as well and irritate the heck out of my skin. Wow.

They also did a shrinkflation too by sneakily removing 2 pads from the package. That alone I could have lived with it, but the complete change of product? Fuck off.

Is there any brands out there that have that cotton feel just like Kotex used to sell a minute ago?

Thank you!

Mine wasn't even the cramps. 😅 What's one symptom that surprised you when you first experienced it?

I’m 16 and I use tampons every period. No biggy. Have been since I was 12.

AND YET many many of my friends have told me that they’re too “scared” to use them. When I’ve asked why they say the usual: “what if I forget it’s there? What if I put it up the wrong hole? What if it gets lost? What if…”

And then there’s the “you’re not a virgin anymore” argument. I’m sorry WHAT?? Who came up with that? Even if that were in the slightest bit true, why would it matter?

I’m not saying everyone needs to use them, but why are we all so afraid of them? Who instilled the fear of god into this generation about a literal hygiene product??
Our education system is screwed.

Imo they’re more convenient but obviously it’s each to their own.

Mothers, please start teaching your daughters that tampons are not evil and how to use them. We’re too old to be sitting poolside complaining we can’t go in.

Thank you for reading my rant :)

(Obviously there are some people who don’t have female role models to teach them and using a tampon can be scary the first time. I just wish we were better educated on this topic and that it were more freely spoken about.)

Like whenever I’m on day 2 or 3 it’s sensitive like an open air paper cut… it’s hard to describe but do you know what I mean? Is that normal? No

Today my period decided to randomly start. I usually get it at the end or the beginning of the month, but strangely enough it decided to give me cramps at 1 PM and show up at 2 PM while I was on my way to work.

I had no pads, so I had to use paper and somehow survive for four hours. That's exactly what I did. The cramps were killing me and I honestly just wanted to throw up.

Fast forward, I got home, checked the bathroom to see if there were any pads left, and sadly there weren't. So I decided to go buy some.

I visited over FOUR stores, and none of them had pads. But STRANGELY ENOUGH, every single one of those stores had female "beautifying" products: creams, lashes, lip glosses, lipsticks, etc...
I seriously just wanted to cry. But I finally found pads in a tiny, run down store, almost as if they were being hidden. And the smallest pack cost me €2.95.
I'm actually so tired.

Hello all,

I am having terrible cramps today, and as I searched online, one of the tip was not to drink caffeine.

I always feel so much better after having coffee or tea while on periods.

Would love to know if you stay away from caffeine or enjoy it like any other day?

does anyone else’s actual vagina ache while on their period? like the hole actual hurts idk how to explain it😭

TMI-
I‘m about 6 months postpartum, I have always had PMDD symptoms before, but now after birth, i feel they exaggerated, especially when it comes to being accidentally pregnant again, the anxiety is affecting my daily life and sleep, i keep thinking about it and fearing it to the point where I get insomnia, even if it didn’t make sense, we use condom, sometimes there isn’t even penetration, yesterday i was ovulating and we happened to have sex (protected) and i was so anxious I asked that her wears two condoms, only to read afterwards that it’s not recommended and could fail, I tested the condoms for leak they were intact but i‘m still overthinking it to the point of crying.
Could PMDD start that early after ovulation?
Is this at all related to this?

I need help because I’m going insane.

i genuinely think im going insane. im 20 years old, i have a 35 days cycle and it often gets delayed. every month, and i mean this, every fucking month i would get this insane thought that i am pregnant js bcs my period is late even though im a virgin?????? and its not just a funny thought— it would seep through me, wouldnt let me sleep in peace, would make me google shit and even post here in reddit.

right now my period is late and i think its bcs of stress. but i am absolutely losing my mind about being pregnant even though im a fucking virgin, i know it is impossible but for some reason im still scared. i know that this fear is irrational and funny as hell but im still scared.

this happens every month. i lose my mind every month about this thing thats so impossible to happen.

Hello fellow period havers :) I (27f) started my period last night and today I feel rough in a way I never have. I’ve been super fatigued all day and pretty lightheaded every now and then, not even when I’m just standing up too quickly. Obviously looking up these symptoms on google tells me I’m about to have a heart attack. Did anyone else experience new period effects as they got older?

Also, if it counts, I’m not pregnant.

Thank you!

i just got my first period today and i’m wondering what i should buy. i asked some people i know what they use and they all said pads. but from what i know about tampons they don’t seem that bad, are they good for your first time?

ladies!! if you have bad cramps please request naproxen for pain relief (may be another name but this is the uk name)

i had severe pain and a really heavy flow from ages 12-16. i tried 5 different birth controls to try help and nothing worked. paracetamol, ibuprofen and codeine didn’t touch the pain. i use to ball up on the floor in agony. then my doctor prescribed me naproxen. it’s a very strong version of ibuprofen.

once i started that it was a game changer. my severe pains were just uncomfortable aches. i was able to go to school (id have to miss school on day 1-2 of period every month). i was able to continue sports. not only did it take away the pain but also reduced the flow.

it’s an anti inflammatory (cramping is caused by your uterine lining shedding which cause inflammation) and it last 12 hours! one pill twice a day with 12 hours inbetween and you’re set to go. takes about 30 minutes to dull the cramps and about an hour to fully take it away.

i’ve stood by this medication for 4 years. i only take it 2-3 days during. normally the first sign of cramping and then the first day of my period and the second day time. by the second day night all pain is dulled and manageable.

as a girly who’s got a long cycle (8-10 days😒) this has really helped. no pain after the first two days which means i can simple just get on with life while bleeding. it lightens my flow which means i don’t have to worry about leaking.

i was so shocked to find out not a lot of people know about this medication. it truly is a diamond in the rough. so please if you struggle with cramping and heavy flows request it to your doctor!

Hello, I had my first period on June 6, 2025, my second period in September 2025, and I had my period approximately every two months until at least March. Since March, my periods have been irregular.And will my periods always be like this?

I’m quite young (not sharing age) so I have very very little knowledge on what my period should smell like. what I’ve noticed recently is that the odor is REALLY strong, like, I can smell it from where my face is when I sit down on the toilet. its lowkey hard to describe but my period smells heavily of chemicals, and its so bad that my brain tricks me into remembering the smell even when I’m nowhere close to my underwear. it genuinely smells foul, does anyone have any ideas of what might be happening or anything? I don’t know if I’m just worrying too much or something but I want opinions from others. :)

PLEASE HELP ME I HAVE TO GO TOMORROW ON DAY 4 OF MY PERIOD, im scared to tell anyone and they already bought me a swim suit what do i do?

Not sure if this is the right flair, and my issues may not even be period related, but it seems the most relevant.

I had my last period 3 weeks ago and ended up taking the morning after pill roughly around the last day of that. A few days later, I was bleeding again for 4 days as a side effect from the pill. I have pmdd, so that made things really difficult but after that I was fine but did not feel any pmdd symptoms a week before I was supposed to get my period, I'm now 8 days late for my period and I am extremely emotional and have not been able to stop crying and I feel like I'm spiralling. I've taken two pregnancy tests that came back negative, but I'm not ruling it out completely.

Other things that could be relevant to my missed period and mood, I've been slightly stressed about my bf starting tafe and not having time, I was smoking weed the week of my last period and have not been eating well since money has been tight this week

I think it's probably worth going to a doctor, but I'm not sure when I'll be able to, so I'd be very grateful if anyone has any ideas or solace until I can get to one

My cycles have been pretty regular but I missed my period in June entirely.

In May it was around the middle. And I got my recent one today. Do I count it as missing period for 2 months or 1 month?

I took swimming lessons last month so that might have messed around with my body. When should the missing period be a concern?

So hi, im 17 and I’m an avid period endurer and mostly so far in my years I’ve been using pads. Ive used tampons a couple times though, usually when swimming but thas it.

Starting earlier this year, my period all of a sudden became extremely painful and extremely heavy but only for the first 2 maybe 3 days. And im talking nothing I’ve ever experienced like absolute crime scene blood everywhere horror movie type . And omg the pains. Also they all of a sudden became super long, like it’s the most heavy the first few days but then lasts normally for ~9 days in total.

It’s basically my normal now for the past 7 months but it was never ever close to this level in years prior. Can periods just change patterns like this? Is it normal to be this extreme every month ?

Back to tampons, I’m a rising high school senior and a dancer in my school. Every summer we have a camp that lasts for 2 weeks where we do extensive training and such from 7am-8:30 pm every day.
This is the first year my period has fallen right over these 2 weeks, and I figured it would be best to use tampons for ease of movement and comfort. So I got some playtex sport ones, the only problem is I have super duper heavy flow as previously mentioned, so I pretty much immediately leaked through the regular size.

Now here’s I get so confused and scared. Because it hurts so much to take out this tampon even tho it’s FULLY soaked through and regular size. And Im thinking to use a super or super plus to prevent leakage but i don’t want it to hurt taking jt out. What do I do!!

I don’t wanna wear pads to practice because I just leak through those anyway and they’re uncomfortable and noticeable. :,( pls help

For two days I was somehow able to fall asleep naturally and now for the past week I've needed trazodone or else I don't start falling asleep until 5 am. I'm afraid to try a tiny dose of Zzzquil cause I haven't used it in a long time and I'm on Lexapro. I've also been peeing a lot and am apparently having heart problems according to my PCP, who is really pushing me to see a cardiologist ASAP. I'm already still having high heartbeat and hand tremors when all I did was watch Netflix and eat cake. I really wish I could figure what's going on. That's really hard to do when you're moving in less than a week and they're withholding your unemployment money on top of copays being fucking $50.

P.S. I know how late I was thanks to the Clue app. I'm not pregnant. I don't have my tubes.

Confused

Hi!! I'm a 22 year old with a 2 year old son. Ever since I had my son I have only had 4 periods total. I never had issues before I got pregnant. Two months ago we tried the 10 day trial of progesterone to start a period and it worked but I haven't had one since. So today I went and had a transvaginal and pelvic ultrasound and the results came back "normal" and I've also had my LH, TSH, and estradiol tested and that came back normal as well. They want me to come in a couple more months if I'm still not having a period for FSH and prolactin tests. I don't want to wait that long. I was hoping for answers with the ultrasounds but now im more confused and lost. I just came on here to look for some relief and maybe some similar situations!

My heating pad sparked up electrically and my mom got rid of it :( Any safe ones that are good for extreme cramps?

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**Hi girls, I want to ask you about a problem: I feel a burning sensation in my stomach similar to period cramps, and also in my lower abdomen even though my period hasn’t come yet. I feel this very often—do you have any idea what this could be?**