my mum doesn't like tampons, so she handed me a box, said "the instructions are inside" and off I went... I never liked them... someone said you an't feel em, but i feel em every minut ehty're in there, and i dont' like it. I guess I don't have it in the "right spot" :shrug:

so.. pads the whole way for me. ultrathin w/ wings. don't notice the "diaper" feeling so much till I finish and pull that first fresh pair of pad-less panties on... mmm... heavenly. :)

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OB is the way to be.. or if I'm just around the house I'll just lie on the couch wearing the Always with wings... and just watch tv. But outside, anywhere in public it's the OB's... never proved me wrong~

I use OB no applicator!! Save money easy to use and tthe first few days use a thin winged pad for extra protection!! Yeah to tampons!!! Has any one heard on the disposable cup you insert in you that catches the fluid and allows you to have clean sex while on your period??

Clean sex on your period?!!!!!!!!!?

I had heard of these things before, so I decided to do some research. Holy crap! There are all kinds of these things on the market. My findings:

They come in both re-usable and disposable varieties.
Its as versatile as a tampon, but without the risk of TSS. Apparently there is little or no possiblity of infections, plus, it collects more blood than tampons, so you can leave them in for up to 12 hours. Apparentely, they eliminate the entire "smell" factor, too, because the blood isn't exposed to air. They reduce waste by a huge amount, and they're pretty affordable.

The two most popular products I found are "The Keeper," a reusable product that costs around $40 and lasts around 10 YEARS and "Instead," a disposable variety runs around 6 for $3.

The cons, as I learned, are few, but potentially far worse than tampons or pads. They can be pretty tough to insert, especially since some people don't like putting their fingers in their vagina in the first place. They are pretty similar to a diaphragm, and are inserted in the same way. From what I read, they are really messy. Leakage doesn't seem to be too much of a problem, except as this test runnner explains (http://www.mum.org/stalling.htm): that if you "bear down on it," as in intentionally flex your muscles against it, you will achieve complete disaster: a huge flood of blood, as she explains, eight hours worth of blood and a total calamity if you're not in a position to change your clothes right away.

Maybe something to try out.

I used tampons before I had sex and there were no problems.

I'm a dork and tend to use both a tampon and a pad during the first couple of days of my period because I can the flow can be quite heavy.

I'm a poor chick who's paying off student loans so I tend to go for the cheapest brands but after reading this thread I realize I miss the OBs! They rock! The stupid cheap tampons and pads are just lower quality.

I keep meaning to try the environmentally-friendly alternatives but never get around to it.

Pads....it's what I was rasised on...with wings of course....so I won't have any embrassing monments

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i just don't think i could trust those cups. i'm not liking the idea of having that much blood just sitting in a cup up there. wouldn't it be the messiest thing ever to take out? after twelve hours, good God! i've also been noticing lately how nice ob are for waste. cause really you just have to throw out this tiny bit of plastic. i put the wrapper in my guy friend's waste basket yesterday and i was so happy to have so little garbage, instead of having this huge sick applicator to throw in his trash.

I have never been able to use tampons without feeling them the whole time. It is the most uncomfortable thing, and they always feel like they are being pushed out.

However, I have never tried OB- maybe since they go vertical instead of horizontal I might be able to use them.

I have used Always w/Wings forever. They do feel gross, but I feel gross just having a period. I will try those OB's though, becasue if I could go without a pad, I would be a very happy girl.

Since we are on the subject of tampons, when I was a child, my mom and older sister would get so annoyed because I would find their tampons and shoot them out of the applicators like cotton guns (I had no clue what they were for at age six)

And yeah, that cup thing sounds completely gross. Taking it out would cause a flood of blood, and we don't want to have to deal with the blood in the first place.

i am a pad girl...always ultra-thin with wings...i have an overly sensitive vagina, even my gyno thinks it weird..lol...and i can feel them the whole time they are in, and it drives me crazy...i only use tampons when i go swimming, or am in need of wearing a thong, and then only the slim lights..because they are little

I only use tampons, OB without applicator. It was the first tampon I tried, and now I think applicators are making something that's so easy very complicated!
When I change it, the tampon usually takes all the blood with it, so it's clean when I bring in the next. Because I'm on 'the pill' I don't flow much so I only use mini or normal. Lucky me! Maybe this is different when you flow heavily...

Pads or pantiliners make me feel like I'm wearing diapers. Since I tried tampons I never used anything else.

It's not normal to feel the tampon. You have to push it deeper, yes, you have to put your finger in all the way! (you have to get used to it, it isn't as bad as it sounds)

I'm almost 50/50 on this deal. If I have a big meeting or something I'll sometimes even wore both. I haven't done that in a while though. Before I had my daughter I had VERY heavy periods and had to use both to prevent staining my undies. After I had her and I'm still nursing her I haven't gotten my period bac full force. I've also gone on the pill since then and this one I go for 2 months beofre I get my period.
I got some samples of that new tampon "pearl" or something like that that someone came out with. I couldnt' believe the difference. They were so much more comfortable. I don't know if I'll buy them though. They're pretty expensive and I'm a cheapskate.

Tampons withoutout a doubt. I find pads absolutely restricting and do not feel comfortable whilst wearing them.

Thank God for tampax yippee!!!! :)

love tampons hate pads..... wish i never had to deal with either!!!

i thought i heard that OB came out with a new kind. like something that's supposed to be more comfy or something? i could look it up but i'm lazy and going to bed soon, anyone else know what i'm talking about?

Oh, man, I can't stand pads. They feel bulky and wet and cold and icky. I've been using OB no applicator for...10 years now? That's 10 out of 11 years of my period. They rock! I don't really care about the blood, it's a natural thing. Those squeemish girls confuse me :)

By the way, shannon, I picked up the new OBs but haven't had a chance to try them yet. I'll let you know in a couple weeks :)

Try the Instead cups. No asbestos. No chemicals, no bleach. They cost less. you can use them as emergency contraception with a spermacide. And to top it all off they are comfy and I don't have cramps at all since I switched. (My sister wrote this under my name on accident -- but still good advice. I just might try them too.)

I've tried those, actually. The only problem is I can't use them during half my period anymore because I use the Nuvaring and they both don't fit very well together.

I've been on my depo shot for long enough that I haven't had a period in awhile but I do remember what it was like. When it came to the choice, it was a hard one. I have extremely sensitive skin in that area so no matter what I used it always irritated the skin and felt similar to a yeast infection. I usually used what my mom bought.

I was a die-hard tampon freak for so many years, and I have found that playtex (deoderent with the plastic applicator) is my favorite, because the tampax are like friggin' pillows you're trying to cram into your cooter and they hurt to take out. I hate pads alone because then I feel messy, but I use them as back up when my flow is heavy. Now I use Instead, and I love them. You can wear them for up to 12 hours, though I usually have to change them every 8-10 because I bleed like a stuck pig most of the time, but they're so much nicer, and you can do the deed with them in, with no mess to clean up on the bedsheets!!!

stiil eagerly awaiting to hear about the pearl OB tampons....although i haven't seen them here in stores yet so even if they're great it'll just make me jealous.

Tampons all the way...
I used to use pads when I first started, but once I got into high school I switched over, and what a difference...
I hated going to the bathroom all the time, and checking them, and so nasty...
I use Playtax Portables...
I'd never go back to pads.. So gross

Ditto to tampons...
The very first time I had my period I was away at summer camp. I was too embarassed to ask the camp nurse for a pad. My girlfriend who had already started brought tampons along with her and gave me one.
I was terrified! But more terrified of humilating myself infront of the camp nurse so... I just kind of "winged it".

After I returned home I tried pads... once. UCK ... I guess I got spoiled by the freedom you have with tampons.

Now... after 3 kids and the mid-life hormonal rollercoaster... my periods can get pretty crazy. i wear tampons with a backup panty liner. nothing worse than an unexpected leak.

Ok, I just finished trying the new OB tampons. My verdict? No difference, really.

The other problem is that they're too small for me, they come in the "regular" size only and I use the "super plus." I was able to use them for the last couple of days, though. They have a weird coating on them, but it doesn't really seem to do much different.

Sorry :/ Maybe other girls have a better experience?

thanks. if they ever come to my smal town i'll give them a shot. it sucks that they're not in different absorbancies though, i would have expected more from the people at OB. ah well.

tampons! they are so easy to stick up there, they don't hurt, and they don't get all nasty and bloody. i use plastic applicators because it goes it more easily than cardboard. toxic shock syndrome [tss] doesnt happen very often to any women, but they still have to put a warning on the box for some dumb women that like to keep a tampon up there for like, a week! =(

yay tampons!! =D

Yeah, my mum uses these. They're called 'Instead' and she seems to really like them. Crazy.