Lunapads Blog

Lindsay Coulter is David Suzuki’s Queen of Green, living in Vancouver, BC. A lover of nature and advocate of do-it-yourself, her first period came when she was 12.

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I got my period in grade six—must have been 12 years old.

It happened at school; I knew what it was right away. After all, our class had watched those awkward videos about growing hair in weird places, etc. At lunch hour I grabbed my best friend Kari to plot next steps.

We ran to my house, half a block away (kids in my day walked to school!) and sussed out the bathroom for my mom’s tried, tested and true products. Yeah. That’s wasn’t happening. Think of how small you were at 12. Now, picture a super-plus Tampax tampon with cardboard applicator! There was no way this thing was going to fit. I also had no idea what to do with it.

Plan B: my friend said her mom used pads. And it was the 80’s, so we’re talking Kotex pads that came with a belt! Unfazed, we grabbed a box of facial tissue and a roll of scotch tape—we were in the sanitary pad making business now! (I was a DIYer at a young age.)

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Ashley’s LunaRevolution Video
Watch More LunaRevolution Videos >>

Ashley is the winner of The People’s Choice Award for our recent LunaRevolution Video Contest – Congrats, Ashley! She is also an avid maker of videos reviewing various feminine hygiene products and sharing her menstrual experience with her peers on her YouTube channel.  We are excited to share our recommendations for this Lunagal!

Name: Ashley

Age: 14

How did you hear about reusable menstrual products?
I heard about reusables from YouTube videos!

Please describe your monthly needs:
My flow varies from month to month. Typically 2-3 days super light, 3 days average and 3 nights average to heavy. Also, light discharge throughout the month.

If you are currently using disposable products, which ones do you use, and for what needs?
Pantyliners for the first day or two. Regular tampons for about three days. For 3 nights thin overnight pads. And pantyliners throughout the rest of the month.

Why do you want to switch to reusable menstrual products?
I want to switch to reusables for several reasons! First, Lunapads are so cute! Secondly, they are discreet and quiet! Thirdly, I’d love a more comfortable option without rashes!!

Anything else you would like to share about yourself?
I am a teen girl who loves to make YouTube videos!

Our recommendations for this teen who is out in the world sharing about positive periods with her peers!

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Jeannette wrote to us as a concerned mom who hopes that Lunapads will help her daughter have a happier period. Read on for their story, and our picks:

This is actually not for me, but for my 10 year old daughter.  She started menstruating recently and it really upsets her.  We are looking for something that is natural, environmentally friendly and won’t irritate her skin.  Also, regular pads can be loud and embarrassing.  I want her to feel like a goddess and not a slave to plastic!

Her period is 3 days heavy, 3 nights heavy, and 2 days light.  She is currently using Always overnights.  No matter what, she leaks through, and often out of the back of her undies and onto her bed.  We are too paranoid this early into her period to go lighter than overnights at any stage in her cycle.  Mine was very unpredictable when I was a kid, so we err on the side of caution.

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The Girls Rock Camp Alliance is a volunteer-run, non-profit organization where girls 8 to 18 can learn an instrument, form a band, write music, and rock out with other girls. If that’s not awesome enough for you, it’s also a place where girls attend self defense, body image, zine making, screen printing, and other self-esteem building workshops led by female mentors.

The very first ever Rock n’ Roll Camp for Girls took place in Portland in 2001 — since then, camps have sprung up all over the world, and now more than 700 girls are mentored every year. This year, we’re sending gift certificates and Teen Booklets to the Girls Rock Camp Vancouver campers, and gift packs for the volunteers and organizers, too.

My own experience of being so profoundly influenced by the riot grrrl movement as a teenager makes it easy for me to wax poetic about how heartening and inspiring this all is.. but I’ll let the girls speak for themselves:

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We’ve had a great time celebrating Women’s Month with some awesome theme giveaways for Girls and Teens, Pregnant Gals, and Fence-sitters. It’s not too late to enter any of these, so for any of you who fall into these categories, read the posts and add your comment for a chance to win some Lunapads goodies!

Our final giveaway for the month was partially inspired by the recent discussion about the whole rationale for choosing natural menstrual products. Is it really “worth it”, and if so what did it mean to you?

For this final giveaway post we are looking for women who have recently switched to our products (post fence-sitters, if you will!) to talk about this very thing. In other words, what making the switch was like, how it may have surprised you or differed from your expectations, or what kind of a difference it has made for you.

New Lunagals, tell us your stories!

Post your comment below for a chance to win 1 of 3 $25 Lunapads.com Gift Certificates. Winners will be announced in our April newsletter, so stay tuned!

As you may be aware, we have declared March to be International Women’s Month here at Lunapads, and as part of that we are focusing on different groups of – (well, that part’s obvious!) Today, it’s time to send up a cheer for the future women out there: girls.

Where to start with the subject of girls? Our view is that girls are nothing less than the world’s greatest hope for healing, progress and peace. At Lunapads, we support them by supporting and spreading the word about a variety of organizations working with and for girls including Scarleteen, the Girl Effect (don’t miss their awesome video!), Camfed, Not For Sale and of course Pads4Girls. We also love progressive girls’ media like Shameless, New Moon and Teen Voices.

At Lunapads, 100% of the proceeds of the sale of Teen Booklets goes towards Pads4Girls. We also distribute free copies to organizations that are working with girls and teens.

What especially warms our hearts is when we get emails, phone calls and ‘live-chats’ from girls (or moms of girls and teens) asking great questions and telling us their stories. The day before yesterday we were visited by a Mom and her daughter who was on the second day of her first period – we felt really lucky to share some time with them, on International Women’s Day, no less!

Here’s a wonderful example of a girl’s self-expression about her first period – a bittersweet poem written by Lacy Hale. Lacy says: “The following is a poem that I wrote a couple years ago when I decided to make my change from commercial menstrual products to healthier, greener alternatives. When I was a teenager, I definitely thought of my period as a curse and dreaded it each month. Now that I’m older, I find that I actually enjoy my period, taking the time to reflect on my art, my life, and what it means to me to be a woman. “

My River

The summer that I started
Was desert-like and dry
Yet I awoke that morning shrouded in wet red rivers
Of which I had yet to learn the ebb
And flow.

Yelling for my mother,
It was no surprise to her
Because of the complaints
Concerning the belly
Of the 13 year old girl
The night before.

I suppose in some sort of celebration
She made a breakfast that morning
Of the likes I had rarely seen.

But my stomach was full
Of other things and pains
So new I barely touched
My biscuits
And gravy.

My father came home that evening
And without words or glance
Tossed my necessities on the counter.
A look of fear and anger in his eyes.

Or maybe I just misread it
Out of my own embarrassment.

This week we are giving away 3 Teen Kits: leave a comment here telling us about your favorite girl or teen (this includes you, if you happen to be one of these fabulous beings!) to be eligible for the giveaway. Be sure to include your age, location, relationship (ie sister, friend, daughter, Mom) and what you love about this person. Have fun and good luck! We’ll be announcing the winners in our April newsletter.