February Monthly Friend: Teresa M. Stillwell

Name: Teresa M. Stillwell
Age: 37
Hometown: Conover, NC
Current Location: Conover, NC
Occupation: Help Desk Analyst for IT dept at a busy local Hospital

Interests: Nature, saving the environment, green living, photography, and reading. I also love to spend time with my cat baby, Gus, and my husband, Chad.
Dreams: To one day own my own company or be able to work for myself in some self-sustaining way.

How long have you used reusable menstrual products?: I have used reusable menstrual products now for 3 years, and I wish I had tried them 23 years ago (of course they weren’t marketed then). I had wanted to try them for years, but every time I mentioned to any friend or family, they would say: you can’t be serious - reusable menstrual products you have to wash - no thanks! I’ve suffered for years from irritation, infections, rashes, and discomfort and dread every month. Now since I’ve discovered GladRags, I almost look forward to my monthly friend. I’ve never felt so comforted and comfortable and not worried in my life regarding my menstrual cycle. For years I’ve worried about leakage, TSS, and other side effects of plastic and chemically altered products that aren’t meant to go in or on your body. Before my cycle was so heavy, and now since I’ve stopped using tampons and plastic pads, not only am I more comfortable, but my periods last about 1/3 as long as they did before and they are not as heavy. My cramps I’ve suffered with since I was 13 have also greatly diminished. I am in awe! I will forever be a GlaRags customer, until I go through menopause, and then will still be grasping my pantiliners till the end :-). I have told all my friends and family and coworkers about reusable menstrual products. I have even brought new boxes and packs for them to look at and have given some as gifts to get them interested in buying. I love the products and I know if every woman would try them, the disposable feminine product business would go broke! I’m on a crusade to save the private parts of all the females I know from the injustice of rayon, polyester, and plastic, as well as a list of chemicals.

A day with out a GladRag, is a sad day indeed!!!

GladRags are your friends
Up until the menstrual end
No more rash on those private parts
No more worries about those chemical darts
No leaks to ever cross your mind
As long as GladRags are on your behind!

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We love hearing from women who use GladRags, and sometimes we receive emails that just need to be shared, like this Rave Review from Kiwi:

Dear GladRags creators:

Your cotton pads are so soft and comforting, it’s no short of heavenly. Compared to disposables that used to give me skin burn and made me sweaty, your fluffy pads bring me a sense of relief at a stressful time like no disposable ever did.

The fun colorful prints bring out the kid in me and I find myself collecting them all for their light-hearted, easy-going qualities… I use the pink ones when I feel girly, the red ones when I feel like a goddess, and the light blue ones when I feel calm. They are so much more entertaining and creative than pre-packaged look-alikes.

The disposables are so inconvenient and gross; the inner absorbent lining begins to displace into chunks when wet, and sometimes the plastic “mesh” will rip too, exposing the wet lining. The glue they use on the “wings” was truly annoying, if you didn’t stick it just right on the panty, it would wrinkle, stick onto itself, or stick to your pants. Your GladRags are making these nuisances and worries history.

Lastly, in a world where the female body must be shaved and perfumed and done a million things to to make it acceptable, your GladRags bring about a sense of sanity in the female element: They remind us women that it is OK to be a woman, and that a period is not some sort of shameful “condition”, but rather indeed a fascinating healthy phase.

I think it’s really great you created these products, and please make more fun prints! Maybe hearts? rainbows? trees? swirls, waves, squares, christmas prints?? Keep up the WONDERFUL work!!!

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Coming at you from GladRags Headquarters in sunny Portland, Oregon is Menstrual Mondays, your one stop for the latest in menstrual news, art, activism, and more!

•  Mommy blog, Our Sentiments, has a great entry touting the amazing DivaCup.  While she agrees that it may be hard to get used to in the beginning, she is sure to note the benefits far out weigh those early troubles.
• Li’s New Years’ Eco Tips! not only encourages the use of cloth menstrual pads, but has tons more suggestions to make 2010 your greenest year yet!
• Shemiranibrahim.com shares with us a very in-depth article: Menstruation: The Sacred Cycle in which she approaches PMS in a whole new light.
• In a more compact article, Pamela Madsen of DivineCaroline brings us a way to Think About Menstruation As Providing Wisdom.
• Re:Cycling, the awesome menstrual blog, points out the obvious: menstrual activists are ahead of the game.  Blood red lips are now in fashion (see pic)!
  
• Nature Moms Blog has a great post by Tiffany Washko on alternative menstrual products & why you should use them.  Check out Alternative Menstrual Products - Ditch the Disposables.
• Frugal Megan writes about persistence when using a DivaCup or other menstrual cup in this great article: For Woman Only: The Diva Cup.
• Crunchy Chicken announces the winner of their GladRags giveaway here.  Congrats!  If you didn’t win here, check out this weeks bonus below!

**Extra Special Bonus: The Eco-Babe’s Guide to Greening It! is hosting a great giveaway for our Color Pad Sampler Kit!  Check out her great website here and click on “Enter to Win Free Green Products” for more details.

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While we stand by our statement that GladRags are economical and money-saving, we know some people like to keep their purchasing and consuming as local as they can.  One way to reduce your environmental footprint to make your own menstrual pads.  Treehugger has a great article that includes links to sewing patterns for menstrual pads along with suggestions on how to be an effective menstrual activist.  Making your own pads can be especially eco-friendly if you use old towels or other discarded fabric - in fact, the prototype for GladRags was made with one of my old towels. And it worked great - I used it for years.

But of course we think you should spend your crafty skills on some making fun clothes and hats and just buy your GladRags from us!

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Authors: Elissa Stein and Susan Kim

What it’s all about: Periods!  The authors explore everything related to vaginal and reproductive health — from hysteria cures to douching with Lysol — with a focus on different medical and cultural perceptions throughout history. Flow is a gorgeous, full-color book showcasing a wealth of vintage and modern “feminine hygiene product” advertisements that highlight the trajectory of the last cultural taboo.

Who it’s for: Flow is a great primer for women who are new to the discussion of topics surrounding menstruation and cultural views of women’s bodies.  The authors take on a flippant, funny, “big sister” voice which lends itself to the overall light, magazine-style tone of the book.  Readers already well-versed in women’s studies and issues related to menstruation may find themselves wishing for fewer glossy photos and girl talk, and more in-depth information.

 Devoted cloth pad and menstrual cup users might feel a little slighted by Flow, too.  While Kim and Stein do note that some women swear by reusable menstrual alternatives, they fail to paint any of these products in a positive (or even neutral) light. Throughout the book we are reminded that various iterations of the menstrual cup failed to catch on, and it’s only in the final chapter that modern menstrual alternatives are mentioned.

In this chapter, “Outside the Box,” the authors ask about menstrual cups if anyone really wants to have to get that close to their menstrual blood — and dismiss the possibility of using a cup in a public restroom altogether.*

It was a little disheartening to discover that, even after all of the body-positive, pro-menstruation talk of Flow — a book that is supposed to make us feel comfortable with our periods and help us ditch the negativity and shame we’ve learned from our long cultural history of menstrual oppression — we’re still supposed to be grossed out by our own bodies.

Flow’s treatment of cloth pads is unfortunately similar to menstrual cups.  While the authors could have easily provided their readers with the story of someone who found relief from yeast infections or years of uncomfortable periods, Stein instead shares her own story of trying cloth pads.

In her story, we learn that although cloth pads are cute, she finds laundering them difficult and a chore.  In the end she chooses to stay with her regular brand of disposable pads — a brand which she names and is the very same as those she lists earlier as contributing to the cultural taboo.  The book provides no room for rebuttal; no voices from women who prefer reusables are included.  This kind of stark bias in a textbook-style book that is presented as an impartial rendering of facts  — and particularly the endorsement of a certain brand by the author — left us with a bad taste in our mouths.

* Most women don’t have any trouble using public restrooms while using a cup, since you can just empty your cup into the toilet and reinsert without rinsing (or use toilet paper to wipe off the outside of the cup). And, once you’re comfortable using a cup, actual contact with menstrual blood is minimal — about on par with inserting an applicator-free tampon.

Why you should check it out: Flow provides a fun, accessible introduction to the topic of menstruation and covers a wide variety of topics — everyone is sure to learn something new from this book!  The vintage menstrual product advertisements, medicalization of menstruation, and the historical development of hysteria are some of the many interesting subjects addressed within the book.  Be warned: reading Flow with friends will quickly spark engaging conversations!  And if you find a particular section of the book lacking, just use it as a jumping-off point for a discussion.

Take a look: This makes a great coffee table book or gift!  If you do read Flow: The Cultural History of Menstruation, be sure to leave us a comment and let us know your thoughts!

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Welcome to the first Menstrual Monday of the new year!  You’ve landed at your one stop shop for menstrual news, art, science, and more.  Now, on to the info.

•  Susan Kim, co-author of Flow: A Cultural History of Mensturation writes a very interesting article on Fairy Tales, Child Development, And Unconscious Learning and how they relate to menstruation.  She includes references to the Brothers Grimm fairy tales, Hitchcock’s Psycho, and the infamous menstrual horror that is Carrie.
• Check out the 10 Craziest Pantyliners found on the internet!  See vampires, puppies, and bugs!
  
• Tampaction, a radical menstrual activist group, brings the Keeper Cup to the University of New Hampshire.  Read about it in the independent student newspaper here: Earth and user friendly menstrual products coming to the MUB.
• Savvy Women’s Magazine tells us how to Celebrate your Cycle in Style with cloth pads like GladRags.
• We love Etsy seller lovealittle’s super cute handmade 3D Moon Cup pouches!

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January Monthly Friend: Jamie

 Name: Jamie
Age: 22
Hometown: Egg Harbor Township, NJ
Current Location: Milford, DE
Occupation: Housewife, Bible teacher

Interests: I love wildlife, nature, BBC Dramas, Sherlock Holmes, classical movies, vintage style, and antiques.
Dreams: To live forever on a paradise earth.

How long have you used reusable menstrual products?: Almost a whole year.
Reason for making the switch to reusables: It saves money, is a million times more comfortable than disposable tampons or pads, and is a lot healthier for my body and the environment. My husband loves them too because he doesn’t have to run out last minute when I run out of my “supplies.”

Funny anecdotes, deep thoughts, or anything else you’d like to share: My husband is really cool and supported my use of reusable menstrual pads from the beginning. He is not like some other guys who are easily offended or grossed out by seeing menstrual products. He just accepts it as a normal part of life. He jokingly calls the nighttime pad “the elephant.” I believe that using reusables is much better for your body, and helps you nurture your body and have a more positive attitude.  Rather than hastily wrapping up a used tampon or pad and throwing it away in disgust, washing my GladRags, patiently hanging them up to dry, and neatly placing them back in their drawer, clean, soft and ready for my next cycle helps me feel more positive. I know that it’s healthier for my body and the planet. It almost feels “complete.”

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Welcome to the second to last Menstrual Monday of the year and the first official day of winter!  Enjoy this week’s dose of menstruation facts, art, news, and more!

• From Halle Tecco at the Huffington Post, an article about menstrual products in Africa entitled “When Menstruation Means Inequality”

• We found this intro to menstrual cup use through MyFrugalTips on Twitter: Using a menstrual cup instead of tampons: be eco-friendly while saving money

• Did you know that a recent female climber of Mt. Everest brought the DivaCup with her to prevent having to bury or carry out disposables products?  Cool!  We learned this neat fact from Carlin Ross’ interview with the women behind the DivaCup.

• The Society for Menstrual Cycle Research has put out a call for creative works!  They’re looking for poetry, fiction, creative non-fiction, and menstrual memoirs    for a special issue of their interdisciplinary journal, slated for publication next fall.

• Check out this fascinating article about menstruation in ancient civilizations, snake goddesses, and the “Isis knot” — an early form of tampons used by women suffering from irregular menstruation and to prevent miscarriages!

• Strange but true: you can now (for quite a price!) harvest your own stem cells from your menstrual blood to save for “the future [when] these cells may be the basis of medical treatments for threatening diseases, personalized cosmeceuticals and regenerative medical procedures.”  The Society for Menstrual Cycle Research has more info — plus a funny video courtesy of In Living Color.

• An Ad a Day shares amusing advertisements for “sanitary napkins” as part of its Vintage Friday series.  Aren’t you glad we don’t have to figure out those belts anymore?

• Artist Amy E Fraser has a series of abstract paintings based on the “inner turmoil of the uterus.”  Strange, beautiful, and interesting!

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Hello!  We are back with your guide to recent menstrual news, art, and more!

• The British blog PositiveLife presents us with a thoughtful article on the negative taboo that surrounds menstruation, what we can do about it and how to think positively.
• GeekFeminism geeks out about menstruation in this blog post.  In the comments section, the author includes this link which has some fascinating photos of human ovulation caught on camera during a surgery.
• Factoidz and GreenLiving101 encourage you to go green and save green with the menstrual cup in this article.
• Period Positivity website My Moon Days presents the idea of a period flag and why it’s useful.
• YouTuber Glozell gives us an awesome video about her thoughts upon starting use of the Diva Cup.

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GladRags Guerrilla Natalie G. recently sent us this awesome email about what she’s doing to spread the word about reusable products:

I have already submitted a rave review talking about how GladRags changed my entire perspective on my period when I bought a starter kit a year ago. I would now like to tell people how stepping outside your comfort zone can really pay off. I bought my friend a set of 3 mismatched pads and a carry bag when they were on sale a while back (keep up the awesome sales that come so frequently!). I was nervous because we’d only talked a couple times about reusable menstrual products, but the apprehension was totally unfounded. She loved them so much she’s told any woman that will listen and has become a member of the GladRags Guerrillas like myself. She already has another friend converted to GladRags and is planning on posting signs/information in the bathroom at her work (I’m doing the same at school). Long story short, step outside your comfort zone and tell a friend because the impact can become exponential in such a short time!

-Natalie G.

Thanks, Natalie!  Keep up the great work!  Would you like to learn more about how to help other women make the best choice for the environment and their bodies?  Join the GladRags Guerillas Team and get a free info set with the tools you need to help spread the word!

Ready to take a page from Natalie’s book and convert your friends?  Now is the perfect time to give the gift of GladRags!  With a variety of GladRags pad and cup kits on sale and new reusable Gift Bags at a special introductory price, what are you waiting for?

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