Last spring I went to a local craft fair. As I perused all of the goodies, I saw a booth that was especially charming. They had darling little baby clothes, purses, cloth diapers and cloth wallets. (Okay, at least that’s what I thought *they* were).
I picked up the cute little “wallet”. “This is neat”…I said to the woman who created it. “How does this work?” I asked, thinking it was a unique checkbook holder or makeup purse. “It’s a reusable menstrual pad”, she replied.
“Oh…wow.” I set it down quickly. I am too old to be embarrassed by “that time of the month”, but I certainly didn’t want to chat about it with a stranger at a craft fair.
I walked off. As I passed her booth again, I noticed it was buzzing with business. As an entrepreneurial mom myself I was a bit jealous that I hadn’t thought of the idea myself. While it may not be the topic at most dinner tables, the concept is quite brilliant.
Can you imagine the savings of choosing a non-disposable pad over boxes of disposable ones? If I remember correctly, one reusable pad cost about $6.00. I did a little research on the internet and it looks as if the average woman spends anywhere between $5.00 – $7.00 per month on disposable menstrual products.
While the savings may not seem significant at first, imagine what you would save if you committed to using cotton products for several years? What if you encouraged your daughters to do the same?
While I am not suggesting that a non-disposable pad is a good option for everyone (in fact, I’m not so sure I am ready to go that route yet). I wrote this post to at least make you aware of the option. Not only is a washable pad better for your budget, but it is better for the environment too.
Related Reading:
Three Dreaded Letters: PMS
Womens Fitness: It’s That Time of the Month