This is why I always wear black panties when I'm having my period. Then again, mine comes on a schedule (thanks, The Pill!).

How did it come to be called a period, btw? Hmmm.

Ah yes, the old soldiers, the white cotton panties with the frayed elastic and stains. Poor dears, they get no love.

Wow, I gave up on having an undies-hierarchy a long time ago. Mine's fairly predictable, but erratic enough that I'm never 100% on top of things. And I hate using more products than I actually need, so I'm cutting it close a lot of the time. Has anyone else seen something like that?

I just got a Diva Cup & am trying that out . . . there's a learning curve, but I'm hopeful :).

I once attended a screening at a women's film festival of a documentary about teenage girls and their periods--including women reminiscing about their adolescence and Most Embarrassing Moments. It was fascinating. I can't remember the title, and it probably never made it onto DVD . . . it was a good ten years ago now.

Most embarrassing? Hmmm. My husband (ex now) and I made an overnight trip out of town to see a friend. I'd only brought one pair of jeans, so naturally the biological imperative shows up a week early. While we were having lunch at a pizza joint. I had to explain, carefully, to friend and husband that I required an urgent visit to some store where I could pick up some cheap jeans and pads to get myself back in shape for the rest of the day and the trip home. My friend (who was a lifelong bachelor and not used to this sort of thing) was very classy about it. But it's never fun to have to explain that you've ruined your wardrobe that way.

Am I the only woman who has never used a panty hierarchy? My period's so unpredictable that it's only a matter of time before the "good" undies get ruined.

I read this entry on her MySpace blog and laughed my ass off. Margaret Cho is a genius.

kt, I always wear my black ones too.

On a side note, is it wrong that I'm 26 and I still wear undies with things like goldfish and turtles on the butt?

annajcook - I just got a Diva Cup too! And "learning curve" is the exact phrase I used when talking to my roommate last night. :)

I once got my period a week early when standing in line for a first-come, first-serve concert. Home was an hour away, I had no pads on me, and I was with a group of guy friends. So I invented what we still call the "MacGuyver": I made a pad out of basically everything I could find in the next-door Starbucks bathroom. Toilet paper, paper towels, those recycled coffee napkins. That shit held me for the next couple of hours.

Has anyone else seen something like that?

Whoops, that was supposed to be at the end of the third paragraph. Don't know how it ended up at the end of the first.

I totally agree starknut, it's only a matter of time. It's underwear, after all, that's what I figure. The only people who are going to see it are people who have no reason to be weirded out about a few bloodstains :).

Most embarrassing moment? I do remember when I was about fourteen and I stayed overnight at a friends house. The next morning, changing a tampon, I dripped on the floor in the bathroom and didn't see it. Her mom came in all concerned and asked if I'd cut myself or something. I faked like I had a cut on my finger and wore a band-aid for the rest of the day :).

And Cate . . . here's to a learning curve that's swift and successful for us both!

I just got a Diva Cup, too! The learning curve is killing me over here. I'm on my third cycle with it, and the first two were HELL. That thing is easy to spill when you're changing it. My bathroom has ended up looking like a murder scene more than once. In fact, the jeans I'm wearing right now have a tiny little period stain on the interior, because of my stupid dripping Diva Cup. Not to mention that it always leaks, probably because I have a tipped uterus, so it doesn't fit properly. Pretty much every item of clothing I own has been tarnished by my period.

That's what by black and red cotton panties are for :)

Margret Cho = brilliant.

Has anyone ever tried using their own spit to clean up bloodstains like she talks about in the post?

I recall hearing something about the enzymes in saliva being good for breaking down stains, but that was years and years ago in 8th grade home-ec. Normally, I just pour some peroxide on it and toss it in the wash; those bloodstains usually come right out.

I have no hierarchy - all my pants are black, the same size, the same shape - the same. It's not like they're ever on display. And I've yet to stain any sheets or mattresses... as much as I like Cho, I'm afraid that she has just told me she hates me. *is very sad*

Oh well. At least I've never had a pap smear. That counts for something... right?

Aww, Mweezi... she doesn't hate you. But seriously, care to share your methods for never staining? I don't always stain but it happens.

I'm with you, starknut. My period is so unpredictable that I worry about putting my A-list panties at risk (although with me, I only get one every 3-6 months...some hormonal issue but pretty normal from what the gyno says).

One trick I have learned is that peroxide is excellent at getting out stains. But make sure you only put the peroxide on the stain and don't let it drip anywhere else or that will get stained as well.

I'm actually looking forward to my next period (I had my last one a few months ago so it should be any month now! HA!) so that I can try out my mooncup.

Hilarity! The post and the linked text from Margaret Cho both made me laugh out loud.

It also cracks me up to know that other people have an underwear hierarchy.

Re: embarassing stains: No bad luck recently (lighter+more predictable period thanks to to pill), but I was a disaster in high school. Worst instance: on an overnight bus trip with the band as a freshman, my period came during the night and I ruined a pair of jeans. Of course, I didn't realize this until I stood up and a sympathetic senior pointed out my, um, predicament. She kindly gave me a few Feminine Hygiene Products and lent me a clean pair of pants.

I'm lovin' the "menstruation confessional" theme this week. The variety of experiences of different women is pretty impressive!

They're still unpredictable time-wise, but once I know it's started, it's right to the C-list. Finding out that it's started is how they get to the C list in the first place ;-D.
In HS, I used to commute on the 6 train from school to my BFs house in the Bronx. We were sitting trying to finish a logic problem, or maybe the crossword, when I shifted in my seat, and suddenly knew I had gushered! Yikes!
We finagled a way to pull the ol' wrap-a-sweatshirt-round-the waist AS we were getting up for our stop.
Which we did at the last POSSIBLE moment.
Because I had left behind a Rorschach on the seat.

The variety of experiences of different women is pretty impressive!

I always love menstruation, birth control, etc., threads for that reason. I never talked about this stuff with girlfriends when I was a teenager . . . and I love how these threads always explode the myth of "normal" bodily experience where reproductive health and sexuality is concerned.

aww...the margaret cho love! she never stops making me laugh!

and aww...the C team...where would i be w/o my C team underwear?

i read that you can't use diva cups or moon cups if you have an IUD...is that true?

Diva cup knowledge!

-True that you cannot use a diva cup with an IUD. It uses suction to stay in and you don't want that pulling on your IUD.

-True that it spills easily. But if you sit over the toilet, it spills into the toilet, and then you empty the rest of it into the toilet, and then you're all set.

-About leaking... it shouldn't leak because it's supposed to form a seal with your vaginal walls. I have a tipped uterus too (actually something like 30% of women do)... that shouldn't be a problem.

There are two sizes--for women who have or have not gone through childbirth (can't remember whether it had to be vaginal delivery)--so that's important.

Another idea is that it might not be sealing properly. Make sure you give it a full turn so you know it's sealed. Mine sometimes gets squished up against my cervix and I have to push it out of the way before it will seal.

My diva cup revolutionized my life but it is a little hard to get used to... good luck to everyone with the learning curve!

The blood/saliva thing actually does work. I learned that from a former roommate who used saliva to get the blood stains out of her shirt after being hit on the head from bouncing hail.

hey thanks for that input, rhian!

it says you shouldn't use it w/ IUD on the package...but never says why...

Secondary testimonial for the whole "spit gets out blood" thing. I quilt and stick myself with needles all the fricking time. Saliva gets the stain right out.

Never tried it on my glad rags, though. DH gets fed up with them about once a year and does lemon juice, Dreft baby detergent and oxyclean. The poor things are nearly 10 years old - I really should make some new ones.

I have many stain stories:

1 First period, 8th grade. Thinking that a junior sized tampon would be good enough, paired with a pantiliner, I wore white pants.

2. Sitting at a table with cloth upholstered chairs, yep, I left some behind and no I didn't tell anyone, just got up, pushed in the chair, went to the bathroom and sat in another chair.

3. One nighter with a hot guy. I woke up and low and behold, there was a huge bloody mess on his bed, it has soaked to his mattress. Do I tell him? Oh hell no! I arranged his blankets strategically around it and told him that I was ready for him to take me home. Never heard from him again, I am sure that he never forgot me.

4. How is this for embarassing? I was hit by a car in October, the same day that I started my period, yet didn't know that it was coming until about an hour before I was hit. I was in the hospital barely conscious and had a few concerned nurses trying to figure out of the blood coming out of my vagina was from some internal injury or if I had started my period.

I'm another huge fan of the diva cup! My learning curve wasn't too bad, but you do have to spend some time practicing at first.

For those of you who find it messy - I've solved that problem by just emptying it in the shower. Plus, then it's really easy to clean. I might just be lucky in that I have light enough periods that I only have to empty it once or twice a day. I guess that wouldn't always work for the heavier flow people...

Oh my god. When I was in junior high, I got the most heavy periods of my life. I used to wear a tampon, a pad, and basically an adult diaper, and there were times when I STILL bled my pants. In 7th grade, I bled my pants and one of the boys in my English class proposed marriage to me in front of everyone. It was pretty embarassing.
My flow is pretty normal now. I don't even have a 'B' team. I have the A team and the F team. :)

Damn Sassygirl! Can't top that.

My worst period-related incident was when the dog rooted through the garbage and presented my company with an icky, bloody pad.

Hey Lauren,

I have a tipped uterus but use my divacup and lunette just fine with minimal to no leakage - only from the blood and stuff that was on the outside of the cup before it made a seal, or when it's way too full.

My only problem is using nuvaring with the cup at the very end of the withdrawal bleed. Sometimes the ring ends up in the cup. :(

As for stains and stuff, I have only messenger bags for my laptop and things that are low hanging to the point that they cover my butt. I mean it sounds sort of stupid, but I live in LA where it's not cold enough to wear a sweater most months of the year, and the bag covers up any potential leakage from a surprise bleed. :D

Oh yeah, forgot my embarrassing period story.

Was having shower sex one day cause the guy I was with wasn't fond of the idea of period sex and thought it would be slightly better if he wore a condom and we did it in the shower. By the end, instead of just a teeny amount of blood that was eventually washed away, there were little blobs of endometrial tissue around the drain.

Freaked him out good. :D

Since we're sharing embarrassing stories...

My first period was insanely, rediculously, disturbingly heavy... and I had to spend that day at a daycare, since it was summer and my mom was working.

I was using the super-crazy-heavy pads and still having to change them about once every 30 minutes or so. I wound up giving up on doing anything outside that day, so I sat on the floor to play a game of Risk with some of the other kids... and by the time we were done I realized that the mysterious stain I'd noticed on the carpet a few minutes earlier... was from me.

It was about 5 or 6 feet across... and that dark, near-black blood color.

Thank god that... well, this WAS a daycare, and the carpet was marked with all manner of mysterious stains, so mine wasn't THAT out of place.... and thank god I'd worn black shorts that day!

I never did tell anyone where it'd come from, and it stayed there for at least the next three years until I was old enough to stay home alone...

I have the panty hierarchy. And like has been said before, normally when I'm on my period I've got the "period" panties that are either black or dark blue. I don't use red because I found out once (the hard way) that red shows up on red as well.

My embarrassing stain came the first year I'd had my period. I think it was the third or fourth time and I was wearing a pad at my brother's baseball game. I didn't even realize anything had happened until I leaned over to a lower bleacher to grab a soda and my mom grabbed me by my jeans and yanked me back down. I asked what was wrong and she told me I had a huge stain coming in and the people in the bleachers above us probably saw it.

I sheepishly (trying to be as casual as possible) looked behind me and there was an older couple there who wouldn't look at me. My mom gave me her jacket and I had to do the around the waste thing and I got a big lecture about changing pads, etc. etc., but back then I was an "every day's a heavy day" girl. Thank goodness for the pill, cause it's no longer heavy and I know when to break out the C team:)

I can't even get my shiny new DivaCup in. I feel like such a loser. (I guess this is the learning curve?)

Oh, and... I bled all over my first boyfriend's spare bed (I was allowed to stay over, but not to share a room) when I was sixteen. I came pretty close to just throwing myself out of the window through sheer embarrassment.

this entire thread is fantastic. i thought me and my mom were the only crazies with the panties hierarchy.

my worst period story would probably be when i was in 6th grade (i got my period two years before my other friends) and i spent the night at my friend's house. I ended up bleeding through onto her bed and had to wake her and her mom up at 2 am to change the sheets. She'd never had her period and had to wake up to me freaking out about mine all over her bed. Nice.

Oh, Margaret Cho. How I love Margaret Cho and her infinite wisdom.

I think my worst/most embarrassing period story very quickly turned into my best. I'd just started dating my current boyfriend and (because this was still before I'd gotten on the pill) I never had a wholly predictable period. I figured that I wouldn't bleed too horribly anytime soon, so I slept over and was horrified the next morning to see that I'd bled on the bed. It wasn't a huge stain, but I still didn't know how he'd take it. Thankfully he just took it in stride and ended up being the logical one as he improvised a bit and successfully used dish soap and water to get most of the identifiable stain out.

This turned into a slightly more amusing period tale when, later that day, apparently he'd asked his roommate the best method for removing menstrual stains from a bedsheet. And the roommate seems to have an aversion to ANY bodily function being discussed and just looked horrified as my boyfriend got his giggles. Childish, I know, but it did reassure me that I'd picked a good one.

My dear older sister advised me about having "period underwear" a long time ago, and now I have a well developed system of downgrading that works quite well.

And although the period underwear might be my C team, I actually do have a D team, except its only one pair of underwear. Yes, I have my-cramps-are-so-bad-I-can't-stand-the -feel-of-even-the-slightest-pressure-from-weak-worn-out-elastic underwear. I have basically taken one of my worst (i.e. "grannyest" [sp?]) pairs of white cotton underwear and cut off the front elastic so that I can lay in bed and cry a little less.

I remember in high school my period would get so bad that every time I stood up I would need to change my pad. I hating going to school knowing that I would have to wait two hours before having the time to use the facilities. Students should have more than 7 minutes between classes! Hmmm, the good old days of truly heavy periods. One time I had four days of heavy period and on the fifth day it was normal and I had this 6th sense telling me that my period would continue but with the clock starting from the beginning like the last four days hadn't happened. I was right unfortunately, the longest period I have ever had totaling 11 days of proper period. I seem to recall being a little insane during that time period.

I got my period nearly 10 years ago, when I was about 12. The VERY FIRST TIME I bled through my pants in school, since I had absolutely NO concept of how heavy the flow would get.

Since then, my bleeding has delighted in flummoxing me in various ways. Such as, it loves to travel. It will NEVER come on a day when I'm chillaxing at home if it can come when I'm running through an airport or sleeping in a hotel room with 4 other girls. Or, many years ago, when I was on vacation without my mother and had to beg a step-cousin I'd never met before for some pads.

Oh the embarassing stories about my period...three years ago I had cramps so bad I dropped a tray in the dorm cafeteria and nearly passed out before I made it back to my room.

Two years ago I was down in New Orleans with Habitat for Humanity and scouring the remains of the city for a box of pads after I tried to use a tampon for the first and last time and got a piece of the applicator stuck up inside me. In a pit toilet.

This Christmas I had to tell my grandparents that my parents' gift to me was "pajamas" when it was actually a set of Luna Pads. Which I had to use the very next day. (As I said before, my period likes to travel.) Oh, and I would heartily recommend Luna Pads; they are so much softer and comfier than disposable pads.

rhian and melee -

Try as I might, my cup will not turn. I try to twist it, and the cup just sort of scrunches around itself, like if you held a paper bag at the top and used your other hand to twist it at the bottom. I have spent immense amounts of time and energy trying to make it turn, but it absolutely refuses.

My current solution is just to wear reusable pads with the cup. They aren't chafey like regular pads, nor do they unnecessarily clog up landfills, so this solution works for me.

How often is everyone dumping their cups?

On heavy days I have about 45 minutes before it starts to overflow. That lasts about two days and then I can dump it every few hours for the next few days.

Should I be worried about bleeding to death here? It seems like some people are good for the whole 12 hours.

My first period came the very morning I was to leave for a two-week summer camp. Fortunately, an indoor "smartypants" kind of camp, not the outdoor "sports" type. But it was pretty miserable not really having any guidance on that first flow, not having any mom to talk to or complain to, and not being able to go swimming. Dagnabbit. And being 12 and that being my first, I certainly wasn't over the embarrassment factor yet.

But my worst period story (never had anything totally embarrassing happen) was when I was on a band trip in high school. Almost ALL of the girls got their periods. Seriously. One day, when we were standing in the DC heat, wearing band uniforms over our clothes and moving nonstop from place to place, I forgot to bring an extra pad. On Day 2. That single pad managed to hold me until about 6pm, magically, until I could buy an inferior vending machine pad at a restaurant. (Of course, no one else had pads to spare.) Anyway. My pants were stained through, but only through the crotch, where no one would see unless they were underneath me and I was doing the splits.

It was really uncomfortable, though. Yuck.

Never stained a sheet, but I was taught early on never to sleep on my back while on my period. And I would RUN to the bathroom in the morning to avoid the "whoosh" causing any troubles.

I guess I'm throwing the first tampon. I have no embarrassing period stories. My period is light and only lasts 1-2 days (except when I was on the pill it lasted SEVEN!)

When I was in high school I had my best friend sleep over the same day I got a new mattress, and she bled on it.

I always have my arsenal of red, purple, and fuschia panties at the ready for the week.

EMBARRASSING PERIOD STORY!

When I first began to get my period, I didn't ever really know when it had started; I didn't cramp like I do today. And I didn't know it had started in school...to this day, I don't know how it is that no one noticed the red stain spreading inbetween my legs. And I was one of the poor unfortunates who got teased about EVERYTHING, so I'm sure that if someone, anyone, had seen it, they would have very unkindly made this known.

Well, I get home from school, and go to the bathroom, and there's blood everywhere. I didn't want my dad to know, because I was young and shy and I lived in a single-parent home. So I just threw it in the wash and dried it before he came home from work.

He noticed I'd changed the settings on the washer and asked me what I'd done. "Just some laundry, dad."

I think he knew what had happened, but very wisely shut his mouth.

Oh, you guys are making me feel so much better about some of my embarrassing stuff.

I, too, have stained a few sheets in my time, but the most embarrassing moment happened to me in junior high when I had just started my period. Like some of you have said before, my period was monstrously heavy during the first couple of years, and I had gone to the movies with my parents, and I remember a whole bunch of people I knew from school were also there. I knew I was gushing blood, but I figured my pad was handling it. So when the movie was over, I got up and walked out behind my mom and dad. When I got home, I was horrified to discover that my entire ass was covered in blood, and I have no idea who saw it!

By the way, whoever said that kids should have more than seven minutes to get to class is completely right. That was always a nightmare in high school, desperately needing to change a pad and knowing I didn't have enough time between classes.

Thanks all of you veterans for the DivaCup advice :)

How often is everyone dumping their cups?

I've never had a very heavy period (usually "regular" and "light" tampons work fine); I'm still in the learning stages, but it seems like during my own heaviest days, I'm going about 3-4 hours? But it did start leaking a couple of times when I let it go too long.

I can't even get my shiny new DivaCup in.

Yeah . . . the first few times I was squatting in the shower cursing! I'm still working around a bit of hymen (I think) so it can be tricky maneuvering.

Everyone's body is so different I'm not sure what advice to offer . . . except, you know, keep trying different positions.

Try as I might, my cup will not turn.

I've had trouble with this too. My current solution is to try and sort of pop it open and twist when the base is still external, so I have a bit more to grip. Still not sure I'm doing it right . . . but the leaking seems to be getting better!

My most embarrasing story is probably the day my Mum came marching into the living room brandishing the non-slip mat from the shower, and screamed at me about making sure I looked under the thing after taking a shower - there was a large blood clot dried on it. :(

You guys get 7 minutes between classes at school? I'm in the UK and we never got any. You were expected to teleport or something.

Oh did I have some bad period moments in middle school. My period was extremely heavy when I first got it. A couple times I left stains on chairs at school and had blood on my ass. I had to wear what I call mattress pads (the super thick, long ones) to bed, and I once stained this hideous couch we had...I don't think anyone noticed because I flipped the cushion and the couch was old and gross anyway.

One of the worst times had to have been when I was 13 and I was with my cousins at an amusement park. I thought my period was ending, but I was wrong. We went on a couple water rides and I went to the bathroom and the whole front of my khaki shorts were stained. I stretched my shirt out really bad to cover the stain because I was too embarassed to say anything.

“On heavy days I have about 45 minutes before it starts to overflow.�
You’re losing an ounce of blood every 45 minutes??!

“I can't even get my shiny new DivaCup in.�
If it doesn’t go in easily at first I just try to get myself a little, um, wet, by rubbing the area. I suppose you could use lube as well.

“I can't even get my shiny new DivaCup in.�
I had problems with this too. You have to kind of fold it over on itself, which is hard to hold without it popping open. I also need to hold skin out of the way with my other hand. Once the lip of it is in, you should be able to let it open up and then push it up farther. Keep trying, it does get easier!

"Try as I might, my cup will not turn."
If it's not turning, it's not sealing, which would make it leak. If you can, once it's in, stick a finger up and feel all around the top edge of it to see if it's really against your vaginal wall or if your cervix is in the way. I often need to push my cervix up away from it to get it to seal properly. It does mean your hands get messy... but diva cups aren't so great if you really don't want to touch blood.

"How often is everyone dumping their cups?"
I'm usually empty it about every 8 hours for 2 days and then every 12 hours for the rest. But I don't have a particularly heavy period.

I don't have underpants hierarchy because ALL my panties are black. That's what happens when you're lazy/never have a tampon.

Embarrassing story:

I had sex for the first time about three days before my period, but I figured I was safe because I was on the pill. Well, I was that time. And the second time. The day before my period was due I had sex for the third time, which was also my first experience with woman-on-top. It was great, until I looked down and realized that I had begun my period all over the crotch of my partner. I was mortified and near tears, but he simply told me it was ok, threw the sheets in the wash, and ran me a hot shower.

Guess who I've been dating for the last two years?

This is not exactly convincing me to try the Diva Cup though I've started to actually consider it. Am just wondering how long it actually takes for it to get easy.

I have no unusually embarrassing stories thankfully. There was always a sweater or jacket around when I needed it. But ugh, I remember sleeping away from home and having lousy sleep because I was afraid of staining sheets. Which I hadn't done for years till a few days ago. Boo. And I remember sleeping on towels.

I used to have really heavy periods before I went on the pill, and for a while in ninth grade I got a lot of nose bleeds. I remember waking up once, on the first day of my period, not knowing which bleeding orifice to take care of first. I think I started at the top and worked my way down!

Hey lyndorr,

I've been using it for about 72 hours and I feel like I'm getting the hang of it :). So while I'm not plugging the particular product, I wouldn't want to discourage you from trying it!

It probably helps if you've ever used a diaphragm or cervical cap--I haven't, but I think the principle is roughly the same.

Thank God for the pill. It made me regular, AND lightened the load (so to speak).

A few weeks ago I had pretty much all stain free black undies...until...my house burnt down and I decided for whatever reason to go with blue, gray and white undies and also my mother in law decided to do me a "favor" and buy me ill fitted underwear in gross flower patterns and ugly colors. It also so happens that even though I saved my diva cup from the fire, it isn't working as well as it did before and this month I got quite a few leaks...and a unexpected period that showed up without causing me nausea or back pain 24 hours before it showed up. So I now have quite a few B and C undies.

FYI on the diva cup I have found that leaks happen if I don't dry my cup after washing it. Those little holes always need to be clean as well for it to work. It also helps to try different folds, they are pretty self explanatory, the 7 fold and the pinch down fold. Oh and of course it can be hard to remember to push back and not up. I'm thinking of getting a different style of cup...

I was a really early developer so I got my period when I was nine, way before any of the other girls I knew. And of course, for the first several years it was so heavy that I have too many embarrassing leakage stories to count. On particular favorite of mine was bleeding on a friend's carpet during a sleepover.

Word to the person who mentioned not being able to sleep on your back. I was always paranoid about TSS, so I didn't want to sleep with a tampon in. So I ended up having to use THREE HUGE PADS the first few nights of my period to deal with the crack-drippage. Gross.

I worship birth control for saving me from long, heavy, cramp-filled periods. And I absolutely love the Keeper (which is like the Diva Cup). I struggled a bit at first, but I just kept trying different positions and folds until I finally got it. I recommend lubing up the rim and putting one leg up on the toilet seat. As far as dumping, I can go anywhere from 8-18 hours and I never have problems with leakage, but I still use a liner overnight. It holds a couple ounces so having to change it every 45 mins sounds a little worrisome.

Oh my god, yes the heavy and embarrassing periods. I don't have any hierarchy for my pants because...

OH dear, I hope I'm not the only one who gets this...

Even my non-period flow seems to... damage my undies. I am clean and healthy and scent-free, and yet even when not being visited by the dreaded cramp-demons and the blob-monster my discharge seems to have magical undies-bleaching properties. Seriously, I just put up with having to buy new knickers on a very regular basis. Does anyone else get this, and is it just a case of me buying cheap pants?

Well, vaginal secretions are pretty acidic so it's not really surprising. I haven't had that problem with most of my underwear but there have been several pairs that get bleached. It's not true of all though... maybe try a different kind!

Growing up with a single parent, I've managed to regale my poor Dad with tales of menstruation. To his credit, he had no problems buying pads or tampons and whatnot and I think that he considers it a badge of honor to not be squicked out. :)

I started using the DivaCup five months ago. I can't go back. The first two days I dump out the cup twice and then the rest of the time it's once per day. I've found that I only need the really light pads for the first two or three days. Using it at night has so far been awesome.

Try sleeping on your side if you don't want to stain the mattress.

I have light, pain-free periods, but that wasn't always the case. (FYI: eat less meat and drink less coffee if you want this happy state of being. :) )

I'm a huge klutz, so my embarrassing period stories are usually when I manage to get blood all over myself when I take out a tampon. Worst one was when I sat on a friend's suede couch afterwards and got a huge clump of blood on it. :( Thankfully, we cleaned it up before her husband got home, but he kept asking about who spilled what on the new couch.

When I was in college, I stayed over my boyfriend's hosue and got my period during the night. When I woke up, my jeans were covereed in blood. (Thankfully, the couch was okay.) I had to beg him to take me home before going out for breakfast - "I feel gross, I need to brush my teeth, I want to put on some clean clothes, etc etc." Finally, I said, "I'm bleeding all over my sweatshirt and will start bleeding all over your car if you don't take me home RIGHT NOW."

Even my non-period flow seems to... damage my undies. I am clean and healthy and scent-free, and yet even when not being visited by the dreaded cramp-demons and the blob-monster my discharge seems to have magical undies-bleaching properties. Seriously, I just put up with having to buy new knickers on a very regular basis. Does anyone else get this, and is it just a case of me buying cheap pants?

I have the same issue too and have since my periods first started. I always explained the 'bleached' stains on my black panties as them accidentally getting put in the load with the whites.

I had the WORST most heavy long ass period until I got on the pill. I went 11 days once and there was one day I had to change my over night pad three times in two hours.
Every day was an overnight day.

Now, I'm on the pill, which keeps my period in check (except for the month in which I was having a nervous breakdown- Aunt Flo came about a week early that month) and I use a diva cup. I change it about once a month, and use cloth pads to catch whatever the diva cup doesn't.

My daily non-period discharge is ...yellow-ish. Gross, right? Or maybe thats not a really "feminist" thing to say- I should be really proud about my discharges! lol
I hate it because it stains my white underwear this yellow color and I have to use bleach to get it out. And bleach is bad for the environment. But I suppose I kinda balance it out by not throwing any menstrual products away.

Meh. I just can't be bothered. When I was young--a teenager--I used to flip out about bloodstains. But a few years ago, when I was in my mid-20s, I sat down and figured some things out. I got my period for the first time when I was 14. My mother didn't go through menopause until she was in her mid-50s. In between, except for a couple breaks when I have kids (I dearly hope), I will be menstruating once a month. When I get my period, it lasts for six or seven days, with a very heavy flow on the first two or three. That's two-three days of heavy flow every month, twelve months a year, for forty years. I'm just gonna figure on staining stuff every so often and not care. Seriously--I'm gonna run around struggling to flip a mattress because someone I'm sleeping with might find evidence that I went through puberty? I'm gonna sort my underpants? Nah. I'd rather take a nap.

Ah, menstrual mishaps.
I didn’t get my period until I was going into the tenth grade, and I was so embarrassed at being such a late bloomer I didn’t want to tell anyone I had it. So I would steal my mom’s supply of Kotex, but unfortunately she didn’t know she was supplying two women and we ended up running out—unfortunately right when I needed them most. On one of my heaviest periods all we had were pantyliners and I really hoped I could control my period flow throughout the day (HA!). I ended up with my flannel shirt around my waist and left stains on every seat from homeroom on. I think at the time I didn’t realize I could go ask the nurse for pads, or I was probably too embarrassed. I threw my stained underwear in the laundry chute as a signal to my mom. I think, actually, all my sisters did it that way too (no, “hey Mom, I’m a woman now!�, just, “here’s my bloody undies, you know what it means�)My other serious mishap happened in college, when I was taking SCUBA lessons at an indoor pool in a middle school. Because I’m sort of on the small side, I was fitted with essentially a child’s wetsuit, which was cut high at the legs like a bathing suit (everyone else had shorts-type wetsuits). The night before my roommate had coached me how to use a tampon, which I truly hadn’t mastered yet. During the SCUBA lessons I suddenly had to pee like nothing else. I was terrified the blood was going to go everywhere just based on the pressure from my bladder and I ran out of the pool to the bathroom, which had that one-sheet-at-a-time bathroom tissue (the kind that dissolves immediately, which it did in my hands since I was soaking wet from the pool). I was bleeding past the tampon at that point, and there were no dispensers for any type of product in the middle school locker room (no that I had a quarter in my wetsuit, anyway). I stayed in the bathroom until near the end of the SCUBA lesson. Ugh.
Love the underwear hierarchy.

Oh, yes. I had the 8th grade chair staining experience- wrote a note to my (thankfully )female teacher that said, "I have to go- I have my ." Except the period was really big. Um, in emergency situations I have used anything from fast food napkins to washcloths, socks (even removing one that I was wearing). I go travelling alot... and I get teh periods that make me cramp so bad I pass out, get cold sweats; puke. And I bleed like a stuck pig. OK, now you know.

Many of you have commented on the common stained "C team" panties that you use during your period. I totally hear where you're coming from, and am trying to start a company that makes panties using a stain-repelling fabric that also releases stains when washed. This new line of panties will allow us to wear sexy, attractive panties during our period without worrying about menstrual spills that occur even when using feminine products.

We're doing market research to find out what styles women would like and other relevent information that will help us develop the best product possible. If you would like to take our online survey, we would greatly appreciate it! The link is: http://www.tigersurvey.com/survey.php?survey=5260.

Thanks so much!
Blink Panties

Many of you have commented on the common stained "C team" panties that you use during your period. I totally hear where you're coming from, and am trying to start a company that makes panties using a stain-repelling fabric that also releases stains when washed. This new line of panties will allow us to wear sexy, attractive panties during our period without worrying about menstrual spills that occur even when using feminine products.

We're doing market research to find out what styles women would like and other relevent information that will help us develop the best product possible. If you would like to take our online survey, we would greatly appreciate it! The link is: http://www.tigersurvey.com/survey.php?survey=5260.

Thanks so much!
Blink Panties

Many of you have commented on the common stained "C team" panties that you use during your period. I totally hear where you're coming from, and am trying to start a company that makes panties using a stain-repelling fabric that also releases stains when washed. This new line of panties will allow us to wear sexy, attractive panties during our period without worrying about menstrual spills that occur even when using feminine products.

We're doing market research to find out what styles women would like and other relevent information that will help us develop the best product possible. If you would like to take our online survey, we would greatly appreciate it! The link is: http://www.tigersurvey.com/survey.php?survey=5260.

Thanks so much!
Blink Panties

Sorry! Didn't mean to post three times. Also join our facebook group at http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=11837130801&ref=mf!