Periods suck. You’re crampy, bloated, emotional…and even if you don’t have any of those symptoms, you still have to bleed from your vagina. Don’t let anyone convince you that bleeding from your vagina is a good thing. It’s not!

I’ve got a hate/hate relationship with my period and it mostly has to do with all the different feminine hygiene products out there and how most of them are awful. So after going from a hard core pad user to a hard core tampon user to a disillusioned and irritated (both emotionally and physically) tampon user, I tried period cups a few months ago. You can read about that experience HERE. But the long and short of it is that I was overall pleased with this product. When it works it’s amazing, you can use one cup for 10-12 hours. You don’t feel yourself bleeding. It’s great. However, there is a learning curve. Insertion and removal involves an unavoidable mess. And if it’s dislodged it looks like a massacre occurred in your pants.

So while I liked the cups, I was still open to other options. My last stop on the period train was period panties. I don’t know about you, but my Facebook feed is FILLED with adds for Thinx, the most popular period panty brand. I say popular because they’ve got really cool ads with culturally diverse, super-cute chicks in em and they make having your period seem cool. Remember ladies, vaginal bleeding will never be cool. So when selecting a brand to experiment with, I went to Thinx first. But then I saw the $34 price tag and I was all, “fuck you!” I realize that you get what you pay for. But I would need (at the very least) three pairs of panties, which comes to $102 (not including tax and shipping). And I’m not paying over $100 for an experiment. So I went on Amazon and after comparing ratings and pricing I settled on Yoyi panties. They came in a pack of three panties for $20 which is more my speed.

Day 1

Flow: Medium

Prior to getting my period last weekend, my husband and I had planned to take a walk downtown for lunch. So when I woke up all crampy I realized this latest experiment of mine just got real. Because I hadn’t factored in actually leaving the house, never mind leaving the house on foot with no real recourse for if shit goes wrong. But I do these things for you. My level of sacrifice is unparalleled.

So I put on the first pair of panties. I also put on a panty liner. I don’t know what I thought a little old panty liner was going to do. But I was nervous. I also brought a back up pair of panties, a pad, a panty liner AND a tampon.

We began our walk and the first thing I noticed was how the panties feel. Because of the magical materials they use in the layered crotch panel, the panties don’t feel like regular panties. They feel more like bathing suit bottoms. This isn’t a problem…just takes a little getting used to.

We were out and about for a couple of hours and I hadn’t stained myself. All praises to Allah, Yaweh, Xenu, Buddha and all their homies cus I was praying with every step and every drop.

I did my first check. There wasn’t a lot of blood and the blood that was there had only really gotten on the panty liner. So since I was home now, in a safe space, I decided to remove the liner and throw caution to the wind.

For bedtime I decided to revert to other products. I only had three pairs of period panties. They can hold about two tampons worth of blood. So if you’re wearing a pair all day, you probably shouldn’t wear that same pair at night. I took off the panties which were significantly stained on the inside, but super dry. The staining definitely didn’t make it through to the outside layer. And when I washed them out, the stain came out completely and I didn’t have to do any vigorous scrubbing. I was really surprised at how painless it was.

Day 2

Flow: Heavy

This would be my true test. I went sans liner as I went about my business of the day. I move around a lot when I’m working (I’m a sewist and crafter). And I could definitely feel the flow. But the few times I went to check, all was well with the world (i.e. no leaks).

Then, in an incredible act of courage, I went food shopping. I was walking through Costco just free bleeding my ass off. There was something kinda liberating about just letting my uterus do what it does without trying to silence it with a tampon.

At the end of Day 2, the inside of the panties looked pretty scary, I'm not gonna lie. But there was still no leak to the outer layer, and clean up was a breeze. It was at this point that I was pretty much sold on using these puppies for the rest of my pre-menapausal life.

Day 3

Flow: Light to Medium

The third day was a breeze. Having made it through my heaviest day without a hitch I was feeling super confident. There isn’t much to report. It was a pretty chill day.

Day 4

Flow: Light

I was out of panties. But that’s fine. My forth day is so light that I don’t use anything more than a panty liner anyway.

Overall Thoughts:

I loved, loved, loved using these. The only downside, if I can find one, is that I can feel myself bleed. I’ve always hated that. But that’s the price you have to pay if you don’t feel like plugging yourself with a tampon or using a cup.

Advice:

-Read the fine print. Some period panties are not supposed to be used alone. They’re only supposed to be used as a backup to pads, tampons or cups to help prevent leakage. If you wear one of these alone and then end up ruining a pair of jeans, you have only yourself to blame.

-If using these as a back up be mindful that the crotch of most of these panties is extra wide. That’s great, unless you’re using a pad. I’m assuming that most of you pad users use pads with wings…I mean unless you’re some type of masochist. The wings won’t completely wrap around the crotch and may flip up and rip out your pubs. We’ve all had a pad/pube incident…it ain’t fun. So I would recommend only using backup period panties as a backup for tampons or cups.

-When trying these out for the first time, do it at home OR wear dark clothes. Don’t be a hero. Not everyone can be as brave as me.

Deciding which panties are for you can be a bit trying because it really is an investment. But there are several great brands out there and you can snag a pair for $7-$45. So there's something out there for everyone's budget.

Below are links to some of the highest rated drippy drawers.

Adira, Anigan, Dear Kate, EvaWear, Hesta, LunaPads, Modibodi, Pantie Pads, PantyProp, Period Pantiez, Qikafan, Thinx, VV Skivvys and YoYi,

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Period Panties for the Win!