Ladies -- how would you cope with your period, expected or unexpected? I think the smell of blood attracts all sorts of animals (apes and predators, especially), not to mention insects that are attracted to decomposing organic material. I recall reading about Dian Fossey, a renowned zoologist who pioneered the study of gorillas during her lifetime -- she would walk around the jungle with blood seeping into her jeans because sanitary pads weren't available in such remote locations. What do you think?
I read about this and how anasazi women cope up with this. They called this moon flow and female mensturating would stay inside the hut for a month. Of course they consider that a bad omen so that is why they stay in huts made for them. In reality, this might work. If you have someone do the chores for you in a few days. If surviving alone, my best guess is to stock up.
Actually women depending on the culture had special girdles/knickers with reusable absorbent cloths. Romans had subligaculim which is a type of loincloth that women and men wore as psuedo-bikinilike underwear. Thankfully today's society is way more open than locking a woman away because that's just stupid especially if you have to survive. It takes all hands on deck to survive and function. Personally I've done the resuable cloth thing. In more uhh environmentally aware circles there are a fair amount of people doing just that. For me it's just a matter of functionality and practicality when living out in the wilderness since disposable pads run out and I prefer not to want to litter the plastic wrappers in a federal or state park.
How would you go about washing these cloths though? My grandmother used clothes to absorb her flow when she was young but without adequate drying (WITH SUNLIGHT) it can be a hotbed for bacteria.
I'm a big fan of my diva cup. Wear internally, dump it and rinse it with clean water a few times a day to empty, and reinsert. After the cycle is over, boil it to sterilize. Then it can be kept in a clean cloth bag until next month. If you don't like menstrual cups, sea sponge tampons are a good reuseable internal option. Like the diva cup, there's a learning curve but they're easier and less noticeable than the cup. Again, just rinse, wring out, and reinsert during your cycle. After, it can be washed with dr bronners or any soap you have on hand, rinsed super well, and then be given a quick 60-second dunk in boiling water. As far as cloth pads if you have enough for the whole cycle, keep the used pads in a pail of water. Empty the water each day and refill. The dirty water is great for your garden or compost pile. At the end of the cycle, wash them however you're washing other clothing and then hang them on a line to dry in the sun. They may not be pretty but who is going to be around to care? The kind that are foldable squares dry faster than the ones stuffed with material. I can't imagine walking around in bloody pants, even if I was alone and no one would know. However, if I was wearing a dark colored skirt, like my black macabi, I could see myself walking around without underwear or menstrual product. The blood would end up on my thighs and my skin can be washed easily.
I've never thought about the blood attracting animals before. That's a pretty legit concern. If you can find a fragrant plant, or something like that and stuff it around your underwear, maybe that would work, lol. I have found a way though to use tampons as a survival tool. You can use them to put in a deep wound to absorb moisture and they also swell and take the shape of the wound.
I was always wondering this as a lady. I looked up material you can find in the wild that is absorbent like a sponge and that you can easily reuse. Locking a woman away is messed up, but before we were able to advance technologically, we always had a fear of things we couldn't explain. In my mom's country, I'm sure some people thought periods were a sign of demon possession. They used to think bacteria was just bad air.
I have read that there is evidence ancient Egyptian women used wet, thick rolls of papyrus for this purpose. And it has been recorded that the ancient Romans used rolls of sheep wool. And there are likely other "old school" methods of dealing with Aunt Flow.
Cotton is the most common because it's breathable and absorbent. You undercarriage needs to breathe. Washing's honestly not an issue and if you're concerned about stains, you can always get dark dyed cloths. As to the period blood attracting animals, it's actually fairly nonexistent. (Exception probably being sharks and piranhas.) Animals with powerful noses will still smell you even if you try to cover up with fragrances. That being said I've been out in the wilderness weeks at a time with periods and haven't run across problems with wildlife. In fact it's basically myth. In 1991 there was a study done with bears and period blood. The bears didn't show interest in it. Plus if it were such an issue we'd have dead and mauled female wildlife biologists, wilderness experts, ect piling up like no tomorrow if that were the case. Animals are more interested in smells that's 'food', our periods just aren't interesting enough. My guess is that because it's mostly old and not so fresh blood from broken down tissue. Also the tampons in wounds is another myth. You never want to use it in a wound period. It's not sterile and causes more issues down the road than not. If you want wound management with a feminine hygiene product then pads will work in a pinch since you're applying to the surface of the wound vs shoving it in yourself which will push forming infection deep inside of you and cause sepsis.
Interesting reading from different people here. Aunt flo is a nasty experience truly, especially when caught off-guard. Make it a habit to always have an extra clean towel or handkerchief in your bag.
