I was raised to have tamponphobia. I was told only certain "types" of women used tampons and so I never used them. Besides toxic shock, I've always been concerned with how it would feel and the maintenance involved. Lately, I've been considering them because it would make certain activities like exercise easier. Does anyone else have tamponphobia? Anyone prefer tampons over pads? Why?

Maintenance?

I've been using tampons since my first period when I was 12. I don't even keep pads in the house.

I quit wearing diapers when I was 2 - and I ain't going back.

Oh - and as far as what a tampon feels like...it doesn't feel like anything. The majority of the nerve endings in the vagina are in the lower third. As long as you get the tampon in far enough, you never feel it, at all.

Genesia said:

My pads aren't diapers, they're ultra thin. It doesn't even feel like I'm wearing one

In terms of maintenance, I mean having to put them in and pull them out and knowing when to change them

Janfriend said:

How often do you change a pad?

Same thing. You get to know how long they'll "last."

Genesia said:

Well, with pads I can look and know when. I don't change them after a certain amount of time automatically if it's not needed

I was raised the same way, my mother always told me they would give me cancer about a year ago i was convinced to just try them, I will never go back to pads, it's the most comfortable I've ever been

I love tampons. Wearing a pad is like walking around with a hot slice of pizza in my underwear. It feels icky to me. Plus tampons are easier to carry with you. Not only that but they come in handy in other areas too. My friend accidentally spilled pop in her shoe while on a road trip. She whipped out a tamp, stuck it in her shoe and it absorbed every last drop.

I used to fear them. Now I prefer them. They dont hurt

I exclusively use tampons but on some days I do use a pad as back up. If you're first starting out with tampons, having a pad or a liner as back up is a pretty good idea.

I think that you can wear tampons for up to eight hours, but there have been times where I've worn them for longer. I've never had any problems.

I've been using them since I was 11, mostly because I used to take swim classes, and I've been exclusively using them since I've been in my late teens, earlier twenties. I find it impossible to do any physical activity with any kind of comfort wearing a pad.

I perfer to use o.b. tampons, because those wear the ones that were always around my house growing up. The "downside" (if you can call it that) to them is that they don't have an applicator and lots of women get grossed out by that. The other brand that I've used and I quite like is Tampax Pearl. The dwonside to them is that they have a strange, plastic.cloth wrapper and a very long plastic applicator. I just think that it creates too much waste BUT the protection is superb and they are very easy and comfortable to wear.

Anyway...start using tampons. I seriously think that the only real use for pads nowadays are for girls who start their periods at a very young age, like 8,9, or 10, or as a backup for tampons.

I can't even remember wearing pads. You don't feel tampons at all.

my mom was always anti-tampon. she was always afraid of the toxic-shock thing!

I used pads through most of my teen years because my mother was anti-tampon . I prefer tampons now. They are much more comfortable.

I'm quite shocked some of you starting using them at 11 and 12. I was always told virgins don't use them

What "type" of woman did your mother (parents? family member?) tell you used tampons?

I used pads when I was like 11 but moved up to tampons after a couple of years. I can not even imagine using pads for a regular flow period. So messy and uncomfortable.

Janfriend said:

I remember trying to use that line to get out of swimming sports
I was a virgin until I was 18, I must have started using tampons when I was about 14 or 15
There are also alternatives as discussed on my amazing thread
http://prince.org/msg/100/275619

Janfriend said:

you were lied to.

I use both. On heavy days I usually go with tampons because it's less messy than pads. But I always use pads on my light days because tampons will kind of dry me out (even light ones). If you are worried about toxic shock syndrome the easy solution is to make sure your tampons stay sterile and clean. Don't use it if the wrapping is torn or whatever and keep your hands clean.. common sense stuff. I keep mine in an old eyeglass case to make sure they stay clean and undamaged in my purse. I use Tampax because they have a flushable applicator.

JustErin said:

See orgnote

JasmineFire said:

Doesn't it break the hymen?

Janfriend said:

Hymens can be broken even by non-penetrative activities I heard
I didn't notice any resistance when I used my first one.

Janfriend said:

I actually don't think it does. Unless you have a dildo sized tampon, and that would just be impractical.

However, gymnastics, horseback riding, ballet...basically anything that requires a women to spread her legs may break the hymen before sexual intercourse. But then again, it may not. It depends on the woman.

The presence or absence of a hymen does not indicate virginity.

JasmineFire said:

Oh, I know, but I doubt encouragement of breaking it with a tampon is not preferred

Janfriend said:

i think that they're too small to break it. i'm not 100% sure about that. maybe i'll check wikipedia.





wikipedia didn't mention it.
[Edited 7/13/08 18:29pm]

wow...

I only use pads when I'm not leaving the house (just to keep from using up my tampons). It's always a good idea to wear at least a panty liner with it. As my flow eases up I switch to a pad b/c tampons can be uncomfortable to pull out if things aren't flowing & there's little to absorb - other than that you don't feel them at all.

As far as toxic shock I change mine at least every 4 hours, & I never sleep in them.

They're not dangerous, they're not for certain kinds of women. Just try them, & get a kind with an applicator to make it easier until you're comfortable w/ the process (some don't have applicators, like OB for example)...

CalhounSq said:

i sleep in mine.

when i was younger i wouldn't but then i heard that they can be kept in for up to 8 hours so i started to.

Janfriend said:

What difference does it make? The presence or absence of a hymen has absolutely no bearing on whether someone is a virgin or not.

Some women naturally have almost no hymen. Others have theirs broken (as someone else noted) from other, non-sexual activities.

I honestly never worried about whether I was "intact" or not.

And, yes - I knew at the age of 12 (before I ever used a tampon) what a hymen was.

Genesia said:

yeah, so did i. and i also figured that it was probably broken from all the gymnastics and ballet i participated in.
[Edited 7/13/08 19:10pm]

JasmineFire said:

If you're comfortable w/ that, I guess it's cool I just don't like the idea of anything sitting inside my body for hours at a time... unless it's a dick Plus I can sleep over 8 hours easily, so I'd really be risking it trying to sleep in them. 4 hours is my limit

JasmineFire said:

I smacked my uni - hard - on my bicycle when I was 8 or 9. Was very bruised. I figure mine was pretty much gone at that point.