Sanitary Belts

[Lena_Horne]

Now I've been holding off on asking this question for some time as it seemed that it would only suffice during an already "delicate" discussion. But since we're already there what better time than now. What about (if anyone is quite that gung-ho about going vintage) the use of belted sanitary napkins and such. Is this simply taking it too far? Are they even remotely comfortable? I know that they can be quite useful in that they make much less paper waste and therefore save trees. That they can be washed and what not. But has anyone any experience with these and if so was it over-the-top annoying or strangely comforting... Hm.

L_H

[Lauren]

:eek: I'm not really willing to find out

But I want a full report if someone has used them!

[decodoll]

I agree with you, Lauren! I'm all for being as vintage as possible, but in some regards the modern way is just better. According to my gramma, sanitary belts were just unpleasant to put it mildly.

As far as the underwear and girdle, they wore them over the girdle. Only in advertisements would you see them under and that was just so that you could see the product. Personally, I still wear mine under when I'm not wearing tap pants. My everyday girdles are the Lacette Rago open-bottom, and you can just pull the whole thing down without unclipping your stockings.

[BettyValentine]

Oh my God, ... I had never even thought of that.

No thank you, for me. I like my modern conveniences very much. But I definitely want to hear if someone does. Can you even buy those anymore?

BV

[Tin Pan Sally]

What about (if anyone is quite that gung-ho about going vintage) the use of belted sanitary napkins and such. Are they even remotely comfortable? L_H

I have when I was a young teen. The belted one I tried out was an elastic garter with tabs to fasten a special napkin consisting of long paper/cloth strips at the front and back. It was NOT comfortable, very obvious, and still required disposal so therefore was not environmentally friendly. The older ones were fabric and washable. I don't even know where you could buy these napkins nowadays. I wouldn't suggest it. Thank goodness for new fangled technology, I say.

That'll teach the boys to peak. All we do is make fun of men and discuss unpleasant toilet practices. :eek:
If you can't take the girltalk, don't go poking your nose into the powder room! lol

[Lena_Horne]

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y121/HermosaSuerte/beltsr08.jpg (http://www.mum.org/belt1908.htm)

Ah the wonders of the past. *Click the picture*

L_H

[Tin Pan Sally]

Ah the wonders of the past. *Click the picture*L_H

Yikes, those were the days, huh? I didn't realize belts were still being used in the mid 60s.

[MissQueenie]

Many women involved in modern homesteading/"back to the land" movements (not all of whom are crazy-hippie types!) use washable pads. I'd suggest visiting www.homesteadingtoday.com and doing a search if you're really interested in hearing what modern women think about them!

[BettyValentine]

I do know some women who prefer the washable variety, or cups of some sort. Not so much my thing, though. Never really even been tempted to try.

They're advertised pretty regularly in Bust magazine, and apparently they're like hot pink and all sorts of bright crazy colors. They look like modern disposable pads only made of fleece or something. They look like tiny little snowboarder hats.



BV

[ITG]

I wonder if the Amish women of today use some sort of contraption like these ones of old or if they use more modern means.

[Lena_Horne]

I wonder if the Amish women of today use some sort of contraption like these ones of old or if they use more modern means.

I thought they weren't allowed to use any sort of modern convenience (I presume that it is permitted in an emergency) but I see them at the airport quite often.

So do modern sanitary napkins count as a new-fangled contraption or simply a modern take on an old standard?

L_H

[magneto]

The older ones were fabric and washable. I don't even know where you could buy these napkins nowadays.

You can buy washables; look in the local catering-to-environmentally-hardcore people/hippy grocery or pharmacy in your area. They are called Lunapads or Moonpads, something like that; am sure they're online. These are designed to be worn "independently" (snapping on to one's undergarments, ergo, sans belt) but I can't imagine why they couldn't work with a belt as well. (Although, if I correctly recall the shape of older disposable ones I've seen, these washables may need extra strips of fabric sewn on to give them the streamer-y bits the belt attaches to).

~Ellie, trying carefully to avoid TMI syndrome.

[AtomicBlonde]

This is one of those situations when I say "ew, I prefer the modern version"

I was talking to my mom about this recently, and she said she had to wear those belt thingies when she was a girl. She said that they were miserable, uncomfortable things, and she hated them. I'm going to take her word for it!

-Jess

[ITG]

Lena, that's kinda what I was thinking too but I know if I were Amish, I sure would want to make an exception when it came to that. ;) If that's the case then, it's one more reason in my book to not be Amish (not that I was considering it to begin with).

[LaMedicine]

Having been in my teens in the 60s....
Sanitary shorts and napkins were already on the market by the early 60s. Tampons also came on the market around this time.
However, I well definitely say, stick to the modern stuff...as well as the matter of comfort, there's also the matter of absorbtion.:eek:
Especially if you are an active woman, exercise regularly, take part in sports...kinda disasterous.
If it was that way in the 60s, I don't want to think what it was like in the 30s, 40s. 50s...:p

[CWetherby]

I would hazard a guess, that if you go far enough back, you'd find that women were not too active at certain times of the month. No doubt because they dealt with cramps AND messy contraptions that didn't really lend themselves to activity.

I think they were told they were at greater risk for disease/injury at that time of the month, too. Has anyone else ever heard that?

Now, having 3-5 days every month to "rest"---that vintage idea just might catch on!!

[AtomicBlonde]

I would hazard a guess, that if you go far enough back, you'd find that women were not too active at certain times of the month. No doubt because they dealt with cramps AND messy contraptions that didn't really lend themselves to activity.

I think they were told they were at greater risk for disease/injury at that time of the month, too. Has anyone else ever heard that?

Now, having 3-5 days every month to "rest"---that vintage idea just might catch on!!

I dont know... I think it depends entirely on your cultural background and also your socio-economic status. I've done a little research on this subject in the 19th century. I think the average woman without the benefit of any sort of domestic help would have had to suck it up and go on with the daily activities as usual durring that time. If you were lucky enough to be able to afford some kind of help, then perhaps you could get away with doing less.
I come from a long line of rather hardboiled hardy women who dont give any sort of sympathy when it comes to feminine matters. (my mom never let me stay home from school when I had cramps, even though some of my friends got to.) There is a story of my g-g-grandmother giving birth one morning, having herself a cup of coffee, putting the baby in a sling and heading back outside to finish doing her work. If she didnt even take a break after having a baby, I cant imagine she gave herself a break because she felt bloated and crampy! :p

[Tin Pan Sally]

I come from a long line of rather hardboiled hardy women who dont give any sort of sympathy when it comes to feminine matters.

Me too. I was told to be more active during this time would lessen the chances of discomfort and shorten the visit from Aunt Flo. I was told the gals in our family didn't have cramps but had very regular light periods for that reason. Plus back then there was the saying, "A man works from dusk til dawn, but a woman's work is never done"
That saying wasn't used in our household, as both parents enjoyed careers and shared child rearing duties. I'm better for it.

I'll stick with the modern conveniences as far as being "on the rag".

[magneto]

I dont know... I think it depends entirely on your cultural background and also your socio-economic status. I've done a little research on this subject in the 19th century. I think the average woman without the benefit of any sort of domestic help would have had to suck it up and go on with the daily activities as usual durring that time.
...


Usual daily activities with one notable exception...my friend/room-mate (who is in her late 70s, a typical middle-class American) mentioned recently that she was raised to never bathe or wash her hair during "that time of the month"... one tradition I hope never comes back into fashion. :eek:

[Lena_Horne]

I've heard that back then women were advised to shower versus bathing but I've never heard of foregoing it altogether unless you didn't have adequate facilities. I often wonder how women dealt with bathing in those tiny silver washtubs during that time of the month. Yeesh.

L_H

[swankysister]

Don't read the following if you're squeamish or not wanting to learn about womanly menstrual habits (visiting gents, you've been warned, so no complaints!)

The belt with disposable napkins were still around in the very early 1980s. The metal 'buckles' dig in and the napkin shifts. Really not worth trying even if they're available.

Rad Pads (http://www.radpads.com.au/) and Moon Pads (http://www.keeper.com.au/moon.html) are made from a terry towelling cloth insert and a soft cotton 'holder' that's shaped like modern wing pad (the wings connect together outside your undies with a press stud). You need to have about half a dozen, so they can be washed and worn regularly during your cycle. I did find that they tended to shift around a fair bit, which wasn't good for feeling secure. And they're not reliable for heavy flows.

The Keeper (http://www.keeper.com.au/keeper.html) is a kind of rubber cup that works like a non-absorptive tampon. It is kind of useful for situations where you're unable to dispose your stuff (e.g., camping), but it's problematic when the sink to wash your hands is outside of the toilet cubicle (as for most large public toilets, rather than single staff toilets). When used correctly, you cannot feel them, but they can be messy to remove (until you get the knack), they're not great for very heavy flow (menorrhagia) and they tend to hurt during insertion when being used over several days.

Sorry if that's more information than you really wanted, but I hope it's of use to some lady somewhere. :o

[Veronica Parra]

GOOD NEWS!

It turns out that tampons have been around since World War II. We don't have to use sanitary belts to be vintage correct. Here's an ad from a 1943 issue of True Story magazine:


http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b362/Veronicaparra/shoesandhat016.jpg
http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b362/Veronicaparra/shoesandhat017.jpg
http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b362/Veronicaparra/shoesandhat018.jpg
http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b362/Veronicaparra/shoesandhat019.jpg

[Lauren]

I'm with you. Here's some more old ads:
From a 1937 Mccall's
http://www.shopbluemagnolia.com/images/san03.jpg
http://www.shopbluemagnolia.com/images/san04.jpg
1938 (I think it's a predecessor or Tampax) from Photoplay
http://www.shopbluemagnolia.com/images/san01.jpg
http://www.shopbluemagnolia.com/images/san02.jpg
And from the Winter 38/39 Montgomery Ward's Catalog:
http://www.shopbluemagnolia.com/images/san05.jpg

[AtomicBlonde]

The tampon concept has been around for quite a while! Something very similar to the tampon was available in the 19th century too. Sponges were used, or strips of a cloth, like huck towel were often rolled up, then basted together with a string tied around the end. After use, the basting stitches could be removed so the cloth could be washed. I'm sure this method was used into the 20th century, especially in more rural areas.

[swankysister]

Lauren, your last photo shows a Tass-ette which looks just like The Keeper.

I guess the Ancient Egyptians were using pulped papyrus like a tampon, so tampons would have come and gone through history! :)

[olive bleu]

jumping in late on this one, but my lord, could not resist. I remember my mother having a belt in the old washstand in the bathroom.I used to keep trying to steal it to use as some contraption for my dolls:) It was years before i understood why she didn't want me dragging that thing around the house!

When I got my first visit from "Aunt Ruby" my mother pulled out the kotex and got me to wear them without the belt. This might sound like a blessing, but they had no adhesive so they keep trying to fly out of my panties.lol I grew up in an EXTREMELY remote area & at the time that was all that was available... imagine my delight when i discovered that you could actually get pads that stuck on.

p.s. I was born in '66, so I'm not even THAT old!!:rolleyes:

[Miss_Bella_Hell]

Don't read the following if you're squeamish or not wanting to learn about womanly menstrual habits (visiting gents, you've been warned, so no complaints!)

The belt with disposable napkins were still around in the very early 1980s. The metal 'buckles' dig in and the napkin shifts. Really not worth trying even if they're available.

Rad Pads (http://www.radpads.com.au/) and Moon Pads (http://www.keeper.com.au/moon.html) are made from a terry towelling cloth insert and a soft cotton 'holder' that's shaped like modern wing pad (the wings connect together outside your undies with a press stud). You need to have about half a dozen, so they can be washed and worn regularly during your cycle. I did find that they tended to shift around a fair bit, which wasn't good for feeling secure. And they're not reliable for heavy flows.

Sorry if that's more information than you really wanted, but I hope it's of use to some lady somewhere. :o


OMG I love the testimonials on the sites above, the hippy talk cracks me up:

"At first I used Rad-Pads just at night, or at home, now I use them exclusively. As I became in touch with my earthy woman I realised I don’t want to do much when I’m in my moon-time. I’ve organised my life around these needs and needless to say I now experience a joy-filled, complication free, intuitive bleeding time. I made myself a little moon bag to put my Rad-Pads in, and I love getting it out and caring for my special items. The menstrual blood goes on the herbs, and the washed pads flutter on the line with pride."

[RaasAlHayya]

I saw the Luna Pads site a while back and thought they were really really cute.

Tampons were indeed used by ladies in ancient Egypt. I can't remember whether the Egyptologist who gave the lecture (Medicine in Ancient Egypt) mentioned what fiber was used. Linen would be my guess.

After trying "Instead", I am pretty sure I want a Luna Cup/Diva Cup/Keeper.

--Leslie

[Tourbillion]

I was issued a sanitary napkin belt compliments of Kotex in school as part of sex ed, this would have been around 1980. I took on look at it and said, right, I am so going to use the stick-on ones. All the same I might still have a belt somewhere around here, not sure where. I am not in a hurry to find it and use it.

If you put a quarter in the machine at my work, you still get belted pads and two safety pins (well last time I checked). So, I guess in theory that I could try them with the belt, but nah, I'll pass.

A friend of mine uses the Keeper and the washable pads. I was thinking that they would be a good idea, but the pads aren't waterproof. Plus I am not taking those things to the laundromat.

I'm am just waiting for menopause. ;)

[crystalface]

I would hazard a guess, that if you go far enough back, you'd find that women were not too active at certain times of the month. No doubt because they dealt with cramps AND messy contraptions that didn't really lend themselves to activity.

I think they were told they were at greater risk for disease/injury at that time of the month, too. Has anyone else ever heard that?

Now, having 3-5 days every month to "rest"---that vintage idea just might catch on!!
The vibrator was invented by physicians so men wouldn't have to sleep with their wives while suffering from their monthly bout of "hysteria." (hysteria meaning menstruation of course.)
lol
The point being that, I'm sure your guess is correct. My grandma used to tell me (when I was 12) not take hot showers during my time of the month because they made you bleed more. I never found that to be true. [huh]

[GOK]

Wow, my nanny used to tell me not to wash my hair during a period. Mind you, she also told me never to go outdoors with wet hair or I'd get a cold! And I was in my twenties before she stopped asking me if I had my vest on (that's vest as in something that goes under the clothing, not a waistcoat!).

That hippy quote is priceless; I had this look on my face as I read it :eek:
Heheh! I've seen similar about Mooncups (Keepers/DivaCups)...with the contents being "given back to Mother Earth". Ewwwww.

I've been using a Mooncup for around a year and have never had any problems. Since I get dehydrated easily, I always have a bottle of water with me anyway, so using public loos with no sink in the cubicle is not a problem. It doesn't hurt at all to use (although you do have to make sure the stem is trimmed) and it doesn't leak - even on very heavy days. It also helps with cramps because the flow is expelled naturally using gravity, as opposed to being 'wicked' out as with tampons. When wearing a tampon, the uterine muscles have to contract harder to expel the menses. (Of course, users of towels wouldn't notice any difference.)

Kim B posted this thread relating to vintage adverts - there are scores for sanitary products. Quite amusing, some of them!

http://www.thefedoralounge.com/showthread.php?t=13203

I agree with the comments about not sitting around bemoaning the cramps - I find that good old fashioned physical labour helps immensely! I imagine that for most of our foremothers, they simply didn't have the option of 'indulging' their cramps - there was work to do and it had to be done. No point in moaning about it. Also, it's possible that some women just didn't get them. I didn't know what period pains were like until I was sterilised after the birth of my youngest son. The first visit I had from Auntie Flo afterward sent me running to my doctor, convinced there was something wrong with me! She smiled and told me it was perfectly normal. Not for me it wasn't! :mad:

[Elaina]

A friend of mine from HS is amish (we've been friends for so long even her community doesn't look askance at me anymore when I go over) and they use the the washable kinds of pads, but the pattern she gave me uses industrial strength velcro to keep the "wings" in place pretty secure. I've got a couple for emergencies, and to be honest, I don't have all the chaffing I do with purchased ones, BUT I'm not going trough all that trouble every time I have my menses. I'm going to keep wearing my tampons. I really don't care if I'm period correct, but there is NO way I'm going back to the diaper like pads or the cadboard applicators that aren't rounded.

I know that Davita isn't allowed to go outside of her house (they have a working farm) because of the animals during her time. They don't like her to have visitors either during that time. When she had her daughter (by a midwife, at home with no hospital) she was kept in seclusion for 6 weeks. She came early and I went over there to make the clothing (and fix her machine since he treadle got out of whack about the same time Davie got too ill to do much) for the baby, and it was more backwards then just the 30's and 40's. But unlike now when we have babies, go to the hospital, and have to take care of them several hours after giving birth, or too crampy to do anything more then groan the amish DO help each other when they're indisposed like that.

[DancingSweetie]

In the late 70's when I had my first period my mom bought me one of those belts but it was used with disposable pads. I only used it a short while and went to the self stick kind right away.

[pigeon toe]

I actually use a pretty vintage method of dealing with my time of the month! At night, and when I'm lounging at home (they are a little too bulky to wear with regular clothes), I use cloth pads made from flannel and terry cloth. Ladies used to make their own cloth pads way back in the day before menstrual products were manufactured.

They are re-usable and you just rinse them in the sink, then toss them in the laundry. They have a little flannel cover with terry inserts, and the cover snaps around your underwear, kind of like those pads with wings. They are very comfortable, very good for you (free of plastics and dioxin!) and environmentally friendly.

If you ladies want any links for cloth pads or other alternative menstural products (like the keeper or unbleached tampons/pads), let me know!

[pigeon toe]

A friend of mine from HS is amish (we've been friends for so long even her community doesn't look askance at me anymore when I go over) and they use the the washable kinds of pads, but the pattern she gave me uses industrial strength velcro to keep the "wings" in place pretty secure. I've got a couple for emergencies, and to be honest, I don't have all the chaffing I do with purchased ones, BUT I'm not going trough all that trouble every time I have my menses. I'm going to keep wearing my tampons. I really don't care if I'm period correct, but there is NO way I'm going back to the diaper like pads or the cadboard applicators that aren't rounded.


Oops, I should've read your post all the way through before I posted mine! I don't use my cloth pads all the time either, so when I don't I try to use the brand "Natracare" pads. I'm not really a fan of tampons, but they make unbleached tampons as well. The pads are made from unbleached cotton and no platics, so they are very breathable and reduce chaffing quite a bit. Plus, because they aren't bleached, there's no dioxin involved, which is a byproduct of bleaching that may cause cancer.

You should check em out! You can usually find it at organic style grocery stores, like Whole Foods, but sometimes even regular markets carry Natracare.

[Elaina]

LOL! I just got back from Whole Foods. One of the products I needed to get was the topic in question. I'm having all kinds of all kinds of health issues that's women related.

I think we're talking about roughly the same product to be honest. I haven't even gotten mine out of stroage it's been so long since I even needed to look at them, much less USE the non-disposable napkins.

[Miss_Bella_Hell]

I do like the idea of unbleached cotton tampons. I have been purchasing all organic soaps and face washes lately at Trader Joe's (cheap!), and noticed they have what appear to be organic tampons. I shall have to check them out.

Because if you think about it...do you really want BLEACH...in that area? I don't really care to risk it!

[Tabitha]

Sorry I just had to jump in. Here is a link that is helpful for finding out information about cloth pads. http://community.livejournal.com/cloth_pads/
They may not be "vintage" but they have some interesting health information for why a woman should consider using cloth pads. I have bought pads from http://www.saucytots.com/catalog.php?category=49 and been very happy with them. I do not use a belt, but using cloth pads still gives me a vintage "feel" to my monthly!

[BegintheBeguine]

Love your pic, Tabitha. And your name. Welcome.

[Tabitha]

Thank you! I have been lurking for a long time. I love this forum. I have gotten such great tips. Everyone is so nice and informative. I won't be so "quiet" in the future! :)

[Brooksie]

Usual daily activities with one notable exception...my friend/room-mate (who is in her late 70s, a typical middle-class American) mentioned recently that she was raised to never bathe or wash her hair during "that time of the month"... one tradition I hope never comes back into fashion. :eek:

My Mom is in her mid 70's and she was told not to bathe or wash her hair durring that time of the month, when my Mom was a teenager if she complained about having cramps - my grandma told her to stick her hands in the warm dish water & do the dishes, that it would help... but it was just a ploy to get her to do dishes. I am lucky I never have cramps because I am sure if I did my Mom would have told me to get my hands in the dish water also.

Brooksie

[crystalface]

My grandma also thought you couldn't be a virgin to use tampons. When I was 13 and she found out I used tampons, she got this exact look :eek:
She said, "But aren't those dangerous? Won't they break your hymen?"
(Sorry to be so graphic, but those are pretty much her exact words!)

She too also told me not to go out with wet hair.Finally explained that colds are a virus. (it was very ridiculous for her to be saying this at all in the first place, because we used to live in Hawaii. It's 75 F at night.)

[Elaina]

Now when I was a virgin, tampoms were so uncomfortable to use I usually only did so on weekends when I was out.

My mom is progressive. I was such a tom boy that I borke my own hymen falling off a bike (the hard way on the old girl's bike. Fell off the seat onto that little bar and knees around head waddled until I fell over) when I was 10. My mom had explained it to me before that so tampons were not a huge issue here.

Aspirin as birth control got me into trouble, which was my preferred method of BC in HS.

[Sunny]

I agree with the comments about not sitting around bemoaning the cramps - I find that good old fashioned physical labour helps immensely!
I definitely agree with that! I've been the most miserable on jobs when I had to stand - cashiering, or cutting fabric. On the other hand, I remember once I had to help my father cut down a tree. Since he handled the chainsaw, my job was trundling to and fro carrying logs and branches. That gentle but very constant exercise not only didn't make the cramps worse, it actually felt good.