Period Panties...The Where We Are At With Pandemic Edition

I can't believe I have gotten to the point of this pandemic, where I am talking about this. But yet, here we are!

So time for some TMI, but I have always had really heavy periods. Okay, I take that back, the first two days are really heavy and then I pretty much have a normal light flow for about three days after that. I used tampons, because it seemed to be the normal young girl thing to do, but honestly, I have always hated them. My body seemed to reject them and I probably should have just been smarter and looked for alternative options. When I got pregnant with EV and was in the hospital early, I was told that pads were the way to go, since the bleeding could be a lot heavier than my normal. Since I had so much time on my hands being holed up in a hospital with a whole lot of Property Brothers (not too shabby really) and writing a dissertation can get really exhausting, I began to just do a mind purge with mama blogs. Soooooo many good ones and it is pretty easy to go down the rabbit hole of "essentials".

Although I was far past the "packing of the hospital bag" stage, there was one mama blog that showcased the Always Period Panties as what she took to the hospital with her sans pads. We had a Target across from the hospital so you best believe that I sent Hubs to Target to scoop these up (and snacks). I do not ever take for granted that I have a partner that never side-eyes me when I ask him to grab me feminine products (am I aging myself using this term). I loved the idea of not having to shift and readjust a pad and just being able to wear one thing (panties and a pad all rolled in to one), take them off and throw them away. Because they are so snug, they felt like panties and I didn't have to worry about leaking (are we at the TMI stage yet or has that train already left the station). These were a gamechanger with both kids. Yes, I could understand why these would turn a lot of people off or even gross them out. Having to take them off when in a public bathroom and putting a new pair on (especially if in jeans or pants of any kind), but for someone that had a horrible experience with tampons and pads this was the perfect middle-ground ( a Goldilocks scenario if you will). Plus, I had two C-sections, so having something comfortable on the tummy region was a must. I am sensitive to smell and to fragrance and there is a slight cloying baby powder smell, but nothing too offensive and honestly, I had these in the hospital with me, so if anything, the smell reminds me of being pregnant.

Even after my post-partum time came to a close, I still continued to wear these when I had my period. I just felt better knowing that I was fully covered and comfortable. However I will say that after a period (small child giggle) of time that I became more self-conscious by them. By no means are they inconspicuous. They are obviously larger than the traditional pad and will take up a bit of room in your bag/purse. If you were looking to have them a bit more hidden, you would have to have a pretty big cosmetic bag to hide one and I do mean one and not multiple. Not to mention the ones I purchased are a bright peach color so there's that. They 100% look like what they are, so you are kind of forced to take your entire bag with you to the restroom. There is no way to be sneaky and pocket it. At this stage in the game, I shouldn't have cared about these things, but I do...so here we are about to talk about the period pantie game that has taken control of my life.

I have a girlfriend (who will remain nameless) who for the last several years, had sworn up and down by the Thinx underwear. I had always thought that one, there is no way that they did what they intended (especially with my heavy flow) and two, that they were worth the price ($40-$60 a pair just seemed really steep for something I wasn't a 100% would work). During the pandemic Busy Phillips had begun preaching about The Period Company (Period.) on her Instagram. I love me some Busy Phillips so I checked them out and saw that the stylist Kara Welch had designed them and they they came in both teen and adult sizes. Looking back, I should have done a better job of looking into the sizes, but I went with my typical Target size (should've sized down). I thought for $14 where can I go wrong and if I hate them, I hate them. I did buy two as I wanted to make sure I had enough for the day or at least half a day and then I could interchange.

First and foremost, they are comfortable and had I paid better attention they would have fit better (I did leak). Even with the comfiness factor, in the long run, I also feel that this had to with the fabric because I think even with the slightly larger size for what they should do, they should be a bit more snug/fitting. Especially since the waist area fit perfectly, but where the pad is to the thigh, there is a slight gap (hence the leak). I also felt that these were more for my third and fourth day. Also, these felt like period panties. They had a really heavy pad inserted and it felt like it as well as looked it. Again, because it is cotton underwear it is comfortable, but I didn't feel that there wasn't much difference between these and the Always and the Always fit better. Also if these were going to be third and fourth days (towards my end), these are kind of heavy feeling for that. However, for the price point, I did feel that it was a good way to jump in, without spending a lot of money and figuring out if this was something I wanted to continue with.

For reference, I also added the Always (right).

Some things to keep in mind with period panties is that when you go to change them, you have to rinse them. Obviously this is going to turn a lot of individuals off from buying them as between the image and the iron smell, it just might be too much (hell, the TMI I am providing here might be too much). This might also mean that you will have to keep a wet bag in your purse and a clean pair to change into. I always carry a wet bag on me regardless because #momlife (I buy multiples in the Bullseye spot in Target during Summertime...if you know me, you know they are essential). Not carrying an extra pair with you, means that you have to time everything really well so that accidents don't occur (running errands, dinner, a day at Disney, etc.). I suppose you could always have an extra tampon with you, but then it kind of defeats the purpose, but to each their own.

Washing instructions; I rinse them until the water runs clear (I wring as I am rinsing), I immediately put them into a laundry mesh bag and hopefully have other things to wash so I am just not washing one thing (if I am just washing the panties it is no big deal, it is important to immediately wash once rinsed), I wash them as I would any piece of laundry or lingerie and then I hang dry them. A nice thing about having a mesh bag (I wash a lot of things this way FYI) is that I can pick it out of the laundry and immediately hang them and everything else can potentially go in the dryer.

Also to consider is if you are not used to "free flowing" into a pair of underwear the first couple times can feel really different and most likely not something you will look forward to experiencing again. I had already gone through an "acclimation" period because of the Always, so acclimating to 'panties' wasn't much of a stretch. However, because the underwear was black, my learning curve was making sure I wasn't going over three hours and checking to see if I should rotate. I feel that the first time should be done somewhere that you are comfortable so you can gauge everything out. How is that for a visual?! Have you abandoned ship yet?

At this point I was all in and started down the rabbit hole of researching other highly rated period panties. I mean I have come this far right!? Might as well do some deep diving research....this pandemic really needs to be over...also, those poor poor people whose job it is to track my Google searches :/.

The second pair I bought was from BamBody and I ordered these on Amazon. BamBody's were a lot more of what I was looking for. They fit like actual panties, it did not feel like I was wearing a pad between my legs, there was not a lot of extra material, (they looked like regular panties underneath jeans) and they hugged to the booty avoiding extra leakage. I do feel that although slimmer in fabric, they "held" a lot more than the Period Company. Similar to the Period Company, I did not feel as if they were a first day period panty either. I would venture to say that these were either mid my second day or the end of the second day. However, I was still really impressed and of the two, these were my favorite.

I actually "suggested" to the Hubs, that these would make great stocking stuffers so I now own about four of these. You would NEVER know these were period panties which is my favorite part, so if I had extra in our diaper bag or even in my purse I wouldn't think twice about anyone seeing them accidentally. Yes, they look more "active" with the band, but they are a lower fit, so unless you are still wearing low-cut jeans (no shame, but #pandemic) I do not believe you would see the band, but I am also a high waisted shorts girl anyway. I bought these in the same size in my normal, but not Target normal (XS) and they fit true to size. These are the same price of around $14-$15 (you can grab packs of 2 and 3 for less), so with these being more comfortable, less leakage and feeling and looking more like a traditional panty, I would go with these any day of the week.

So now here became my dilemna. I had all my days covered, with the exception of the first and potentially the second and honestly, I began caring about covering these days more than I wanted too. Originally, my thought was just to wear the Always these days, but I found myself really enjoying the period panties (who am a I). So here is where I took a left turn at Albuquerque. All that time I was researching comparable period panties so that I could find equivalent quality at a lower price point so that I did not have to spend the money on Thinx and instead buy several pairs for the one pair of Thinx. What did I end up doing?! Going back to the Thinx website.

Here is what I liked; there were MANY options, many styles and all were listed by the type of flow your periods were or what you needed. Much like the Period Company, I like that they had teen options. I will say, they were pretty on point with their "flowchart" (I said it and I do not regret it one bit, I have been dying to use the term since I started this blog post). I also loved that these were actual "pretty panties". Often times we can feel bloated or gross during our periods, so I liked that there was something that you could feel good putting on. The sizes were definitely true to size and the quality was amazing. I felt the panties that were high-waisted were true to what was shown on the website and they were not tight on the middle so that you had to shift them around to be comfortable on your stomach. I am a fan of high-waisted anything, so the panties were perfect and the mesh on THIS pair were buttery soft and the quality was fantastic. I did not feel that this was going to be the type of mesh that snagged on one little thing and would be destroyed.

Check out my little helpers adorable little feet!!

Apparently I couldn't be concerned with picking up the other pair.

So here is the real question, are they worth the price?! It pains me to say so, but a 100%. They do offer an AfterPay option which I know is not everyone's bag, but it is there if you feel better about it. These were definitely more on par with panties you would buy from Target or a higher end brand and they feel like it too. Definitely more "luxury", if you can say that about a period panty. Also, these panties were a 100% a first day, second day panty, so if I put them on at 8am, I was changing by 3 or 4pm which is pretty incredible. I purchased THIS and THIS pair. My love of these were so strong that I also purchased the sleep shorts and these REALLY hold up to what they are supposed to do. Just remember that they are in every word a sleep short (think men's boxers) so they are not intended for under clothes, unless you are thinking a flowy skirt. If I was wearing a large t-shirt and just these shorts (they hang longer than boy briefs), I could really wear these all day (maybe not to answer the door in) and feel comfortable and confident.

At the end of the day, do I think you could just buy a bunch of BamBody versions and be satisfied?! Absolutely. But if you are looking for something that is a little more feminine and you are more of a heavy flow kind of person, you will not go wrong with these. If you were just to get one pair, I would invest in the sleep shorts as they are for the heaviest of flow days and are the most versatile for wear (sleep and lounging around the house).

Anyone else been on the period panty train?! Thoughts?! Yay or Nay?!