Working in the heat during my period- without tampons.

[iwontbebacksoon.livejournal.com]

The hands of the menstruation gods are heavy upon you.


Okay, so here is the deal.


I'm Sarah, 15, and I am due for my period sometime soon (not sure quite when, but soon). The problem is that I am going on a trip to New Orleans this Friday, for almost 10 days. I do not wear tampons (can't get them to feel good and fit properly). The bus ride from Indiana will take us a couple of days, which will be brutal if I'm on the P then. It would be just as bad or worse if I was heavy during the trip. We will be working for fourish hours each day just tearing down and gutting houses, and then after a shower we will be playing with some of the kids from the housing projects. The group that went last year told us that our clothes will be completely drenched in sweat by about a half hour of work. I have heavy bleeding and horrible horrible cramps, as well as INTENSE fatigue. I know that stress can mess with your period, and I have a lot of stuff weighing on me right now, but stress hasn't made much of a difference in the past.

My quandry- I need to either make this baby happen right now so I can have it handled before the trip, or I must fight it hard to make it bearable and as out-of-the-way as possible. Taking Midol will help, except that there are no bathrooms on sight, and I think Midol makes me pee more than I already do. What about herbs? What can I do right now that will help me later on? Can I induce my period?

And, one more thing. I am a very sweaty person (I am going to go to my doc about this- it is not normal, deodorant isn't very effective for me- I've tried everything). I know that everyone will be sweaty during the work time, but when we first tour New Orleans, and when we are just hanging out, is there anything I can do now or then that will help me to sweat less or smell better?

Please help. This is a post constructed poorly and out of haste, but I think this trip will be miserable unless some of you have some helpful things to tell me. I cannot express enough gratitude to those of you who will respond. Your fellow female needs some help.

Comments

[rearrangedfaith.livejournal.com]

try secret's clinical strength deoderant.

i don't really have an overactive sweat life, but i tend to not shower every day, and one application lasts 2-3 days depending on what i do (2 days if i go out in the sun a lot).

an instructor i once had said, for sweaty palms, to use alcohol swabs right before an interview.. it might help with armpits, but i'm not entirely sure.

and i have no advice about the first part, sorry. :(

[iwontbebacksoon.livejournal.com]

I have tried that... and it didn't work. Thankyou, anyway.

[whoa-breathe.livejournal.com]

Certain Dri will change your life! With me, it has entirely stopped under arm sweating if applied regularly, and if I wear a normal deodorant daily. When I have been slacking about applying it regularly I will start to sweat but it won't smell! That's when I know it's time to apply more.

It stings when you apply it, and will stain your shirt, so wear something old to bed (you apply it at night). Walgreen's offers a generic version that has the same ingredients for a less expensive price.

Go here to read about it: http://www.certaindri.com/

Kudos on volunteering for such a great thing!

[iwontbebacksoon.livejournal.com]

I tried that awhile back, and it worked, but I slacked too. Last time I tried it it didnt work, but I'll try again. Do you think the fact that it is now pretty old will have any effect on the effectiveness of it?

[ellafont.livejournal.com]

Yes, buy a new thing of it if it's more than about a year old. I thought it wasn't working for me anymore, but I just needed to get a new bottle of it.

[whoa-breathe.livejournal.com]

Actually, yeah...when mine gets old...as in more than a couple months old, it does stop working and I have to buy a new bottle. My first clue that I need to replace is when it doesn't sting when I apply it. :P

[iwontbebacksoon.livejournal.com]

Good, nice to know- I will buy some more tomorrow... along with some parsley.

[vikkiness.livejournal.com]

I used that & it definitely didn't work, if you sweat a lot, try botox!

[t3h-b3th.livejournal.com]

i was about to suggest Certain Dri. That stuff is AMAZING, and I sweat more than anyone I know. I've tried that Secret Clinical stuff and i think it's a crock.

[iwontbebacksoon.livejournal.com]

Secret Clinical is far from a good thing for me. I sweat a lot, too.

[whoa-breathe.livejournal.com]

Secret has failed me...every time they launch a new product I try it because I am sucked in by the advertising claiming it is SO much stronger than the last one...doesn't even compare to Arid or Mitchum when it comes to the regular deodorants though.

[meshisseky.livejournal.com]

Personally, the Secret Clinical stuff is the only deodorant that has worked for me. Both Certain Dri and Mitchum hardly did anything, but I sweat sooo much less with the new Secret.

[electric-colors.livejournal.com]

You could try to incude your period with parsley tea. There are instructions how in the memories of bloodmoonherbs I think.

I went to New Orleans on Spring Break to do relief work and it was life-changing. I want to go back, but I can't afford to at the moment.

[iwontbebacksoon.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I am really looking forward to it, but I am also worried. I still have to raise about 300 bucks, and I don't know how I'm going to do it.

What was the organization you went through? I am going with Urban Impact.

[electric-colors.livejournal.com]

We had about 60 students broken into several groups. Our group kind of got screwed and we didn't have one, but Our Lady La Vang church let us stay there and we did stuff with them as well as Common Ground. Other groups were with Hands On, Operation Reach, and UMCOR.

[iwontbebacksoon.livejournal.com]

That will be similar to my trip, but we will be staying in a house with Castle Rock Community Church. It will be hard work, but I'm getting really excited.

[vikkiness.livejournal.com]

Have you tried cups? I don't know what they're called, I just call them vagina cups, but my friend uses them. Hopefully someone who reads this can help you answer.

Are you over weight? You may be sweating so much because of it.

I get Botox treatment on my underarms for sweating. It's called hyperhydrosis & I have it. I take cold showers, I used prescription stregth treatment at night, used a deoderant my sisters boyfriend suggested that he used while in football, & nothing works. I highly reccoment getting Botox, your insurance should approve it.

[iwontbebacksoon.livejournal.com]

Botox is probably a good idea. I have considered this. Did you consider the nerve surgery?

[vikkiness.livejournal.com]

That leaves scarring, so hell no. I would try the Botox first, it's a very odd pain since there's nothing to compare it too, but effective.

[iwontbebacksoon.livejournal.com]

What is the procedure like? How long does it last? Is the pain from the needles or from the botox itself and how long does the pain last?

[vikkiness.livejournal.com]

A friend of mine does it. [Well, he's a dermatologist] & what he does is fills 20 or 23 gauge needles with 50miligrams of botox each [4 totaly], then he injects it into the surface of the skin. Before the precedure, to clarify where the problem is, they swap your underarm in iodine, then put cornstarch over it. Your sweat will turn black. [cool shit right? its like an at home experiment, haha.] They will put it most into problem areas, I'm guessing it hurts more because of the needle? But it hurts because of where nerves are placed. He has had it done & since I know him we just kind of talk while he's doing it. Some of them don't hurt AT ALL while others you're just like MOTHER SHIT FUoh its done. haha. hope I answered all your Q's. The pain lasts for the second that the needle is hitting the nerve. & How long does what last?

[conflictgirl.livejournal.com]

If all else fails, try advil/ibuprofen. I have very heavy bleeding early in my cycle and my nurse-midwife told me that ibuprofen slows down the flow a bit. I've tried and it does work - it's not like a miracle or anything, but it will slow it down a little. Helps the cramps too!

[iwontbebacksoon.livejournal.com]

Always a good choice. Man, I use like 4 pills every 4 hours when I'm on it.

[plasticpepper.livejournal.com]

Well, parsley tea can help induce a period. This post (http://community.livejournal.com/menstrualhut/348753.html) has got a ton of information about that.

I'm currently trying to do the same thing...I'm going to Bonnaroo and I'm frantically trying to induce my period before then because OMG I do not want to deal with that in a tent with guys and where I'm using public showers and portapotties. Oh god.

I don't really know what to tell you as far as how to handle it if it does happen, but the best I can say is to keep in mind that mathematically, probably 1/4 of the girls there will be dealing with it too, so it's nothing you should feel bad about if you have to run to the bathroom kinda often or whatever.

Anyway, good luck, I really hope you can work it out so it doesn't happen on your trip, and I hope I can too! =P

[iwontbebacksoon.livejournal.com]

Man, I want to go to Bonnaroo sometime in my life.

I just drank some basil and oregano tea, but tomorrow I will do the parsley, too.

Thankyou!

[chaos-unbound.livejournal.com]

menstrual_cups is a wonderful community about just that. The info page has links to 5 different types of cups, too.

[iwontbebacksoon.livejournal.com]

Thanks. I've heard of these before, but they have always intimidated me before.

[mangofandango.livejournal.com]

They can be intimidating at first, but once you get the hang of it, they really aren't so scary. :) If you had more time before your trip, I would recommend getting a Diva Cup and practicing with it a bit before you go. But unless you have a health food store or something near you that might carry Divas, that probably won't work for you since you're leaving on Friday. Might be something to consider for the future, though!

[superjen.livejournal.com]

but, at a local cvs, she can get the instead soft cups, which are a different type of menstrual cup but do basically the same thing.

[elettaria.livejournal.com]

There's a much lower satisfaction rate with the Instead cups, though. It seems that most women give up on them due to discomfort and/or leaks. Reusable cups are almost universally adored by anyone who tried them, but unfortunately there's a bit of a learning curve, it generally take a good few tries (often a few cycles) to get the hang of it.

[superjen.livejournal.com]

you have spoken the truth. however, for a temporary solution with a very heavy period in a hot climate (where tampons are a no go), it seems the insteads might be worth a try. i know that i tried those before the diva, and i've found those easier to use (for my body) than the diva with its infernal stem.

[girlindenim.livejournal.com]

I sweat so much too. I tend to wear only black shirts because of it. :(

I got a prescription from the doctor though...it's called Drysol. You apply it on your pits and it hurts like hell, but it really gets the job done. It basically blocks your sweat glands. It burns my pits raw so I don't do it very often...only when I want to wear a light colored shirt.

[iwontbebacksoon.livejournal.com]

Certain Dri burns to, so I have to think that it has some of the same things in it. Thanks.

[sand-woman.livejournal.com]

I would ask your doctor for medication to delay your period. I know some people who did that for a holiday and I think it would be fine as a one off. I'm not sure about the other part, but maybe frequent use of a nice talcum powder would help some? If everyone else is sweaty anyway, though, it probably won't be too bad. So long as you wash regularly, fresh sweat doesn't actually smell bad - only old sweat does.

[elettaria.livejournal.com]

This is about the best suggestion. Home remedies such as Vitamin C and parsley tea don't have much evidence backing them up, they only work for some people. Anything the doctor gives you, on the other hand, has a good chance of working, and it's been through proper medical trials.

Make sure you dress in the best fabrics for dealing with sweating. I can't remember what current advice is on those, traditionally I think it's always been natural fabrics such as cotton, but then there are those specialist fabrics you can get for camping and such.

[iwontbebacksoon.livejournal.com]

Thankyou for thanking me. That means a whole whole lot.

[laurensellscorn.livejournal.com]

When I used to have really bad pain (hymen issues) a few years back and couldn't use tampons, it sucked! All my mom bought were those Always pads with the plastic-y cover; that does NOT feel nice on a sweaty ass in the blistering, humid southern california summers! I had assrash for weeks between periods from it.

Solution? Cornstarch-based baby powder, and tons of it. Sprinkle it all over a fresh pad, and it'll dramatically cut back on the yucky sticky sweaty feeling, not to mention smell nice! Mild enough for babies, mild enough for us.

Not directly related to your query, but it was the first thing that popped in my mind when I read "drenched in sweat" and "no tampons". :)