(( VaginaPagina ))

I used to babysit the lovely girl of two dads. One of her parents called me today to tell me that she got her first period. They had prepared for this for a while -- they had pads of various sizes on hand, a small calendar to record her cycle, and had told her why she gets a period before she had one. She's seen diagrams and knows the mechanics of it -- eggs releasing, uterine lining shedding.

Just to clarify, they have already given her the "sex talk." They called me because he thought it would be a good idea to have a woman she was close to on hand to ask questions of. He also asked if I could talk to all three of them about vaginal/vulvar care, as well as other miscellany that has to go along with having a vagina and vulva.

Other info: they will be asking her if she wants them to be there or talk to me separately. If it's the latter, they asked me to pass on to them what I told her so they can become references as well.

Also, she decided herself that she wants to use pads. I let them know unscented was best -- turns out, that's what they have and will be purchasing from now on.

They also said she is very comfortable with her body. They raised her with an "ask and ye shall receive policy;" ever since she was a toddler, if she asked a question about her body they answered honestly, with as much specificity as she was mature enough to handle.

So I thought I would come to you guys to ask what YOU would have liked to know during your period talk. Thus far I have, in no particular order:
1. Homeopathic remedies for yeast infections (I asked and they are in favor of them, and already know a bit about them. "God, my mother hated that store-bought stuff. She called it Moni-shit."), and when to expect them (like after/while you're on antibiotics).
2. What kind of odor and discharge is normal, and what kind indicates that something might be off-balance.
3. They've already told her that hair is normal, but I thought I would reinforce that by repeating it. (Some girl in her sixth grade class got a bikini wax and now she is self-conscious about it.)
4. Hygiene. I talked to her dad about how many options there are. Both her parents did research about hygiene already, which makes sense since vulvas don't magically start needing cleaning as soon as menstruation begins. They said she had only had problems when she used soap on herself, so I will tell her that the vagina is self-cleaning and for her it sounds like it's enough to splash water on it.

I'll also reassure her that if she feels it is not enough later and begins noticing odors that she and her parents can first make sure it is not something like a yeast infection or other medical problem. If she needs products to clean, I directed her parents to find fragrance-free, dye-free soap like Dr. Bronner's baby soap.

Anything ya'll would like to throw in? Also, she's a big bibliophile, so her parents thought having a book on hand would be helpful for her. Any suggestions?

EDIT: Thanks for the help! The talk happens today. Please feel free to keep sharing any helpful tips you might have, in case someone else needs help creating a good talk for a child. I hope this thread becomes a resource for many more people!