Starting Over at 38!
A confession: I haven’t had my period for almost 2 years. Between a pregnancy and nursing, it’s been strangely absent for a person who sells menstrual products for a living. But just the other day when I was doing some sewing (my favourite hobby - a happy coincidence, it strikes me) danged if I didn’t get that funny sinking kind of feeling and there was my period, simple as that. The funny thing is that I happened to have not only a Lunapad (a long pantyliner that I had taken home to wash and dry to test shrinkage), but also a pair of deluxe Lunapanties (working on some R&D for fit in this case) with me – hooray!
So now 3 days of serious menstruating later, I am happy to say that Lunapads rock! I have used my entire collection, plus helped myself to a few goodies that I hadn’t tried before (mini wing liners and the aforementioned long pantyliner) and it feels great. Not that I was feeling like a total fraud in my period-free state, considering that I had been a Lunapads-only type for, gosh – 12 years prior to that, but it did feel a bit odd from time to time. The other crazy thing is that prior to getting pregnant my period had been kind of decreasing over the years, but now post-baby it’s back in a major way, and my Lunapads (some of which are rather vintage) have stood up to the test. My pride in the products is renewed, and I have also discovered some new applications. For example: long pantyliners, a product that I never would previously have considered myself a candidate for, turn out to be my new overnight product of choice. I don’t bleed a lot at night so don’t want a lot of pad, but what with rolling around a bit – well, they’re just the ticket. It’s kind of like discovering a new talent in an old friend – fun!
Anyone else out there want to share their story about their “second menarche”?
June 29th, 2006 at 3:36 pm
Being pregnant again, I’m period free. But I do distinctly remember the joy of getting my period back after my similar 2.5 year hiatus from my first pregnancy and nursing. First because it meant I could try to get pregnant again. Second, and rather surprisingly, I really missed the magic of having something that seemed to ground me every month… I missed having my hormones do their thing and feeling all the raw emotions of being premenstrual… you know, those days where you are kinda on edge, or feeling creative or sombre?
July 1st, 2006 at 9:25 am
I haven’t had a baby or anything like that, but the closest thing I can relate to, with regards to having a “second menarche” would be the last 6 months I’ve been off of hormonal birth control. In December I ditched the hormones in favor of a hormone-free copper IUD, and since then, the hormones have faded, and I am getting true periods, and loving it, even if they aren’t always on time like clockwork.
July 17th, 2006 at 5:39 pm
I have only discovered Lunapads in the past year. I feel so cheated that I never discovered them earlier. I am 36 with 5 children and I use the mini’s every day to stay dry from occasional sneezes! LOL and from just general vaginal omissions. I am lost without them. The other day I realized all my lunapads were in the laundry and I wore my knickers with no mini and I felt naked! LOL
I have found that during my period the regular maxis with 2 liners work best. If you get all black you never have to worry about staining!
God bless the makers of Lunapads!!!!!!!
October 13th, 2006 at 5:24 pm
I have just started my period again after almost 2 1/2 years of pregnancy/lactional amenorrhea. I am excited about the return of my fertility, as I am strongly desiring to have another baby. But I am enjoying using cloth pads for the very first time. I’ve been trying some from different companies, but I think I’m gonna like Lunapads the best! That said, it is kind of weird having a period again after going SO LONG without one. It really is like “starting” all over again.