A question for Mothers with daughters in puberty

[Dallas_Lady]

Originally posted by FOJMO
I stopped when a friend of a friend of mine died from toxic shock syndrome, caused by leaving the tampon in too long!

I am really sorry to hear about your friend, but I quoted this to illustrate the fact that TSS is overwhelmingly brought on by leaving them in too long (most often days at a time.) Your body needs to get rid of the mentrual waste and if you leave them in too long you can experience and toxic reaction to it (hence the name). A similar thing happens to people who aren't able to expel urine/feses.

So, if you are changing tampons regualrly (every 6-8 hours) you virtually eliminate the risk for TSS.

 

[KathiWithAnI]

I'm with jel0511... my daughter is only 4 and I'm reading all of this thinking... gee I never thought of that! I have 3 boys and then a girl.. so I haven't had to 'deal' with this yet!

I HATED pads and thought they were gross.. I wanted anything that got rid of pads! LOL

I didn't start until I was 13 though,,,, I remember asking mom for a tampon and she just gave my one of hers.. they were ummmm , NOT slender... I'm yelling from the bathroom... "hey mom, you didn't tell me I was going to have to stuff an elephant's foot up here!!!"
She went out and bought me the 'right' size!


ok, I'm blushing now.....

kathi

 

[Mermaid02]

"hey mom, you didn't tell me I was going to have to stuff an elephant's foot up here!!!"

ROTFLMAO!

My dd is 13 and has such a heavy flow she doesn't really have a choice.... tampons and maxi's are a must around here.

 

[Music Mole]

I found a bottle of olive oil in the cabinet and what I ended up doing (I don't know of this is a good idea, but it worked) was putting a bit of oil on the tip of the applicator and I was able to get it in easily.

Necessity is the mother of invention! For anyone thinking along those lines for their daughter, the same effect could be achieved with KY Jelly.

 

[DebbieB]

My mother never used them, so she never brought it up for me. I think I brought it up once and she said no. When I was about 17 or 18, I saw an ad in a magazine to get a sample pack from Kotex. I sent it in and they came in the mail. I figured it out from the instructions.

I started when I was 10 and I'm now 43. A friend of mine and I always kid around that we would like to go in for a voluntary hysterectomy! My Mom started menopause at 48, I'm hoping I follow her. My luck I'll be 58!

 

[deirdrefitch]

I have boys, and I though I had escaped this little expedition in life. NOT! My niece was having a hard time getting used to the new things happening to her body. From the very first time she has had severe cramps. She is very active, and on the go constantly. My sister tried to explain tampons to her when she was eleven, but my niece would not have any part of it. I talked to a friend of mine that has girls, and she told me her gyn told her to start out with the slender/light O.B. tampons because they do not have an applicator. That these are easier to position, and pretty much go into the correct area without much fuss. I bought
a box, tried them myself so I could explain to my niece how it would feel. When she came over I explained her mother's concerns as well as my own. I told her about my friend's daughter, and what the Dr told her. I showed her the OB, and actually opened one up so she could look at them. I then took a glass of water, and dropped one in to show her how they work.
She was more afraid that there was going to be pain associated with the application process, that they could get lost inside her,
and how would she know is she did it right. I explained that she may feel an uncomforable feeling at first, but that this would go away in time. Also, that a woman's body is made so objects can not go way up inside of her and get lost. Also, that if if was in corectly, she would not be able to feel it inside, and that the string would still be visible. She thanked me for talking with her, because as much as she loves her mom, she was embarrassed about talking about the tampons because of the fact that they go inside her anatomy. Pad were much less of an issue, like panties.
My niece took the box home with her, and there was no more talk about the subject. Basically, it was up to her to decide. A month later she went to my sister, and explained on the next shopping trip she would need a new box. My sister called delighted. We made it through the minefield. I just thought I was going to miss the little visiter in my life without girls.

 

[luvflorida]

My daughter had her first period two days before her 12th birthday then didn't have another period for five months. She's only had three or four periods, (she'll turn 13 this summer), and she's tried using tampons a couple of times but just can't get the hang of it. The first time she tried, she ended up crying and getting frustrated because she thought it would be really easy to do but she just couldn't do it. Whenever I bring the subject up, she says it makes her queasy and she doesn't want to talk about it, so I haven't pushed the issue at all. I figured she would try again when she was ready. Just a few days ago, she was reading a teen magazine and there was an advertisement for a new Tampax product called, Tampax Compak. She showed me the ad and said she wanted to buy some and try again. The next time we went shopping we bought several boxes, (found them at Target). She hasn't tried them yet, so I don't know if she'll find them easier to insert or not. They look easier to use. The applicator is much smaller than on the regular Tampax and it's made out of light plastic instead of cardboard. The packages we found include four boxes, only one of which is teh slender size. I don't know if they sell only slender ones separate- Target didn't have any like that. Anyway, maybe this new product will be easier for young girls to start out with.