Being a Teen (12 page)

Put an
X
on the first day of your period and then on every day till your period ends. The next month, do the same, and, over time, you will be able to see a pattern of how many days you have between periods. The length of your cycle is from the first day of one period to the first day of the next, so if your period starts on a Tuesday and then starts on a Tuesday four weeks later, you have a twenty-eight-day cycle. You can download a menstrual calendar from the Internet to help you keep track of your periods. You will be asked the first day of your last menstrual cycle each time you go to your doctor.

If you get cramps or premenstrual syndrome (PMS), you might also mark that on the calendar so you’ll have a better sense of what to expect.

When you first begin menstruating, your periods will probably be irregular. You might even skip a month completely. Even if your schedule is regular, it can change if you lose or gain a lot of weight, get sick, travel, or exercise a lot.

Over time, though, most women’s cycles become regular. If after six months or so, your periods haven’t settled into a regular schedule of about once a month, check with your doctor.

Menstrual Protection

Most stalls in public women’s bathrooms have a covered box hanging on the side, where you are asked to throw out pads, tampons, or panty liners so they won’t clog the sewer pipes.

Pads

Sanitary pads (also called “napkins”) fit inside the crotch of your underpants. They’re held in place by a piece of adhesive tape that fastens them to the crotch fabric. Some pads have tape just on the back, and others have side wings that also wrap around the crotch to hold them more firmly. You pull off the strip of paper over the tape and press the pad into place. When the pad becomes almost saturated, just pull it off and dispose of it in a garbage.

Some girls like pads because they’re simple to use and quick to change, and with them it is easy to see what’s going on with your flow. They don’t irritate your vagina and won’t cause infection.

Pads come in all sizes, shapes, and widths. They also vary in thickness from “maxi pads,” for heavier flows, to “mini pads,” for lighter flows. Try different types to decide which does the best job for which day and feels the most comfortable.

Tampons

Some girls use both a pad and a tampon during the heaviest days of flow. By the way, using tampons doesn’t make you a nonvirgin! A tampon fits inside the vagina, where it’s held in place by the muscles. It has a string that hangs outside your
body so that you can pull it out. If the string works its way into your vagina, you can use a finger to pull it back down, or you can always use your fingers to pull the tampon out.

Some teenage girls can use tampons as soon as they start
menstruating. They keep you dry, they don’t show under any clothing, and they can be worn while swimming.

Like pads, tampons are made in different thicknesses for heavier and lighter flows, from “junior” to “super plus.” They also come with different types of applicators:

• Cardboard applicator

• Plastic applicator

• Stick applicator

• No applicator—you push in the tampon with your finger.

It’s best at first to use the slimmest tampons and those that are inserted with an applicator—many girls like the plastic ones that have rounded tips.
Try larger tampons, or the type that you push in with your finger, after you get used to them.

How to Insert a Tampon

When you first try a tampon, remove the outer wrapper. Holding it in the middle with your thumb and middle finger, use your forefingers to practice pushing it back and forth through the applicator. Remove the sheet of paper from the box, read the instructions, and look at the diagram. Decide whether you want to try inserting the tampon while sitting on the toilet, standing with one foot on the toilet, or lying down. Most important, be sure to relax!

• Wash your hands thoroughly.

• Never use a tampon with a torn wrapper.

• Make sure that the string hangs outside the bottom of the applicator.

• You might want to put a dab of lubricant, like K-Y jelly or Vaseline, on the tip of the tampon so that it will be easier to slide it into the vagina.

• Use your other hand to find your vaginal opening,
and spread it apart with your fingers. If you need to, look in a hand mirror.

• Take a deep breath, relax, and slide in the tip of the applicator, aiming it at a slight angle toward your back. This will not hurt.

• Guide the applicator into your vagina until your fingers touch your body, then use your forefinger to push on the inner tube until the tampon is all the way into your vagina.

• Pull out the applicator and throw it into the trash.

• Check that the tampon string hangs between your thighs.

• You should not feel the tampon in place. If you do, it’s probably not inserted far enough in. You can either push it farther in with your finger or pull it out and start over with a new tampon.

• Wash your hands again when you’re finished.

• To remove the tampon, just relax and pull it out with the string, and dispose of it in the garbage, not the toilet.

Don’t feel bad if at first it’s hard for you to insert a tampon. And don’t worry if you poke yourself, because you won’t do any damage. Just keep practicing. And by the way, the tampon can’t get lost inside you!

If your flow is light, you’ll want to change the tampon every three to four hours. On heavier days you may need to change a pad or tampon every couple of hours. If your flow is heavy enough that you need to change your pad or tampon
every hour for several hours, or if you have to get up at night to change your pad or tampon, that is too heavy and you should see your family doctor.

If you just can’t insert a tampon no matter how hard you try, see a doctor to find out what’s going on.

Panty Liners

Panty liners, also sometimes called panty shields, are like pads except that they are so much thinner and lighter that you hardly know you’re wearing one. They’re good for those times when

• your flow is light.

• you’re expecting your period to start.

• you wear a tampon and you’re worried that it will leak. Tampons can leak a little even when they’re inserted correctly.

• you’re not sure that your period is over, and you want to feel safe for a day or two afterward.

Liners come in different sizes and shapes with a few types of absorbencies, but they don’t vary as much as pads or tampons.

When to Use What

You don’t have to choose among a pad, a tampon, or a liner. If your flow is very heavy, you can use both a tampon and a pad. If you know that your flow changes a lot from heavy to light, you might want to have a few different types of pads and tampons so you can switch back and forth.

How Often Must You Change Your Protection?

How often you need to change your protection depends, of course, on how heavy your flow is. But to stay healthy and avoid the chance of leaks, it’s best to open a new pad, tampon, or liner every three or four hours. Wrap up the used pad, tampon, applicator, or liner in toilet paper, and throw it in the garbage. Never flush it down the toilet, because even brands that claim to be flushable can clog the pipes.

Do You Need a Deodorant During Menstruation?

Pads, tampons, and liners all come in both scented (deodorant) and unscented versions. The chemicals in scented products can irritate skin and cause allergic reactions, but if you don’t get those symptoms, you can use them. However, you don’t need them! As long as you wash and dry yourself thoroughly each day, wear clean underpants, and change your pads or tampons often, you won’t have menstrual odor. When you urinate while wearing a tampon, hold the string out of the way so that it doesn’t get wet, and if it does anyway, squeeze it dry with a tissue.

Problems That Can Arise

If menstrual problems are severe enough to interfere with your usual life, see a doctor. Some problems are:

•
Dysmenorrhea
³
—when you have really strong cramps

•
Menorrhagia
⁴
—when you have very heavy bleeding, periods that last longer than seven days, a cycle that is less than twenty-one days, or bleeding with clots

•
Amenorrhea
⁵
—when you stop getting your periods after they have become fairly regular, or it has been two years since you’ve first started your breast development and still do not have a period. If you are already menstruating amenorrhea can result from stress, weight loss, thyroid disorder, or other medical conditions.

• Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS): when you experience symptoms, in the days leading up to your next period, including mood swings or irritability, tension or anxiety, anger or sadness, food cravings, breast tenderness. A good number of women will experience some of these symptoms. If your symptoms of PMS are severe, see your doctor. There are a variety of treatments for PMS.

Toxic Shock Syndrome

One thing you should never do is leave a tampon in place for more than six hours. It could cause a rare but serious infection
called toxic shock syndrome. Anybody can get toxic shock, with or without wearing a tampon, but it occurs most often in girls and women who use them. Symptoms include a sudden high fever, low blood pressure, vomiting or diarrhea, a rash, muscle aches, seisures, and headaches.

Toxic shock is very rare, and you can avoid it easily if you follow these tips:

• Always wash your hands before inserting a tampon or putting your finger into your vagina.