Friday 12 April 2019

THINX Period Underwear | Review | #ACupaDay

If you follow me on Twitter and have looked at your feed at any point in the past month or so, you may be aware of the fact that I now own a pair of Thinx period pants. Safe to say I’m kind of a sustainable period product nerd (of all the things to be a nerd about, I had to have quite niche, of course). I was very excited to try them out, as they’d always kind of intimidated me but also seemed extremely cool. And I was not disappointed.

As soon as I opened them, I rushed into my flatmate’s room to show them off! I was like an actual child in sweet shop. I think the last time I was that excited was when I went to the Harry Potter Studios when I was 14. Is that sad? Kind of. Sustainable period products make me happy okay!

One thing that struck me straight away was how pretty they are. Honestly, they’re a decent pair of knickers. They have a little lace patterning at the top which I personally love, as they don’t feel frumpy in any way. They’re actually quite cute. 



Luckily (if you can really use that word to describe getting your period), I was due in a couple of days after they arrived so I was able to put them to use pretty quickly. As I mentioned earlier, period pants did intimidate me, right up until the point that I was actually wearing them. Because of this, I decided to try them out on a mid-day of my period, so that, if it didn’t work, then the damage to my dungarees wouldn’t be as bad as it potentially could be. However, I now feel much more comfortable using them on a heavier day, as I was so impressed by them. 

Whenever I went to the toilet that day, I checked underneath them to make sure they hadn’t leaked on my beloved dungarees, and each time (to my surprise) they were completely clean. What?! I honestly have no clue how they work but wow they are the definition of cool. (Again, maybe shows that I have a slightly odd perception of what is cool.) I didn’t feel heavy or a little icky as I might if I were wearing a pad (if you have used pads before, you probably get what I’m talking about), and although it did smell a bit (it’s oxidized blood people, it’s going to smell), it wasn’t noticeable apart from when I went to the toilet. At least, I don’t think it was – that would be awks, but I suppose wouldn’t really make much of a difference compared to pads. 

I wore them all day, and (thanks to painkillers), practically forgot I was on my period. They’re similar to menstrual cups in the sense that you don’t need to change them often. Whilst you may need to change your menstrual cup depending on your flow, you wear period pants for the whole day. The products themselves vary depending on your flow, so that you can buy a pair that are right for you. 



I honestly think period underwear is revolutionary. I can see how helpful they would be to disabled people who want to be more sustainable, but are unable to use menstrual cups. The same goes for anyone who is unable to use menstrual cups for whatever reason, whether physically or due to personal preference. However, there is one barrier which means that these pants aren’t the most accessible. They are very expensive. And I mean very. The pair I bought was about £30. I know, £30 for a pair of pants- WHAT?! It does sound ludicrous when I say it out loud. But that wasn’t the end of it for me. If you are buying Thinx and are from outside the US (my experience was as a UK resident), you will probably get lumped with an extra customs charge. I was not expected this at all, so a £15 customs charge was not a nice surprise to say the least. But never mind, I had to pay it otherwise I’d lose the other money I spent along with the pants. It’s safe to say that I’m now using these pants at whatever opportunity I get, whether I’m bleeding or not, as I am determined to get my money’s worth.

For me, I was okay with spending £30 (the rest, not so much) on this product as I had been considering buying a pair for probably about a year, and menstrual sustainability is particular area of interest for me. It was a bit of a treat yourself kind of buy. However, for the vast majority of people, such a purchase is not something they are able or even want to do, and I completely get that. I know I certainly won’t be buying another pair again, at least for many years when my current pair are in tatters. If you wanted to use these throughout your period, then you’d have to be quite well off in order to afford it, which causes many issues for the other areas of accessibility these products would seem to solve – many disabled people won’t be able to use them even though they may in theory be the best product for them. Let’s say a period lasts 7 days, that £210!!

Overall, I genuinely love my period pants. They’re comfortable, pretty, and do the job well, even if I don’t understand how it works. However, at the present, they are only really available for the privileged few. Let’s hope that in the future, menstrual underwear will become more accessible and become a more prevalent part of our daily lives. 

(Even if you aren’t going to buy some pants, do check out Thinx’s website shethinx.com, their blog all sorts of period feministy goodness.)

Also, a big thank you to my friend Jude for taking these pictures!


If you liked this post you might like: Sustainable Alternatives to Menstrual Cups | #ACupaDay


2 comments:

  1. It's frustrating that they cost so much. With the cups, you pay once but you can reuse it over and over. Seems like the more financially sustainable option.
    Ashleigh x
    www.loveashleigh.com

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    Replies
    1. Cups are definitely the more financially sustainable option. I love mine so much, and it's going to remain the main product I use, with my period pants being supplementary on the first or last days.

      Jemima x

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