Women are amazing creatures who can bleed for 3 to 7 days every month and still not die!
No matter the season, people complain to Xiao Jiu: Sanitary napkins are stuffy and damp, and they leak easily, making it impossible to do strenuous exercise! It's so uncomfortable!!! I don't want to be a woman in my next life!
Actually, there's no need to wait until the next life to solve this problem.
You only need to...
4 major advantages of tampons
Women deserve it!
There are two main types of tampons: finger-insertion and applicator-insertion. The former requires the woman to insert the tampon into the vagina with her own finger, while the latter uses a plastic applicator to push the tampon into the vagina, providing a better experience.
Compared to sanitary napkins, tampons have many advantages:
More comfortable: Tampons don't have the sticky, stuffy feeling of sanitary napkins on your private parts, and you might not even feel your period coming!
More convenient: With tampons, you can swim in the summer and soak in hot springs in the winter! Female athletes like Fu Yuanhui use tampons when they have their period during competitions!
• More leak-proof: No matter how many wings a sanitary napkin has or how big it is, side leakage is inevitable. Tampons, as long as they are inserted correctly, are safe no matter how you sleep!
• More hygienic: Blood is the perfect breeding ground for bacteria, and tampons, by not coming into contact with air, reduce bacterial growth!
That "hymen"
Is it really that important?
However, despite its excellent properties, very few Chinese women are able to enjoy the benefits of tampons.
The Economist reports that tampons are used 70% of the time in the United States, but only 2% in China, and one-third of women have never even heard of tampons.
The average age of menarche for Chinese women is 13, and the average age of menopause is 49. If we calculate based on a minimum of 3 days of menstruation per month, a woman will spend 1296 days of her life with menstrual blood!
You may be hearing about "tampons" for the first time, but their prototypes actually existed as early as ancient Egypt and ancient Greece, where women would place softened linen or papyrus paper inside their vaginas to absorb menstrual blood.
Tampons, as a commodity in the modern sense, only began to be widely circulated in the 1930s. Although they have been around for nearly a century, women, especially Chinese women, knew almost nothing about them.
Why don't women have the habit of using tampons?
It is the "usage" that is preventing its widespread adoption among Chinese women—specifically, its insertion into the body.
This brings us back to the topic of the "hymen".
Many people misunderstand the hymen (vaginal flap), thinking it's a perfectly sealed membrane like a windowpane that will break during first sexual intercourse, causing pain and bleeding. In fact, a normal hymen has an opening.
The hymen of adult women varies greatly in shape, and can be roughly divided into these 11 types:
The hymen itself is elastic and has a relatively large opening; if the angle and position are right, a tampon can be inserted.
Moreover, the existence of the "hymen" was not originally intended to make women "remain chaste," but to protect women. Let's not add unnecessary drama to it!
Before puberty, a woman's reproductive system is not fully developed, her vaginal mucosa is thin and has a low acidity level, and her ability to defend against external factors is limited. An intact hymen can prevent the invasion of some bacteria.
Of course, if you really, really care about that so-called membrane in traditional thinking, then give up tampons!
For some girls who find sanitary napkins inconvenient, the choice of freedom and comfort is right in front of you, so why not choose it because of some ignorant claims?
Don't forget what Jiu once said: If a man tells you that this "membrane" is the foundation of your relationship, believe me, your relationship is just as fragile as it is.
Use tampons
It will not increase the probability of getting TSS.
Some people are afraid to use tampons because they've heard that they can get poisoned.
Many people have heard the news that American model Lauren Wasser suffered from toxic shock syndrome after using tampons and had her left leg amputated to save her life.
Isn't that terrifying? If we understood a little more, we would know—
In fact, the probability of contracting TSS from using tampons is only one in 100,000.
Toxic shock syndrome is a severe bacterial infection caused by the release of toxins from Staphylococcus aureus. The incubation period is only one or two days, and symptoms include fever, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and a full-body rash. In severe cases, it can lead to shock and rapid multiple organ failure.
This condition can occur when using tampons. Firstly, there must be Staphylococcus aureus present in the vagina and there must be a wound inside the vagina. Then, the bacteria multiply rapidly in the environment created by the tampons, enter the bloodstream through the wound, and cause infection.
In Europe and America, over 80% of women use tampons, yet only 3 in 100,000 of them suffer from TSS. Anyone can get TSS, and with timely treatment, it is curable, with a mortality rate of only 5%.
Therefore, don't throw the baby out with the bathwater. Although using tampons may lead to infection, the incidence rate is very low.
Don't panic! These extreme situations can be avoided by carefully reading the instructions for using tampons and when to replace them!
Tampons can be left in the body for up to 8 hours, but it's generally recommended to change them every 4-6 hours. If you forget how long you left it in, or if you feel the tampon starting to move, that's a sign it's full and needs to be changed!
Of course, no one is perfect, and no towel is perfect either. Tampons naturally have their drawbacks and are not suitable for all situations.
• If your body doesn't tolerate it after using it for a while, don't force yourself!
• If you have vaginitis or other related conditions, it is best to consult your doctor before using this product.
If you can't change your sanitary napkin in time at night, then you should switch back to using a sanitary napkin to ensure you get enough sleep!
After saying all that, I still want to say that I'm not forcing anyone to use it. If you don't want to use it, you don't have to. But menstrual cramps, swelling, fatigue... are already exhausting enough. If there are better options, why not make yourself more comfortable?
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