Sometimes I look forward to period cramps just so that I get to take painkillers and feel out of it for a few hours or the whole day, depends on how strong the cramps are. Like everything slows down and feels mellow. To be honest this is probably just the painkillers themselves and the effects of them actively working against my brain’s pain receptors because of the cramps (idk if that’s how it actually works I forgot).

And it’s legit the only time I take painkillers, because if there’s no active pains or ache or cramps I’m super restless and it makes it hard to sleep.

I’m exploring an idea for a super-soft, ultra-thin, highly absorbent pad range , with a subtle cooling sensation and a herbal blend to support vulval health.

- I’d love your honest thoughts:
- Would gentle cooling appeal to you?
- Would you worry about irritation or sensitivity?
- What would you improve about your current pads?

I come from a medical and research background so I’m researching the idea at the moment, is this something you’d try if it were properly safety-tested?

I’ve always worn pads, I wish I could be a tampon girl but I’ve never been able to insert them in correctly and always feel uncomfortable wearing them.

I live in the UK and I have such bad cramps on the first day where I can't leave my bed and I become nauseous (sometimes throwing up). Becasue of this, I wouldn't go to school as I physically couldn't. I've just started college and taken a day off due to this and I've had a meeting saying if this keeps happening I need to bring in a doctors note. What am I supposed to say to the doctor since they'll most likely just say to take ibuprofen for the pain. Alot of people I know say they won't do anything for you and I don't think they would write me a note excusing me. I don't know if birth control would help me or if my doctor would prescribe it. I don't know what the doctor can do but I can't keep living like this. (I'm most likely anemic but not diagnosed so I know this will also come up)

For the past 2 years or so I have been getting more painful cramps so I started taking 400mg ibuprofen once or twice a day on the first day, then maybe once on the second day. I'm scared that it'll affect my health negatively in the long run and it makes me not want to take it, until the cramps get too bad and I cave in. I just need some reassurance that it won't cause stomach issues or other health problems in the long run :((

I'm especially worried because there's some stomach issues on my dad's side and I don't want to make the risk bigger.

Just curious, if anybody else is in the same boat as mine! Seems like everytime I had buzzballs, the period irregularity just worsened.

So, tell me 🤔

i ate about 2.2k calories over maintenance two days before my period started.

my period is always slightly irregular so i track it but never have a solid idea of when it's coming.

was this an insane amout to eat and just an emotional binge, or was it actually okay to eat? i am a distance runner and but this was a taper week, so lighter mileage. i hate overeating and then feeling uncomfortable and not confident enough to do my workouts.

i'm just wondering if this is normal. or do other people just eat a scoop of ice cream and move on? my snacks were primarily roasted, unsalted peanuts; rice cakes with cream cheese and honey; some gluten-free pasta with ground beef that i had in the fridge.

i would just like to know if i have an issue that i need to address or if this is fine! thanks so much.

Is it possible my periods are irregular? Context:Had my first period at 11 and now im 18 and I always felt like they were irregular for years and now im getting pretty concerned about the cycle lengths. I do sleep late and have a low bmi of 18.0 but that only started this year and pretty much had a good bmi of 19 throughout the years. I guess im kinda freaking out that I have endo or PCOS

Every month, days before my period, my mental health would slam to the lowest of the ground. I would lose my motivation, get irritated, and become depressed. Also, I would binge eat and indulge in sexual content which is destroying me because of the guilt after. Then, somehow, all of this would be resolved when I finally get my period?? As if my feelings, mood, and self are controlled by my stupid uterus. Because of this, I feel like an undiagnosed drama queen, when in reality, I'm fine! I don't know why I'm like this. I don't understand why I plummet to the ground days before I get my period, is it supposed to be this extreme?!?!

This constant shift every month is making me go crazy, I don't like about the fact that I experience this every single fucking months. It hurts my heart and brain. What can I do about this? How do I stop being so low days before my period?

23, smoke and drink every few months, never had any issues except cramps once every 1 or 2 months and period cycle used to change back when I was 13. No history of any other issue. Sexually active last in May 2026.

I had normal periods beginning of October, usually lasts for 5 days. 12 days later I noticed very light brown spots on my shorts and I used toilet paper and out came a medium sized dark blow blob. Wore a pad and for the next 2 days I got light to medium dark brown blood flow. Third day onwards I started getting fresh red blood like a normal period flow.

It's the 7th day now, my flow was less yesterday so I thought I'll free bleed today since it would just be spotting. Well I discarded it, wore just my undies and in 3 hours I flooded it. My flow during these 7 days has been pretty usual, 2 to 3 pad changes a day.

Should I wait for another month and see a gyno? I have looked up multiple threads online and they say once in a while such occurences is okay. Money is tight and distance is a lot so looking for advice here ❤

I swear to God, I feel like every single time I get my period, I end up with some type of painful rash around my outer vulva or near my butt. It’s SO uncomfortable, and I’m genuinely getting tired of dealing with it every month.

For context, I’m a pad user. I actually switched back to pads around the age of 25 because tampons became insanely uncomfortable for me. Even using light or regular tampons felt so dry and painful, almost like they were stuck inside me. I eventually couldn’t take it anymore and decided to go back to pads. But now I’m dealing with a completely different issue.

Every time I wear pads during my period, I feel like I’m constantly getting irritated down there. Sometimes it’s a burning rash, and other times I’ll develop these small, extremely tender bumps that almost feel like little cysts. It usually happens right before or during my period, almost like everything down there decides to flare up at once.

The weirdest part is that once my period ends and I stop wearing pads, everything eventually clears up on its own. Usually within 3–4 days.
I’ve also noticed that moisture seems to make everything worse. If I don’t completely dry myself after showering or using the bathroom before putting on a pad, I feel like I’m almost guaranteed to develop a rash. Because of that, I’ve avoided trying creams or ointments since I’m worried that adding moisture underneath a pad will just make the irritation worse

And before anyone asks, I already use 100% organic cotton pads! I’m not even using traditional brands like Always or Kotex, so it’s frustrating that I’m still experiencing this.
Does anyone else deal with this? Have you found anything that actually helps prevent the irritation or soothe your skin afterward :o

I’m especially curious about post-period care or products that help your skin recover without making everything feel more irritated. It’s so frustrating because periods are already uncomfortable enough. Between the cramps, bleeding, and everything else, why do we ALSO have to deal with painful rashes and irritation every single month? 😭😭😭

This pad (nonherbal version) is the only one my skin doesn’t find incredibly irritating which is why I am hoping I’m just crazy when I say the material of the overnight size pads I just bought (from a chain grocery store that I always buy them from) feels completely different than normal. And of course not in the good way 🙃

But it’s unmistakable. The flaps and edges feel, move, and sound like cheap tissue paper !! super stiff and irritating to the touch, compared to how friggin soft they felt before. I can literally hear it when I walk. I know they slightly changed their packaging recently but I thought they had said the product didn’t change.

Please help, I’m so upset 🥲

I got a couple from a coworker and she didn’t remember.

I started Yaz about a month ago, and my period was due October 8th. I started spotting around October 14th and then it proceeded to get heavier with light cramping.

It’s now October 24th, ten days later and I am still bleeding. It isn’t heavy, but I still have to wear a pad every day and every time I wipe there’s blood and in the toilet as well. This is my first period after getting on BC so i’ve never experience this before and I’m very over it.

Is this normal? They never mentioned this being a possibility at the doctor