Period Undies

I can successfully say that I have been disposable sanitary product free for 2 cycles so far!!
Now, I want to begin by saying that when I very first heard about these period undies-I was personally disgusted, as most people seem to be. You just sit in bloody undies all day!?
I did go and purchase a pair-but for my LBL. After having Eadie I was wearing a pad to my gym classes because of my leakages while jumping around. So I bought myself a pair of Modi Bodi undies and loved them. There was no worrying about an uncomfortable pad moving around as I did my gym classes. They caught the leakages and seemed to take the moisture away.Since having Eadie-I just haven’t felt comfortable wearing tampons anymore.
I’m not sure why.
The fact I birthed a baby out of there? Has childbirth changed my vagina? Am I just more conscious of my health since becoming a mother?
I think it’s a bit of everything.
I was finding myself using pads over tampons, which I’m sure everyone knows is a lot more unpleasant-which got me thinking about these period undies again.
I seen more and more people wearing them, promoting them, writing blogs about them. Could they really be as good as everyone states?

When I got my first period back after having Dottie-I decided to try the one pair I had.

I waited until day 3 or 4 (can’t quite remember which one I did now) and I was honestly amazed!
I kept dabbing the undies with toilet paper each time I went to the toilet because I couldn’t feel anything. Was I even still bleeding?

There was no feeling moist, no blood sitting in them, no uncomfortable pad-I was shocked!
So, I told myself once I got my period back regularly, that was it-I was investing in reusable sanitary items!!

I started doing some of my own research on them, and found out how bad most disposable sanitary products are-filled with chemicals, bleach, fragrances. Peoples theories on it being linked to so much infertility and other hormonal/reproductive problems.
It made me not want to ever use a tampon or pad again!!So, I have a collection of different period undies now.
I have 3 different brands, and also some reusable pads.

I am absolutely loving them! Who would have thought I’d ever actually be excited to get my period!?

Below I am going to answer all your questions you asked, along with sharing the TMI details of how the undies work, washing them etc.

HOW DO THEY WORK?
Let me guess, your first thoughts are-you’re bleeding into a pair of undies and sitting in them all day!? Because that was my first thought… It’s not like that at all!
The Modi Bodi undies have 3 layers (don’t worry, they aren’t bulky-they’re only 3mm thick)
The top layer wicks away moisture, fights bacteria and stops smells-which is how you stay dry and fresh.
TMI here-but you know when you wear a pad, and the blood just sits there, rubbing against you as you walk/move around? Well the Modi Bodi undies don’t do this-the blood literally soaks away into the undies and you’re left feeling dry and your vagina clean!
The Middle Layer absorbs the fluid and locks it away (depending on which type of undie you get, but between 5-20mls!)
The bottom layer is an extra waterproof layer, so you can feel confident you won’t have any leaks!

HOW LONG DO YOU WEAR THEM FOR?
This all depends on you and your personal flow-(I cant help it if I’ve got a heavy flow and a wide set vagina!) Women are wearing them for 8-10 hours without them becoming ‘full’ but each women is completely different.
For me personally, on the first couple days of my cycle I have been wearing a reusable pad on top. I take that out around lunchtime and then just use the undies on their own for the rest of the afternoon. Day 3-6 I have been able to comfortable wear just the undies for the whole day. But you know your flow-every single women is different.

I wore one pair on a 2 hour drive into the city, through a 2 hour event and then another 2 hour drive home. I was so worried I was going to leak by the drive home, sitting in them for so long but I had absolutely no issues at all!
I have had a few comments like ‘So you’d have to change your undies mid day!? How inconvenient!’

If you’re someone who works full time or aren’t at home during the day, a mid day undie change could be a bit of a pain! That’s why I have been wearing the pads-they’re easy enough to pull out mid way through the day and pop into my wet bag if out, and just continue with the undies for the rest of the day.
But if you don’t have a heavy flow-you might be fine wearing them for the whole day!

HOW DO YOU CLEAN THEM?

Once you’ve taken them off, you rinse them under cool running water until the water runs clean. Honestly, this is probably the worst thing about them-but I’m a Mum, and work as a personal carer so my hands are constantly dealing with other people’s bodily fluids-so rinsing a pair of undies with my own fluids on them is nothing!

I have been doing it in the shower each night and morning-giving them a rinse under the cool water before jumping in myself.

I usually do a load of washing each day in my household so they are either thrown in the machine, or popped into my Strucket Bucket on top of the machine until I put my next load on.
It’s recommended to put them into a delicate bag when washing for extra protection.

I’ve found each brand to have different washing instructions, the Modi Bodi have to be washed on a cold cycle, and no soaking or fabric softeners used as this will break down the natural fibers in them.

I do have another brand that can be warm washed, and another that can only be washed on dedicates.

You then hang them up to air dry-preferably in the sun if you can.

DO THEY SMELL?

I’m not going to lie, after a while they do get that ‘metallic’ smell-but only towards the end of the day/wearing them for awhile. No different really to wearing a pad.
Again though, each women is completely different-the way their body reacts, the bacteria in their blood etc. It’s so hard to say as everyone is going to have their own personal experience.

DO YOU FEEL WET?

Surprisingly, not at all!
The moister wickering layer honestly does its job!

TMI here again-but you know when you feel the blood come out? Usually if you’re wearing a pad you can feel it sitting there. Well with the period undies you feel it come out, then honestly a minute later that feeling is gone! The first time I wore them I was dabbing toilet paper onto them at each toilet trip, because I was like where is the blood!? Once you rinse them under the tap you soon see that there is plenty of blood in there! It’s just soaked through to the lower layers.

HOW MANY PAIRS DO I NEED?

I think this depends on how often you are washing! I myself am doing a load a day (sometimes two) so I am able to rotate through my pairs quite a bit during my cycle.
I would say for the first 2 days you’ll need 3 pairs (one morning, one arvo and one overnight)-unless you’re using reusable pads for the morning.
Then on the lighter days 2 pairs a day.
I have 9 pairs all up, and 3 reusable pads-which I feel is a generous supply!
We are in summer (if you can even call it that in Melbourne!) so I’ve been able to dry them quite quickly outdoors too-in winter it might be a different story with getting them dry.

WHAT STYLE/FLOW SHOULD I GET?
This is totally a personal preference!
The first pair I purchased were for LBL, so I just got a normal bikini cut with a moderate absorbency.

I had a couple other lighter flow pairs of other brands, so when I ordered more Modi Bodi ones I got 3x heavy/overnight flows, and 2x moderate/heavy flows-I thought I’d go heavier absorbencies because it’s better to be safe then sorry hey? I got the seam free, and high cut (because, #mumtum) and honestly they are SO comfy!! I also think they look really nice on too.

CAN YOU TELL THEY ARE ON?

When you very first pull them on you can definitely feel the thicker crotch compared to a normal pair of undies (it’s only 3mm, so hardly anything) but as soon as you walk out of the bedroom/bathroom that feelings gone. Much more comfortable then wearing a pad-that’s for sure!! Then it just feels like you’re wearing normal undies! Someone asked if you can see the gusset through your pants. If I’m wearing the overnight/heavy absorbency, the gusset goes right up your backside to the top of your undies, so if you’re wearing tight fitting pants you can see the line, just like a normal undie line I guess. But honestly, if I’m at gym wearing my leggings and someone see’s the line, what’s it matter? I’ve got my period, like every other women gets-big whoop!

WHAT SIZES DO THEY GO UP TO?

There are multiple different brands of period undies you can purchase, but Modi Bodi have sizes that stock from size 6-26 in women’s and size 8-12 in girls.
They also have a large variety of styles, from classic bikinis, active, to their sexier range. They also have a range for girls-called Red, along with a range for men and pregnancy and maternity.
I will definitely be getting my girls period undies when the time comes! I think they are perfect for young girls just getting their period!

HOW WIDE IS THE CRUTCH?

The crotch is the same size as a normal pair of undies, but it depends on what absorbency size you get as to how long it is-the overnight/heavy flows go right up to the top of the undies, where as the lighter flow just have a small section in the crotch.

WOULD THEY BE SUITABLE FOR AFTER BIRTH?

Absolutely!

Those first few days post birth I’d probably change them quite regularly, or wear a pad inside just as extra precaution. But again, everyone is different with their PP bleeding. The only thing I would worry about with after birth bleeding, is the clotting. I’m not sure how or if that would work with soaking through to the lower levels.

Modi Bodi also have leggings and breastfeeding singlets which would be awesome for all those leaks! So, that’s my take/review on period undies.

Like I said, I’ve used a few different brands now-and so far my favorite are Modi Bodi. They’re the more expensive of the lot-but I can definitely tell, see and feel why! They’re beautifully made, and I would wear them all month round!

If you’ve been sitting on the fence about trying them, I would suggest getting a pair or two just to try on the last few days of your period, or as backup with a pad or tampon-that way you can see if you like them. I also use them through ovulation too, just to help with the moister. They can easily be worn as normal undies throughout the month so there’s no harm in having them, even if you don’t end up liking them for your period.

If you have any other questions-please feel free to ask. Nothing is off limits or TMI with me, so go for it!

Thanks for reading!

Ruby x