Discussion
  • Read More
    artless.dodgerKelly Faircloth
    1/21/15 5:35pm

    Let's call it what it is: I don't feel like attending my fucking running club tonight because I'm bloated, exhausted, and bleeding profusely every time I sneeze. If I had to do hill repeats on my period, I'd probably hemorrhage and die, discomforting our running coach who has legit shat himself during a marathon but who gets squeamish at "lady business.*"

    *"Lady business" makes it sound like periods are all about the shoulder pads, the tasteful mid-heel pumps, and the faux leather briefcase.

    Reply
    <
    • Read More
      GrumpyEagleartless.dodger
      1/21/15 5:42pm

      I've had many discussions with my husband over exactly this, except with bicycling. "Oh, it's not that bad!" Yes, it is. The pain, the bloating, and the massive padding that I have to wear because I bleed like a stuck pig make bicycling an adventure in "oh, hell no - not today."

      Reply
      <
    • Read More
      artless.dodgerGrumpyEagle
      1/21/15 5:47pm

      What I can't make my husband understand is sometimes it is so bad that going to work - with a bunch of males - is too much of an adventure. It's like, nah, I'll take a sick day and just bleed out quietly while watching "Criminal Minds."

      Reply
      <
  • Read More
    hardcöre umlautKelly Faircloth
    1/21/15 5:36pm

    Would it kill Wimbledon to let people wear darker uniforms? I know I know tradition, but who the fuck cares. Changing the color of a woman's tennis skirt won't decrease the quality of play there (in fact it sounds like it could increase it, if female tennis pros don't have to worry about blood showing through).

    Reply
    <
    • Read More
      thewiredknighthardcöre umlaut
      1/21/15 5:39pm

      Wimbledon is so steeped in tradition that it practically causes a huge disturbance at the thought of someone wearing another color. Could they change it and it affect nothing? Yes. Though I find it highly unlikely they ever will.

      Honestly if pressed about it regarding women's tennis and this issue I have a feeling that the answer you would receive is that the women of tennis have had to deal with this for over a century so why change it now.

      Not my opinion, just guesstimating what would transpire.

      Reply
      <
    • Read More
      artless.dodgerhardcöre umlaut
      1/21/15 5:41pm

      It doesn't seem necessary though. If I can do cartwheel sin a gauzy white gown on the beach with my period (my tampons have leak protection (tm)!), then a bunch of sweating, athletic girls can handle white skirts.

      Reply
      <
  • Read More
    LunaaaKelly Faircloth
    1/21/15 5:39pm

    It was pretty brave of her to mention it. A lot of people see it as just an excuse for doing poorly or proof that women are inferior to men. A lot of men really don't realize that some women get debilitating cramps that do completely incapacitate them. But on the other hand, a lot also don't understand that not every woman is the same and that we experience different symptoms when we're on our periods.

    Reply
    <
    • Read More
      KallieLunaaa
      1/21/15 5:57pm

      True, and it's not just men. Many women think that because they do not or did not get debilitating cramps that other women are just whiners. My mother falls into this camp. When I first got my period, she basically just bitched at me for being "dramatic" and for not doing a good enough job hiding the symptoms and wrappers from my younger siblings. I thought I was crazy until my grandmother was like, "Oh yeah, I used to throw up, and I couldn't go to work when I got mine until I had my first two kids." Then, my pediatrician told my mom to buy me Motrin and take the amount I needed because the one Tylenol at a time she let me take was doing shit.

      Reply
      <
    • Read More
      LunaaaKallie
      1/21/15 6:01pm

      I unfortunately used to be one of those women who did that too. I have a friend who throws up sometimes and I thought she just whining until I learned a little more about the whole thing and the issues that can come with it. I'm sorry your mom was so unsupportive.

      Reply
      <
  • Read More
    beth_steelKelly Faircloth
    1/21/15 5:34pm

    Interesting! I was a sports reporter for years and I never once heard a female athlete make reference to her period having an impact on performance. I imagine they don't want to sound like they're making excuses, but it is kind of silly that someone possibly would say, "Yeah, I'm fighting the flu so I wasn't 100% out there" but never "I have my period and that showed late in the game."

    The only person who ever came CLOSE to talking about it was a male coach, when I was writing a story about male coaches of female teams. He mentioned that he thought it was important to have at least one fairly young woman on his coaching staff, because there were things that the players might not feel comfortable talking to him about, mainly lady stuff like periods and pregnancy scares and boy problems. He was funny too, since he was like, "They are worried they will shock me, which they won't, because I've been doing this for 20 years and I HAVE HEARD IT ALL GIRLFRIEND." Lord Grantham blanching at the mention of childbirth and woman parts, he was not.

    Reply
    <
    • Read More
      artless.dodgerbeth_steel
      1/21/15 5:43pm

      Our volleyball coach could have taken tips from this guy. He once kept one of our players in the game even though she was on her period and needed to change her tampon. Then he had the gall to get pissy about it when she was bleeding through, like, he didn't understand that a tampon isn't a bathtub drain stopper.

      Reply
      <
    • Read More
      TheVageniusbeth_steel
      1/21/15 5:45pm

      I love this. I love men like this. When I say things about feeling gross about it he just goes, "You're not gross. You're a human. But we are all gross sometimes anyway." I just want to squeeze his sweet face. (And yes, I'm on my period! What of it!)

      Reply
      <
  • Read More
    Oystrice Kelly Faircloth
    1/21/15 5:55pm

    Guys, Kathy Rigby defeated periods (and smelly vulvas) in, like, 1982. Gymnastics beats tennis yet again.

    Reply
    <
    • Read More
      thorinbagginsOystrice
      1/21/15 6:28pm

      I cannot imagine doing gymnastics in a maxi pad is at all comfortable. :\

      Reply
      <
    • Read More
      Ladyheatherlee 2016 EditionOystrice
      1/21/15 7:11pm

      Deodorized = infections. At least for the vag-sensitive among us. Why. Why do those things exist?

      Reply
      <
  • Read More
    southernbellyKelly Faircloth
    1/21/15 6:08pm

    When I was an athlete, I manipulated my period with birth control pills so I wouldn't have to deal with any of it. My doctor suggested it.

    Reply
    <
    • Read More
      Marionsouthernbelly
      1/21/15 6:19pm

      I don't know the details, but some forms of hormonal birth control are essentially banned because some hormones are considered performance enhancers or used to cover up use of performance enhancers or something. Hope Solo, goalkeeper for the US Women's National Soccer Team, had a positive doping test right before the 2012 Olympics that she said was because of a prescription for "pre-menstrual purposes." http://espn.go.com/olympics/summe...

      Reply
      <
    • Read More
      southernbellyMarion
      1/21/15 6:42pm

      Then I would have made a terrible professional athlete unless I could have played first base from my bed while crying and clutching a heating pad. 😄

      Reply
      <
  • Read More
    BovineSpongiformEncephalopathyKelly Faircloth
    1/21/15 7:21pm

    I'm doing a multi-day stage adventure race in the deep woods of New England in a few months. According to my calculations, there's a likelihood I could be on my period. Sigh.

    The male:female ratio of participation is about 10:1. Proper shitting and pissing in the woods are always topics of discussion. I can't wait to introduce tampon changing and carry-out/disposal to make those manly-men squirm.

    Reply
    <
    • Read More
      My dear, sweet brother Numsie!BovineSpongiformEncephalopathy
      1/21/15 8:05pm

      Are you on the pill? Because if you are, you can string two packs together to delay your period. Sort of like a poor woman's version of Seasonelle.

      My doctor recommended this for a vacation I didn't want my period on and it worked perfectly. Something worth asking your own doc about if you really don't want it while you're in bear territory.

      Reply
      <
    • Read More
      BovineSpongiformEncephalopathyMy dear, sweet brother Numsie!
      1/21/15 9:08pm

      Not on the pill, as Mr. BSE has had a vasectomy (best $500 we ever spent!!!!). But I do have an appt with my Gyn in a couple of weeks and I'm going to bring it up.

      Although the way the event is set up it's improbable (though not impossible) that wildlife such as bears would be encountered.

      Reply
      <
  • Read More
    oh-indeed_cleared_his_cache_and_cookies_oopsKelly Faircloth
    1/21/15 5:35pm

    It's the last taboo because you know that it's going to make idiots jabber on about how this is just another reason women can't compete at the same level as men so they shouldn't be competing for equal prizes etc.

    Reply
    <
    • Read More
      User425oh-indeed_cleared_his_cache_and_cookies_oops
      1/21/15 5:42pm

      Yes, this. I am all for removing the shame around talking about periods, but I am very wary of giving any ammunition to those who would say women are inherently limited by their biology.

      Reply
      <
  • Read More
    leftsharkKelly Faircloth
    1/21/15 5:48pm

    But we women are damned if we do, damned if we don't! On the one hand, we can all totally agree that periods absolutely suck and can totally affect sports performance. On the other hand, I (an amateur kickboxer) and other feminists legit kinda freaked when the WBC decided to no longer sanction any boxing matches longer than 12 rounds or with longer than two-minute rounds because, among other things, "Menstrual cycle has tremendous impact on the body of a woman, including 12 hormones which act in the body system, creating radical changes in several areas." The language is horrible and dated and weird. And I hate the idea - I put myself through more than 12 rounds longer than three minutes each on pretty much a daily basis. But what are we to do with seemingly conflicting stuff on periods in sports?Yeah, they suck and impact performance - but don't limit our performance because they exist? Is that the answer?

    Reply
    <
    • Read More
      PumpkinPancakeKelly Faircloth
      1/21/15 6:41pm

      I can see periods impacting things in a big way, especially sports that require you to be in a certain weight range. Water weight on one's period can add a few pounds to the scale easily.

      Reply
      <