Reusable Menstrual Kits
Introduction of reusable menstrual kits
Millions of women and girls around the world do not have access to safe, healthy, and reliable options for managing their menstruation. I would like to share what I learned and gained from a training I attended organized by Days For Girls to become an Ambassador of Women’s Health on reusable menstrual kits.
Reusable menstrual pads offer girls and women a safe, effective, and sustainable solution for managing their menstruation. It is made up of two components: the shield and the liner. The kit is composed of two shields and eight liners.
My experience at the training
I was able to interact with other women from different parts of our country when I attended the training. We shared more about our customs concerning menstruation, facts and myths surrounding it, and how our girls and women face menstruation according to our tribes. As ambassadors of women’s health, we are to intervene and help girls and women in improving their health. I also had an opportunity to increase my knowledge on various topics, we learned about anatomy, reproduction, hygiene, STIs, and human rights, to name a few. In the practical learning sessions, we were taught and shown how to build tippy taps for hand washing and the part which drew my attention the most was how to make the reusable menstrual kit. We were taught how to cut, sew, and make the liners and the shield. We also had a chance of doing practical presentations on how it is used using demonstration underwear we had.
From my experience, I can share my knowledge with others by educating girls and women on reproductive health, emphasizing menstrual health. How it works: the shield is a cloth holder resembling a disposable winged menstrual pad. It has a moisture-proof fabric inside that keeps menstrual fluids from seeping or passing through. The wings have snaps so the shield can be secured in the underwear without fear of falling out. The user can use the shield for the whole day. The liners are soft and absorbent. The liner is folded into thirds and placed inside the shield in order to absorb the menstrual flow. On heavier menstrual flow days, one can layer more than one-liner in the shield to create a thicker pad for more absorbency.
When the liner is soiled the girl or woman can remove the liner from the shield and replace it with another one. This can be changed after a few hours, depending on the menstrual flow. The soiled liners can be stored in a drawstring bag, for privacy, when in public settings, and can be later washed in your house. The soiled items should be washed daily with soap. After washing the shield and the liners, they should be hung outside to dry. The liners can be ironed to help them dry faster. The shield should not be ironed because it has a plastic barrier inside which can melt. It is important to clean the kit properly. When cared for properly, this reusable kit can last up to three years.
Conclusions: A girl is faced with many threats for lack of a simple basic resource: sanitary pads. She worries her uniform will be soiled, she worries about deteriorating in her studies due to missing classes because of her periods, she risks her health by using what she can to prevent soiling her clothes, and she suffers from lack of knowledge due to silence on female reproductive health. All of this adds up to women and girls feeling ashamed, getting infections, and missing opportunities month after month. Lack of access to basic sanitary pads to manage menstruation threatens a girl’s education and her health. HopeCore hopes to, in the future, step up to help change this situation. I hope to ensure that a girl knows who she is, that her health is vital to her future, and also, to ensure that she can go to school, and stay productive and healthy.
Written by Stella Kagendo, Community Health Worker- Village HopeCore
