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Back in June, I was fortunate enough to be chosen as an Ambassador Mom for Kotex. Kotex asked its Ambassador Moms to write posts geared toward moms of tweens and teens, and put those posts up periodically, as it were.
Ahem.
They asked me to schedule these posts, once a month.
Once a month.
It’s the little ironies of life that keep me amused. ;-D
In case you’re new to my blog, these posts have been designed to give what is hopefully helpful advice to moms of tweens and teens, and so far, I’ve written on “The Talk”, Re-framing the Period Discussion, Preparing for the Talk Through Finding the Talkable Moments, and Helping Your Teen/Tween Daughter Be Prepared for the School Year.
As I approached writing this month, I wondered what I could possibly write about. I feared all my verbal clots had already been passed, and I was down to rust-colored literary discharge.
(Hey: who says there’s no such thing as humor relating to a woman’s period? If you can’t find a little humor in the everyday details of life – and let’s just take a moment to be thankful that it’s NOT happening EVERY day of our lives – then you’re doomed to a miserable existence.)
Which leads me to this month’s scheduled post, and, ironically enough, I’d like to talk with you a bit about…schedules. And monthly maintenance, in general. And how helping your daughter learn to keep track of her period can be a very, very good thing.
So, here are a couple of tips in regard to monthly maintenance.
1. Communicate to your daughter that it’s super-important to keep on top of cleanliness at this time of the month. Not keeping things clean can lead to unpleasant odor, and NOBODY wants that. I buy unscented baby wipes, and keep them in the bathroom for a quick, in-between-showers clean-up. They help you feel a little more fresh.
2. Tell your daughter that it’s very important to begin keeping track of her cycle, so she can learn how her own body works. If you or your daughter have a smart phone, there are some great apps out there that she can use to help her begin to learn her own cycle’s patterns. I’ve heard of three different ones lately that you might want to check out: MyDays (which has a multi-user function, so that you can keep track of your AND your daughter’s cycles), Period Tracker/Pink Pad, and iPeriod.
The nice thing about having your daughter electronically track her cycle is that she will be learning to take responsibility for taking care of her own body. The user can make notes about the strength of her flow at various points in her cycle, and the program helps predict when the user’s next cycle will begin. This may help your daughter to be better prepared with feminine hygiene supplies, since she will be able to see that the date for her period is likely approaching. Explain to your daughter that for the rest of her life, when she visits the doctor, they will ask for the date of her last period. It will be very helpful for the doctor to have this type of information at hand, so that he/she can get a better picture of your daughter’s general health. (And, of course, for the purposes of teaching/learning about ovulation, such a tool would provide interesting, personalized information.)
As for me, I only have a Dumb Phone. It makes phone calls whenever I want it, generally, but that’s about it. So, for myself, for years I have been putting a star on the calendar on my wall. Not that I feel particularly like a star on those days, but more in the interests of being discreet. Perhaps a drawing of a bloody axe might be a little more accurate in tone, with only a hint of hyperbole.
However, while writing this post, I learned that Kotex has their own tool that you can access WITHOUT a smart phone, right on your computer. Since my daughter doesn’t have a smart phone, I’m going to show it to her. If you’re interested in learning more, you can do what I did: enter your own name, and check it out for your daughter, to see if it’s a tool that you might want her to use. Here’s a link that will get you started: Personal Period Tracker.
For more information for you as a mom, the Kotex site on “My Daughter’s Period” is a gold mine of helpful information and tools. If your daughter has questions she’d like to research on her own, this site, the U by Kotex website, specifically designed with Tweens and Teens in mind, will help her get the answers she needs.
I wrote this review while participating in a Brand Ambassador Campaign by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of U by Kotex Tween and received products to facilitate my post and a promotional item to thank me for taking the time to participate.
If you’re a woman, how do you keep track of your monthly cycle?
