Four months back my friend shared about a work site, where he was laying underground petroleum pipelines. Every time, the earth drilling machine drilled in the chest of the earth, it used to get stuck. The whole team couldn’t understand the reason as they were using one of the finest drilling machines with state of art the technology. So my friend ordered the drilling equipment incharge to pull back the drill bits as it is from the earth.

He was shocked to see PADS, plastic ropes and plastic bags clogging the pores of the drilling equipment leading to its choking/ getting stuck.

Later, he came to know that the site on which he was asked to work was actually a waste dump site. The government had spread many layers of mud on it and started using the land for other purposes. The layering of dirt was done almost 18-20 years back. But nothing could decompose the stubborn pads and plastics. The silicone pads that are available in the market are non- biodegradable. If you want to get rid of them you have to incinerate them in a furnace, which are not that common or easily available in India.

Shocked! I haven’t even started walking on the road that leads to Menopause. But from the age of 15 to present, the pads that I had tossed in the bin, I don’t know will take how many decades to decompose!!!.

What am I leaving for my future future future generation, a land of dead blood locked in polymer gel? No!!!

The time has come to do something. I am really happy to share that now I use a menstrual cup and it can be recycled along with other plastic materials. 

1. Life expectancy: 3 to 5 years
2. Helps you to maintain the PH balance of your vagina and necessary bacteria in place.
3. No odour
4. Lower costs and less landfill waste
5. Leak proof as the cup creates a suction. 
6. Say bye to the monthly PADS expense
7. Say bye to redness and rash. 

It is difficult and two fingers messy in the beginning. You might feel that the menstrual cup would enter inside your body and you have to visit a doctor. Relax! Its a vagina and not a cave.

 By changing nothing, nothing changes. It is worth it.

This has been written by Annu Anand and was first published on her blog https://www.annuanand.com/i-am/periods-have-no-smell