As a woman, have you ever gone into a public restroom and seen a dispensary that says "free" or 25 cent tampons and pads, but there’s nothing in there? Yeah, me too. If there were ever any sanitary products in there, there has been no priority action to restock them, unlike toilet paper.
Toilet paper is a hygiene and sanitary necessity and is constantly being restocked in public restrooms. However, feminine sanitary products are necessary for hygiene and sanitation as well. So, why aren’t these being restocked or provided for free? These items prevent women from bleeding all over themselves and on other things such as furniture and clothes. It seems a little more necessary than toilet paper if you think about it that way.
There have even been protests where women on their period walk around bleeding on themselves with no tampon or pad in order to make a statement about making feminine products free.
It has been reported that 86 percent of women have been in public when they unexpectedly started menstruation, and did not have the appropriate products.
For example, one time I was out with a friend where I unexpectedly started my monthly cycle and there were no stores in walking distance. I went into a Starbucks and there was a dispenser in the restroom, but there was nothing inside of there and I was struggling, hoping one would magically appear. A women saw me and was nice enough to offer me one, which doesn’t happen very often. I definitely would have been out of luck if it wasn’t for her. This could also happen to women who were expecting their period but just forgot to bring products with them. It happens in all kinds of situations.
Occasionally, there will be a place that will have a sign in the restroom saying feminine products are available near the front entrance or something along the lines, but most public places don’t offer that.
If the average women menstruates from ages 13 to 51, that is a total of 38 years. This means the average woman will spend almost $2,000 in their lifetime on tampons and pads, according to Huffington Post.
This dollar amount does not include the new underwear we have to buy for staining the ones we already own, or the Midol we have to buy so we aren’t in agonizing pain at home, school or work. Some women even have to spend money on birth control to help regulate their periods so they don’t start unexpectedly. All of these extra precautions can amount to a lot more than the cost of tampons. A lot goes into managing a period, we just tend not to think about it too much because we are so accustomed to it.
Although we don’t get these products free of charge at the store, we can rarely even get them in public restrooms. Now, we aren’t asking for paid days off from work every month like other countries offer, we are simply asking for more effort in providing complimentary sanitary feminine products to help us get through the struggle each month.
