Menstrual Cups Help Keep Kenyan Girls in School • Hacker News Board

Re: Menstrual Cups Help Keep Kenyan Girls in School

#91

Post by b0bby_tabl3s » Tue, Apr 23, 2019, 2:30 PM UTC

ben_w wrote: post #45

jaabe wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My better half uses one, but after the birth of our first child she had to use pads for a while. This was the first time I got to buy them. They are insanely expensive, it’s truly mind blowing that more women aren’t using the cup. I mean, I know it doesn’t work for everyone, but it’s frankly as though women have some sort of “life-tax” attached that we men don’t, with pads being so expensive by comparison. I don’t re…

> They are insanely expensive, it’s truly mind blowing that more women aren’t using the cup. I mean, I know it doesn’t work for everyone, but it’s frankly as though women have some sort of “life-tax” attached that we men don’t, with pads being so expensive by comparison. My partner introduced me to them, and when I saw how expensive they were I immediately wondered how much it would cost to 3D print moulds for them s…

So when you have a kid, and your woman takes maternity leave, let me know how 'free' it was for you to work and provide for the entire family.

Maybe Bernie can give you all that for free and you won't feel that 'life tax'.

Also, since media at large wants you to believe you make more than a woman, you're getting a higher 'life tax' each pay period.

I mean, cool effort and all, but you don't need to pin a martyr banner on your back, hero.

Re: Menstrual Cups Help Keep Kenyan Girls in School

#92

Post by sctb » Tue, Apr 23, 2019, 2:40 PM UTC

shard972 wrote: post #15

franky47 wrote: post #10

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This "life tax" is hardly a surprise when most governments and boards of directors are made of mostly men, who have been taught not to ever speak about these issues (a taboo due to religious or social beliefs). Now if there's a way to make money, suddenly it becomes an attractive subject for some, but the liberation of women with reusable products (menstrual cup, washable pads and period pants) will always come secon…

I know right, my deodorant life tax is really weighing on me these days, can't wait till we unshake the bonds of oppression put on us young males by lynx.

> Be civil. Don't say things you wouldn't say face-to-face. Don't be snarky. Comments should get more civil and substantive, not less, as a topic gets more divisive.

https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html

Edit: I see we've asked you many times not to post like this, and saying that we'd ban you if you did it again, so we have. If you'd like to be unbanned you can email hn@ycombinator.com.

Re: Menstrual Cups Help Keep Kenyan Girls in School

#93

Post by bastardchild » Tue, Apr 23, 2019, 2:50 PM UTC

franky47 wrote: post #10

jaabe wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My better half uses one, but after the birth of our first child she had to use pads for a while. This was the first time I got to buy them. They are insanely expensive, it’s truly mind blowing that more women aren’t using the cup. I mean, I know it doesn’t work for everyone, but it’s frankly as though women have some sort of “life-tax” attached that we men don’t, with pads being so expensive by comparison. I don’t re…

This "life tax" is hardly a surprise when most governments and boards of directors are made of mostly men, who have been taught not to ever speak about these issues (a taboo due to religious or social beliefs). Now if there's a way to make money, suddenly it becomes an attractive subject for some, but the liberation of women with reusable products (menstrual cup, washable pads and period pants) will always come secon…

Admittedly, the majority of women around me sticks to non-reusable solutions not because they don't know, but because they feel more comfortable with things they can just throw away when dirty.

That being said, I'm on the fence about believing this is more than a question of habit vs an actual thing that will bug you. After all, the average US woman seems to be completely thrown about how you can use a tampon without an applicator. In Europe if you ask for them, most people won't even know what you mean and I don't see what their appeal is, but if that is what you grew up with....

(edit) Just to clarify, I also use a cup and it has upsides and downsides, but overall to me it is a net win.

Re: Menstrual Cups Help Keep Kenyan Girls in School

#94

Post by bastardchild » Tue, Apr 23, 2019, 3:05 PM UTC

systemBuilder wrote: post #23

Sounds like it is way more ecologically sound than tampons; do women in America use them? Why not?

One obstacle here (Germany) is, that young girls learn, how to handle their period during sex ed. And often even young sex ed teachers just don't know about cups. They teach what they were taught which is tampons and pads. And menstrual cups come with a lot more questions than those. Applying them requires some experimentation and you actually have to kind of explore what your vagina looks like. Best case in sex ed: You are not actively prepared that you might have to do that. Usual case: You see a plastic model of a vagina that is shaped nothing like yours and get the vague feeling that it's bad/dirty to touch a real one.

In urban areas where you have younger teachers and more conversation about these taboo topics, cups are popular enough that you can buy them in every bigger drug store by now, but in rural areas it's as simple as nobody knows that this is an option.

Re: Menstrual Cups Help Keep Kenyan Girls in School

#95

Post by olau » Tue, Apr 23, 2019, 3:26 PM UTC

tropdrop wrote: post #40

drakonka wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

No, I don't really even know any women who have IUDs, much less any who have IUDs and have tried menstrual cups unfortunately.

Well, you know one now! I have a copper IUD and I cannot recommend it enough. My body reacts poorly to hormones, so the pill wasn't an option, but a condom-only based approach to birth control wasn't going to work in a monogamous, multi-year relationship - over a ten year period, 86 in 100 women who only use condoms become pregnant [1]. This probabilistically makes sense, given that 10 years includes hundreds or thou…

I've personally done similar calculations before, but I stopped because I'm not sure the assumption of independence is correct. If the pregnancy rate is 18% per year, and you have not had a pregnancy the first year, I'm not sure your pregnancy rate for the next year is really 18%.

Re: Menstrual Cups Help Keep Kenyan Girls in School

#96

Post by coherentpony » Tue, Apr 23, 2019, 3:28 PM UTC

MasterScrat wrote: post #87

franky47 wrote: post #14

The short film "Period, End of Sentence." [1] won an Oscar this year, depicting Indian women taking control of the production process of pads manufacturing. In a strange sense, while that process helped women gain a bit of control over their bodies and their lives, which is a good thing; and while it probably also helped some girls stay in school, as some girls mentioned feeling ashamed of doing so during their perio…

> "Period, End of Sentence." That's quite a remarkable title.

I like the pun but I also like just how open it is. It really tries to illustrate that "period" isn't a dirty word and that it is a normal bodily function.

Re: Menstrual Cups Help Keep Kenyan Girls in School

#97

Post by gknoy » Tue, Apr 23, 2019, 4:26 PM UTC

robin_reala wrote: post #46

lixtra wrote: post #41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What is the tax status of razor blades in your state?

Shaving is both not a necessity and something people of every gender do equally.

Razor blades are also substantially cheaper than feminine hygiene products. One number I saw was that the average woman spends $150 - $300 per year on pads.

In contrast, I can spend an order of magnitude less on razor blades, as a pack of Harry's blades end up being something like $2/each, and that's basically about a dollar or two a month (or less).

Re: Menstrual Cups Help Keep Kenyan Girls in School

#98

Post by JudgeWapner » Tue, Apr 23, 2019, 4:45 PM UTC

franky47 wrote: post #14

The short film "Period, End of Sentence." [1] won an Oscar this year, depicting Indian women taking control of the production process of pads manufacturing. In a strange sense, while that process helped women gain a bit of control over their bodies and their lives, which is a good thing; and while it probably also helped some girls stay in school, as some girls mentioned feeling ashamed of doing so during their perio…

> while also respecting the environment

Honest question: is it disrespecting the environment to harvest cotton/paper from the earth and put it back in the earth? They're both biodegradeable and renewable. If anything, I think that it would take carbon from the atmosphere and sequester it for decades, which is a net positive.

Re: Menstrual Cups Help Keep Kenyan Girls in School

#99

Post by jpindar » Tue, Apr 23, 2019, 4:49 PM UTC

dfxm12 wrote: post #86

rlabrecque wrote: post #2

It absolutely blows my mind that Menstrual cups aren't more widespread globally. I basically wouldn't even know about them if my partner didn't use them. They seem like a better option than tampons and pads 90%+ of the time.

Is this a new product? I've only recently heard of them, but it seems like I'm hearing about them a lot.

No, they've been around for many years, and there are many different designs/brands.

Re: Menstrual Cups Help Keep Kenyan Girls in School

#100

Post by drewmol » Tue, Apr 23, 2019, 5:06 PM UTC

fhw8fhe wrote: post #22

drewmol wrote: post #13

If the topic is not your interest but web design is, check out the article for the cool verticle scrolling progress indicator that's displayed horizontally in the floating top menu bar. My mother has been involved in operating and supporting a network of Kenyan orphanages for decades. She's on the board of directors for the US 501c3 that funds them. The woman who founded this organization (a US citizen) adopted sever…

Hey. Just wanted to say thanks for sharing this story.

My pleasure. Wanted to keep it short, additional context: The organizations founder quite likely believed the allegations but couldn't bear to see the child she adopted and raised from 6 y/o end up in a Kenyan prison. The Freedom from Fistula foundation opend clinics to provide free maturity care, and outpatient obstetric ﬁstula repair surgery. Women with the condition become incontinent and are often shunned from society, it's a result of inadequate medical care during childbirth and it can be repaired with a routine, single day outpatient procedure.