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Menstruation and advertising


I recently came across the website for the Museum of Menstruation, a collection of thousands of menstruation products and advertisements run by Harry Finley, a retired employee of the U.S. Department of Defense. If you have any interest in seeing some of the classic advertising, I highly recommend checking it out. You can start with a tour of the museum that begins with the image above, a description from about 1550 BCE on how lint (fetet) could prevent conception...

Another highlight is the Kotex booklet for girls from 1928, Marjorie May's Twelfth Birthday. And a current article on OB, one of the few products that appears to change the meaning of its name depending on the country it's advertising in. I wish I could have seen the museum in person. The changing advertising language and products provide fascinating insights about how we view and society views what can be a painful part of some of our lives.

Didn't miss it

One of the best things about being pregnant and breastfeeding was that I didn't get my period for almost 2 years! It was not a good day when I got surprised by its return.

  • By kmanies at 7 Mar 2006 - 15:35
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Not a big fan either

I also greatly enjoyed not having my period. I think it returned within a day or two of forty weeks after giving birth for each child. A good friend got hers within two months of giving birth even though she was breastfeeding. She was really bummed.

One of the reasons I dislike getting my period so much is that I've had horrible PMS since high school. I used to take codeine for the cramps but I didn't like the side effects so I switched to Aleve once it was available. Unfortunately, I took too many Aleve about seven years ago and ended up with some sort of pre-ulcer condition. It was very painful and I ate mainly rice and Prilosec for the next month. So I was happy to have a break from the cramps. Sadly, my cramps have started to return. I'm not sure why they disappeared for so long or why they are back but it's making family life more challenging.

  • By HighMaintenanceMom at 8 Mar 2006 - 22:45
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