Period Packs

This is such a cool idea! Period Packs is a company that sells gift packs to give to girls when they have their first period. The gift pack includes not only menstrual products (like pads or tampons), but also a copy of the book Period., a calendar to keep track of her cycle, and a couple fun items like lip gloss and cocoa.

I was touched by Period Packs founder Wendy Bulawa Agudelo's story about why she started the company:

I was brought up on a farm in Upstate New York alongside three brothers and my father.  As you can imagine, getting your period amid all that testosterone in rural America was interesting to say the least. The day I got my period, I remember calling my father’s office to let him know and to figure out what to do. He seemed flustered but said he’d be home soon and would bring me the things I needed. At that point I thought, ‘Okay, that’s great, but what do I do now? Do I just wad up some toilet paper in my underwear? Take a shower or a bath?’  Needless to say, I was confused. A few hours later, my father arrived home with a package of maxi pads, and uncomfortably explained that I needed to wear them and to read the instructions on the package. He also suggested I call one of my aunts. The poor man, he was so ill prepared and obviously uncomfortable that his only daughter and precious little girl was going through a monumental change. I was growing up, and similar to most fathers, mine dreaded this day as I began to transform from little girl to young woman. 

Being a teenager, I felt completely awkward and didn’t really want to call my aunts to discuss ‘cousin Red.’ I instead visited the school nurse who gave me a preparation pack of sorts—containing various size pads and panty liners as well as a booklet on ‘Getting Your Period.’  Oh, the joy I felt from receiving a simple box of goodies and information. It was if I had just received the most wonderful of unexpected presents! And, that feeling of excitement stuck with me.

I really like the idea of creating gift packages like these without the corporate sponsorship. Even though "alternative" products aren't included in these packages, the Diva cup is at least mentioned on the website, so I like that too.  Period Packs also offers an Organic Period Pack (which also happens to be less pink... I appreciated that).

The Organic Period Pack

When I was about ten, I got a package of product samples from Procter & Gamble in the mail. I was thrilled. It came in a teal velcro case covered with inspiring quotes and a couple booklets. I read over that stuff probably a hundred times and studied every product. And still when I got my period (three years later) it was so totally different than I expected! I think gifts like these can do a lot of good in preparing girls for their first period and making them feel like they can handle it.