period panties

I'm not a huge fan of the word "panties" but the alliteration! I LOOOOOVE alliteration. Worth it.

Also, I'm going to talk about my period A LOT here, so if that's not your jam, skip this post. OK? OK.

Let's talk my period:
The Pink Streak - this is a teaser. I'll start my period in 12-36 hours, but it's a crapshoot as to when exactly that will be.
Day 1 - This is a medium day for me, I typically change my DivaCup about 3 times over the course of 24 hours.
Day 2 - HEAVY day, which for me means 4-5 DivaCup changes.
Day 3 - Pretty much a mirror of Day 1.
Day 4 - Light day, I can go about 12 hours between DivaCup changes.
Day 5 - Similar to Day 4...and usually my last period day.

I've used the DivaCup exclusively since I purchased it in 2011. [The two sentence DivaCup summary: A silicone menstrual cup that sits in the vaginal canal that you remove and clean and then put back in. You can wear it for up to 12 hours.] I ADORE the DivaCup.

When I started nursing [taking care of patients not feeding tiny humans with my breasts], I realized I don't actually get to go to the bathroom every time I need/want to. UGH. So, when I read this review of Thinx, I dived in and I'm going deep.

I bought 3 pairs of Thinx. I got the sport, hiphugger, and hi-waist.

On Day 1 of my period, I threw on the sport undies and NOTHING ELSE. I was free flowing. Let me just say, after about 18 years of using tampons and the DivaCup, free flowing felt...scary. [And also a little bit like a leaky faucet.] Remember in middle school when girls would start their period and someone would inevitably end up with a patch of blood on her backside?

I didn't want to be that girl.

But, I rolled with it. I kept those period panties on and that was it. Day 1 went pretty smoothly really. No leaking. NO LEAKING. What is this genius invention? On Day 2 [my heavy day] I put on the hiphuggers. Again, no leaking. The crotch is made of some kind of magical fabric that just absorbs everything and stays dry. I put toilet paper on it. I put my bare hand on it. IT'S SO WEIRD AND AMAZING. How can it not even be wet? I wore my hi-waist Thinx on the third day. Again, perfect results.

I wore each pair for 24 hours and I felt like they got a little smelly after about 15 hours. Maybe I'm super sensitive to smells, but if I were exclusively use Thinx, I would want to put on a new pair every 12 hours or so. That's quite an investment if you check the prices.

Questions from FB:
Leakage?
None. Nada. ZIP. I even got a massage while I was on my period without feeling like I was going to bleed errywhere.
Did you feel confident enough to wear white pants?
Honestly, I would. I only purchased the black Thinx, but maybe if I got the nude ones? If I had a big event [like if I were in a wedding or something] I would totally get some to wear under everything to feel extra safe.
Cleaning process? Do things really come totally clean? Did you find it easy to clean?
The directions on the website state to rinse when you're done wearing them, then wash cold and hang dry. No bleach or softener. The rinsing was the only extra step that would be outside my normal laundry routine, but I didn't find it time consuming. They got totally clean. No smells after.
Does it feel "pad" like? 
It doesn't feel like a pad, but they are thicker than my normal undies. I'm a hardcore cotton panties girl, because your lady parts need to breathe, y'all. These are definitely synthetic fabric, but it's only a few days.
Visible panty lines?
I never noticed any panty lines. I wore dresses, leggings, and scrubs in the first days I wore these.

I'm willing to declare myself a fan.

These would have been perfect when I was just starting my period in 5th grade. These would make an amazing gift to a new mom postpartum [you know when you're uterus is just like "I MADE A BABY NOW YOU WILL BLEED FOR DAYS AND DAYS AND DAYS" and you're doctor/midwife is like "don't put anything in your vagina for 6 weeks"]. Or just get some for yourself. Here's a link for $10 off.