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What do you call sanitary towels?

(143 Posts)
Blondiescot Sat 15-Jul-23 16:18:05

I remember going with my mum to what was a little draper's shop in our home village. She'd be discreetly handed a brown paper package and nothing was said. It was years before I actually twigged what was in that package. I still don't understand why it was the draper's shop which sold them though. Thank god we've moved on from that nonsense.

downtoearth Sat 15-Jul-23 16:14:38

DGD Period pads
DD fanny curtains
ME STs and girls in my year ar secondary school in the 60's,same as Sharon 103
I started work at 15 in Timothy Whites,that became Boots I have had a lot of nodding and winking in the general direction of what was required and they where duscreetly slipped into a bag under the counter.
My innocence was shattered at having to sell durex,alluded to as in the happy boys drawer grin

Calendargirl Sat 15-Jul-23 16:13:30

I would just call them sanitary towels, that’s what they are.

Foxygloves Sat 15-Jul-23 16:01:03

No idea, I haven’t used the term for years.
But I remember when I was maybe about 11 or 12 my mother sent me to the chemist for some indigestion tablets called “Tums”
When I asked for these by name only, , the assistant, a rather shy young man blushed to the roots of his hair, reached under the counter and gave me a rectangular package wrapped in brown paper. Puzzled I took the package home to general hilarity. 😳😳😳

sodapop Sat 15-Jul-23 15:30:59

I call them pads as well.

I remember when I first started nursing they were bulky cotton wool affairs and we called them bunnies.

Cherrytree59 Sat 15-Jul-23 15:29:22

Just period pads.
Often called San-pro on Mumsnet

GrandmaKT Sat 15-Jul-23 15:28:45

A guy I knew once told me that when he was about 7, his mum asked him and his younger brother to go to the chemist to get her some. (I found this pretty shocking, but his mum did have mental health issues...) Anyway, they went up to the counter and asked for "some jam butties for me mam"! blush

Deedaa Sat 15-Jul-23 15:28:15

I call them something I haven't had to use for over 50 years!

sharon103 Sat 15-Jul-23 15:26:44

I'll probably get this taken off but years back and was at secondary school we used to call them jam rags.

Blondiescot Sat 15-Jul-23 15:24:59

DaisyAnneReturns

You can get very pretty reusable period pads. Probably a lot better for her as well as the environment, as they won't have the hygroscopic gel in, that they all seem to use these days.

You also get very good period pants now. Worth considering.

Smileless2012 Sat 15-Jul-23 15:24:01

Neither do I Norah but would still call them ST's if I did.

Norah Sat 15-Jul-23 15:16:07

Thanks be to God, I don't have to name them - no need any longer. smile

nexus63 Sat 15-Jul-23 15:16:04

i "came on" grans term for periods and i called them towels, i was only 10, i found out a year later about lil-lets and called them that.

DaisyAnneReturns Sat 15-Jul-23 15:09:55

You can get very pretty reusable period pads. Probably a lot better for her as well as the environment, as they won't have the hygroscopic gel in, that they all seem to use these days.

merlotgran Sat 15-Jul-23 15:07:17

I think they’re called period pads now.

Oopsadaisy1 Sat 15-Jul-23 15:06:29

We used to call them ST’s back in the day, then Tampax became all the rage.

Blondiescot Sat 15-Jul-23 14:58:58

Fanny pads!

Mollygo Sat 15-Jul-23 14:57:06

Shopping with my teenage DGD I said her mum had asked me to get some sanitary towels and did she know which sort her mum wanted.
She told me that I shouldn’t call them sanitary towels, because it implies that having a period is insanitary.
I should evidently just call them pads or tampons.
She went on to tell me how bad they were for the environment. I was tempted to ask if she’d like to use washable/ reusable strips of fabric.
I usually call them pads, but is the instruction new?