Growing up.

I had been having cramps for a few weeks. Mum took me into her bedroom, showed me the Dr. Whites and gave me a belt. I was in complete denial I was totally ignorant up till then.
I was 11 and we were away on holiday for the first time rather than just days out, when my first period came. I remember that holiday as an awful time, not the fun it should have been. The weird sensation made me feel I needed the loo all the time and mum got cross because I think we ended up knowing where every public convenience was in Weston-Super-Mare

Just as I said - how could they all be so awful, knowing themselves how bad it was? I remember it dominating my life for quite a few years, I couldn't wait for my menopause. The pill helped hugely, making periods much lighter. In fact my mother marched me off to the doctor at a very young age, just to help me, long before I knew much about boys. Doctors however thought that you should have little 'breaks' from the pill, I didn't agree. So I used to save one or two pills every month and hold them back to take during my enforced pill break. I also learnt how to manipulate them so that I could be sure of not having a period during a holiday. The 28 day pill soon got discarded when I discovered that it was no such thing.

Mine were so heavy, long and painful that sometimes I just couldn't leave the house. I never did progress to tampons, as they were useless for me.
I always think of the fact that I didn't really have a menopause as my compensation My periods suddenly stopped at 50 and I had none of the awful side effects.

My mum was quite enlightened. She was very matter of fact and wanted me to use tampons as soon as possible - having been a dancer she'd used tampons from an early age. It was me who was the embarrassed one! We had a male chemist and I dreaded going to purchase sanitary towels but he was fine about it of course. I was also embarrassed when mum said to dad 'you've now got a grown up daughter' - I was 12. My own daughter has never been embarrassed about talking about periods thankfully so I must have done something right. I was lucky enough to more or less sail through the menopause - just the odd flush now and again - and I must say I don't miss all the palaver each month at all.

My poor friend started whilst still at primary school just before she was 10. The school didn't even have locks on the girls' toilets.
Her lovely mum went to the school and explained to the Head and provision was made for her to have access to the staff loo.(It was an all girls' school).PE and swimming were off limits to her at times.
I, of course, knew nothing of this, and started aged 15.
She told me a couple of years ago how embarrassing it all was.

I was eleven and knew what it was (biology lessons)but had to get home from school on the bus and was worried it would be visible. Once home I told my mum who furnished me with the dr whites and a tape belt. I then cycled off to my piano lesson. I remember being one if the first at my school and consequently my friends were quite impressed! The novelty soon wore off though - especially in hot weather.

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It was no big thing for me probably because my mum was a nurse . What I do remember was we had a shop that sold everything and the ladies who lived round about would come in and ask for a pack of "piano dusters ".

I remember it all so well. My parents were older than average so any mention of things below the belt was just not on. I did have the pink belt and pads and was told not to have a bath or wash my hair at this time. Nothing else was explained but I was told ' not to bring trouble to the door ' I didn't know for a long time what was being referred to.
The sketches Les Dawson and Roy Barraclough did of the two ladies talking in hushed tones was so true.

I remember my poor mum telling me all about periods one lunchtime - she was so mortified but soldiered on. I just sat there and was also mortified because I had learnt all about them at school and couldn't manage to tell her. Bless her when I finally started my periods at 14 she gave me some pads and a belt and shown me where to put the used pads so she could dispose of them.

Started mine when I was away at Girl Guide camp. A very motherly Brown Owl (mother of three girls herself) sorted me out nicely. My mum had already told me all about it.

I was 10 and still at primary school when I started my periods. My mother had told me nothing but fortunately, an older friend and her sister discussed it when we were out together a week or so before'it' happened. As I was at school at the time I went to see the headmistress, a large Irish nun with a loud booming voice, to ask what to do.
"Dear Lord in heaven," She cried. "You're the only girl in the school, as far as I know".
That made me feel like a freak. She nipped out into the convent and brought back some pads and a belt. I was stunned at the thought that nuns had periods!
Once home my mum was horrified and just showed me where supplies were kept and told me to keep away from boys as I could now have a baby.?
Needless to say, my own DD was MUCH better prepared!

11 or 12 when my periods began. I sort of knew what they were about but was unprepared for the discomfort of both the period and the horrid belt and pads (referred to as 'ST's). I was 17 and on a residential course when I discovered tampons, a fellow course member introduced me to them, so much better but I recall Mum just ignoring them when I got home. At least she didn't forbid the use!

I didn't start having periods till I was 15. My mum had already dragged me off to the doctors thinking something was wrong with me. Even I knew I was probably fine just small for my age and still well within normal limits!!

I remember my dear old Mum being embarrassed to death, as others have said, with talk of anything below the waist. I must have found out at school from biology and friends. I had an awful time, in dreadful pain, fainting-awful. The pill was a miracle my problem was obviously hormonal. Everyone kept saying if you think that's bad, wait til you have a baby! I could have had a baby every day in comparison. Easy Peasy. Hard work but not that terrible pain and fainting-and worth it!
I do remember DrWhites and an uncomfortable belt. Tampax and those sticky backed pads so didn't need a belt were wonderful.
So glad it's all long since finished.
I agree it's a design fault-I would have a little switch on your arm for when you needed to be fertile and then switch it off again. Mind you I also wanted a detachable bump when pregnant, attached but removable, say, in bed. I've always had a strange imagination.
I can't remember how I told DDs. Will ask them. Wonder if they've been in therapy for years? They are both happily married and mothers of daughters themselves so will ask.

I totally agree with you Newquay about having a baby being preferable to the pain of periods. I too used to faint and be in agony but my dad wouldn't allow me to go on the pill. He maybe thought it would encourage me to be promiscuous. He needn't have worried I wasn't tempted at all in that direction and didn't indulge until I was married at 21.

Our DD born in '82 started without telling us, all her friends did the same, She brought the ST out of her pocket monies, it seems that the school gave them a very good grounding on all things human. We did talk about things, but it always ended up talking about the latest boy band or Jonnie Depp.

Life moves on.

I would be about 8 or 9 and staying with a friend who had 4 older sisters (I was an only child) - we went to the cinema toilets and she told me that when they get older girls bleed when they go to the toilet. I'd no idea what she was talking about of course and was frightened but over the following few years friends at school enlightened me. I was quite late starting at 14 but my mum had told me nothing at all. Luckily we owned a drapers shop and sold Nikini pads and Dr Whites so I went downstairs and helped myself to the necessary things before finally telling her. Her only words were 'well you know what can happen to you now don't you' meaning pregnancy. Mum had been illegitimate which was a huge stigma in the 1920's so she was mortified by anything like that. Move on to 7 years ago when my then 11 year old granddaughter started her periods the whole family knew! Her mum said she wasn't at all bothered about it all and she had to keep telling her it was quite a private thing and she should be more careful about where she left everything!!

I woke up one morning ( think I was 13) and my pyjamas were covered in blood, I knew nothing about periods I had no idea what was going on. I took my pyjamas off and put them in the bottom of the wash basket. A couple of days later my mum came up to me holding the blooded pyjamas and asked how long ago that happened, I remember being very upset, then she went off and came back and thrust a sanitary belt and pad into my hands and told me to put it on. There was no explaination as to what was happening to my body! I went into the bathroom and had no idea how to use the belt and towel and had to call out and ask my mum how to put it on!!

I learnt about it all at my all girls school. Don't remember Mum saying anything other than supplying pads.
It was funny when most of the class would plead "time of the month" to get off swimming, some every week. Our teacher would produce a box of tampons hand them out and give us 5 minutes to come back!
My daughters amassed loads of free samples from the age of about 10 so we had a cupboard full when the time came. A time to be grateful for advertising.

I vaguely remember Mum telling me about periods, but the thing that does stick in my mind, is that she said, " if anything happens when I am out, you can always tell Dad". Oh the embarrasment. Also being asked to go to the corner shop for my auntie/neighbour to get her a pack of ST's.

My mum just told me when I was about 10 that I would be starting periods soon and showed me where the Dr Whites and a sanitary belt was. I was 11 when I started at school and couldn't wait to get home and use them. I told my sister. I blame my gran - she didn't tell my mum anything. My poor mum thought she was dying when she had her first period :-(

I was 10 when my periods started and as my birth mother had buggered off when I was 7 I had to tell my poor dad. He had to rush out to buy some Dr Whites and then left me to sort it out. Fortunately my best friends mum stepped in

I remember seeing on my mother's shopping list (before I started periods) a line saying "bunnies for phoenix"

I was so excited, I thought I was getting pet rabbits!

Of course, she was making sure that we had the necessary stuff for when I started my periods!

And yes, it was the dreaded belt and ST's

There was great relief when I started my periods at about the age of 13. I had been desperately ill just before my 12th birthday with meningitis and there was a lot of worry as to whether or not I was "normal" in various ways.