#My washing machine was a secondhand LG frontloader I got off craigslist for $200

[aprillikesthings]

if you have period underwear

and/or re-usable fabric pads, a lot of people will tell you rinse them the moment you take them off, or soak them before washing. I have never managed to do this consistently??

(Also the times I rinsed them out I was like...okay but now I have soaking wet, still not-clean period undies. Now what.)

But if you just toss them (dried blood and all) into your normal cold-water wash they don't always get clean enough plus, I dunno, it feels Icky to me. (YMMV, if you're using them only for backup to tampons/cups it's not a big deal; but when I've worn just period undies on a heavier day....oof.)

But what DOES work for me:

First, I just wash them in a normal (low-water) cold water wash by themselves.

Then, when that cycle is over, I add the rest of my cold water load and run it normally. So the pads/undies get washed twice: once by themselves, and once with a normal load of clothes.

(And I always air-dry them.)

Obviously this isn't a great option if you pay for every load you wash--I have laundry hook-ups and own my washer.

ALSO I have ADHD if I'm not sitting in the living room where I can hear the washing machine sing its little "I'm done!" song, I set a timer to remind me to flip the laundry otherwise I would NEVER REMEMBER

#menstruation #periods #my posts #period underwear #cloth pads #(I used to use a cup but they all irritate my vagina now which SUCKS #I have no idea why/how it makes no sense??? I washed them I boiled them I tried buying a new one #but no matter what a few days into my cycle I'd feel like I was getting a Yeastie and I was not I was just irritated!! so I had to stop ;_; #and now it's just period underwear/cloth pads and sometimes a disposable pad and/or tampon) #My washing machine was a secondhand LG frontloader I got off craigslist for $200 #like six years ago?? #secondhand appliances ftw #so many new ones suck buy one just a couple of years old!! #as long as it works it's probably fine for years and years after that #I had a replace a valve on it once but I did it myself for $20 #bless people who upload repair videos to youtube okay