Bathroom Things
The nature of menstruation requires much of it to be handled in a bathroom, more specifically inside a stall. Yes, it involves a vagina. Some degree of privacy is understandable, although the setup of urinals in men’s bathrooms suggests that privacy around genitalia is negotiable. Anyway.
Changing a pad, inserting a tampon, emptying a menstrual cup, and disposing of whatever needs to be disposed of are all considered bathroom things, along with peeing and pooping. Yet the only feature most bathroom stalls provide specifically for menstruation is a tiny metal disposal bin. And that is all we get.
That bin may have been somewhat sufficient when the main options were disposable pads and tampons. Menstrual products, however, have evolved. Not as quickly as I would like, but they have. We now have period underwear, menstrual discs, and menstrual cups. The bathroom stall, meanwhile, remains exactly the same. I am particularly interested in menstrual cups.
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Unlike pads and tampons, which absorb blood, a cup sits inside the vagina and collects it. It can hold menstrual fluid for several hours, depending on the cup and the person’s flow. Then it can be removed, emptied, cleaned, and reinserted. It is reusable, creates less waste, and does not require buying another box of tampons every month. In theory, it sounds great.
My daily life sometimes limits my bathroom visits to once every two hours. During the heavier days of my period, even two hours can feel like I am pushing my luck with a tampon. And we all know what happens when that luck runs out: leakage. Blood. Rage. Panic. Complete chaos. Possibly the end of the world. Naturally, the longer capacity of a menstrual cup intrigued me.
Unfortunately, the process of emptying one in a public bathroom did not. To remove and reinsert a cup as cleanly as possible, I would want to wash my hands, empty the cup, rinse it, and put it back in. That is simple enough at home, where the toilet and sink are in the same private room. In a public bathroom, however, the sink is usually outside the stall. That leaves me with several appealing options. I could remove the cup, empty it, unlock the stall, and walk toward the communal sink holding a bloody silicone cup in my hand. After rinsing it in front of everyone, I could carry it back into the stall and reinsert it. I am sure everybody involved would have a peaceful and normal experience.
Alternatively, I could empty it, wipe it off or reinsert it without rinsing, depending on the product’s instructions. I could also carry a bottle of water or special wipes into the bathroom. But having to assemble a small menstrual survival kit just to compensate for the absence of a sink inside the stall seems slightly unreasonable. For a long time, breastfeeding and pumping were also pushed into bathrooms because they involved breasts and required privacy. Slowly, dedicated lactation spaces became more common because people recognized that bodily privacy does not automatically make something a bathroom activity.
Menstrual care is different because a toilet is genuinely useful, but a toilet alone is not always enough. Sometimes what is needed is a toilet, privacy, and running water in the same place. Until public bathrooms catch up, I will probably continue using tampons. At least the stall has a tiny metal box for those. Five stars for the box.
