Dealing With Female Stuff While Climbing
Attention male friends: do not read this!
You’ve been warned.
Hey Steph…
Was puzzling out a dilemma about climbing the North Chimney at Castleton with a really good guy friend of mine (muy guapo), dilemma, flow came to visit a day before we leave for Moab….but I don’t want to bail.Have you ever braved this new world?…I have always managed to bail or luck out. And usually dehydrate myself significantly enough I never pee on a multi….(bad I know) I was thinking stashing wipes and tampons in a ziplock in my chalk bag…and just yelling at him to look the other way……horrible horrible dilemma….any advice?
-Michelle
Hi Michelle,
With regards to being dehydrated so you don’t have to pee on a multi-pitch route ever: don’t do that. You should always hydrate like crazy before and after climbing so you can carry less water up the rock! Remember, if you are wearing elastic waist pants, all you have to do is squat and yank the back of your pants down and the elastic of your legloops is going to stretch too, and it’s literally easy as pie. If your pants have a fly, you just undo the fly and proceed to step B: cake. You can even do this in a hanging belay, and if you have any kind of ledge it’s a 2 second procedure (well, depending on how fast you empty).
The Diva cup is one of the best things I own, and totally eliminates any of these problems. If you’re on a heavy bleeding day, you may want to go hide behind a boulder, dump it out and rinse it with water and put it back in right before you start the climb. Usually I can go many hours without having it overflow.
Phew, this post is really bordering on TMI. But, we’re climbers and we’re not scared.
🙂 Steph
I definitely concur. I like OB for applicator free action and also but SUPER sized, even if it’s light. The body reacts to stress sometimes by dumping more plus I’m paranoid. Ahem, tuck the string. Can’t agree more about hydrating, especially in a dry climate. I’d rather pee tgan die 🙂
Great topic!
Two words: DIVA CUP. They last up to 12 hours without needing to be emptied (longer if your flow is lighter), with zero risk of TSS. All you need to clean it out is a wet wipe or two!
I love OBs, and I also love Diva Cups. If you go the Diva Cup route make sure you’ve had a few days of practice with it before trusting it as it takes some getting used to how to insert it without leakage. A Diva Cup should give you HOURS of freedom. I can usually change it only twice a day, at most every 8 hours. Freedom!
I recommend using a menstrual cup (like the Diva cup). I can wear mine for 12 hours, even on my heavy flow days, without emptying it.
🙂 these are my favorite: seems like organic is a good option for this particular application http://www.natracare.com/p75/en-GB/Natracare-Products/Tampons/Without-Applicator/Regular.aspx
those who aren’t prone to UTIs like the diva cup.
I really recommend the Diva cup! Not only for climbing but long hikes, yoga, swimming, anything and everything really!
agreed! I learned the hard way…go with diva cup!
…Diva cup IF you have consistently practiced how to use it – correctly -. My first time using one would have put the most gory horror scene to shame. And that is bordering on TMI do I will stop there….
Prone to UTIs and until very recently an IUD user and have been using a Mooncup (UK) for years with no problems! I find disposables cause more UTIs due to interfering with the whole environment in the pants department! Can’t recommend enough, 12 hours on a normal day, 8 on a heavy, just find a brand that fits and is comfortable and practice til you get the knack. Good luck! 🙂
Also, consider investing in a she-wee for the other issue! Hydration is key!
Best thing about IUS (with hormone)? Basically no periods any more. Doesn’t work for everyone but works for a lot of people, I’m a tropical biologist and find it great for fieldwork esp. in areas where I can’t buy tampons. And hydrate like hell, even if it makes you pee loads – dehydation can do horrible things to you.
A couple baby wipes instead of TP for me on period days. I have even been knows to put 2 Super ob’s in together on long climbs if I am worried. I tie the strings together just in case one decides to migrate :).
I have an IUD, but also use a DivaCup with no incidents. I had the IUD first, so I talked to my OB/GYN about how that would work with a Diva Cup. She told me I should be fine.
Thanks, I’m definitely switching!
I’m sure the Diva Cup is great, but I’ve tried menstrual cups and found that my urethra got irritated – so it actually led to UTIs for me. On the other hand, I think it’s time to stop being embarrassed by menstruation; I bring tampons and ziploc bags and just have them with me. I have changed tampons on the top of so many rock formations! In my experience men are perfectly willing to look the other way.
I always say, it’s not a climbing trip if Kat doesn’t have her period. I think I’ve been on only one trip where I hadn’t had to deal with this. I’m a big fan of Naturecare no-applicator tampons. They’re all cotton, unlike OB, so they absorb more.
Also, I know several IUD babies. Just sayin’.
I use diva and have an IUD. This has been what I use exclusively and that includes many a climbing adventure over the last 7 years. It’s never been a problem for me at all in any way (except the one time I forgot it at home). The climbing companions never know a thing. And also, yes, hydrate! It’s a perfect record for me to have peed on every single mountain top I’ve summited (dozens! ..and multiple times on the way up and down too of course!) Staying properly hydrated and regularly peeing helps with decreasing the possibility of uti’s (thus I’ve never had to deal with a uti)
I have had the same diva cup induce UTI situation before. The solution for me was to use a smaller cup and hey presto! no more UTI issue.
So–all advice was perfect and we mini epic-ed and I did not eat or drink enough and flow was scared away and able to be dealt with before and after……..but def. will use all of this awesome advice…thanks ladies!!!
a short note about IUD’s, i had the mirena for 4.5 years and loved it… until I got an ovarian cyst so painful and large it needed surgery to be removed… and i deal with tampons on trips.. it more or less functions…
I’m sorry Lisa, that sounds horrible 🙁 I got a copper IUD because I don’t want to have any hormones altered in my body, so I don’t want to use the pill or any other thing that will change my natural makeup. I’ve had the copper IUD since 2007, and it has been the best thing ever for me.
i actually did a bit of digging after i got my mirena iud removed because i really liked the birth control method and was wondering if the copper one has different statistics concerning ovarian cysts. Actually, the rates are around the same both, ~10% of women develop cysts. and since it happened with one method, I’m betting my chances are pretty good of it happening again with the other one, at least the numbers are such that I am not willing to take chance again. Surgery just sucks too much in general. I think that the IUD’s are wonderful devices for the women that they work for, unfortunately, as it turns out, i am not one of those women. and trust, I am a more than a bit disappointed because i thoroughly enjoyed my 4 years of freedom. but who knows, maybe in 10 years, they will come out with something that I can try 🙂
Re: peeing– I’m not sure I understand your suggestion! If you don’t want to pee onto the rock you’re climbing, should you try aiming for a bottle? I am a little sceptical of my ability to aim/ not pee on my hands….
Late to the convo, but thought I’d chime in anyway. I use an old Nalgene (that is now NEVER used for drinking) as a tampon graveyard while out at the crag or backpacking. Coffee grounds from the morning also go in there, which masks the other less desirable contents. This might not work on multi-pitches, but it works great on the ground and I never worry about accidentally ripping a ziploc when I’m shoving things back into my pack.
thanks Sara 🙂