Save money, the environment and your vagina

As a female, I statistically spend 25% of my time walking around with my knees clenched together because it's That Time of the Month. I always resented that not only is it uncomfortable and inconvenient to have a period, but it was expensive as well. I used to spend $10 a month on tampons.

A couple of years ago I made the switch to using a cup, and I have never looked back.

Comfort and practicality

Firstly, a menstrual cup (specifically a Mooncup) is easily the most comfortable thing I have ever used. Back when I used tampons I always struggled to get them in exactly the right place, and I remember not being able to sleep some nights because I couldn't get settled. 

While the first month or two using a cup requires a lot of practice to get things just right, once you learn the tricks it's easy to forget that you are even wearing a cup. In fact I did the other day! 

Even better than the comfort though is the practicality. I think we've all had a moment when we've flipped open our tampon box to find that we've run out. In high school and university I remember awkwardly approaching near strangers to ask if they had any spares. 

I have been using the same cup for four years now. I have bought a second one, but that was only because I accidentally packed it in the wrong bag. I decided I'd rather have two Mooncups (one in each bag) than constantly remember to swap it between bags and end up awkwardly missing it.

Apart from some discolouration, my cup looks exactly the same as the day I bought it. You can wear it when you swim, when your hiking or playing high contact sports. I've worn it overnight without any spillage. I've also (accidentally) worn it for two days without a leak - I don't recommend this. For proper hygiene you should be emptying the cup twice a day, but it's so comfortable you can easily forget.

Day to day usage is super easy. You need to take out your cup and empty it twice a day. If you're in a public bathroom you can quickly wipe it out with some toilet paper before replacing it. If you're at home give it a quick rinse under a tap.

Long term, you should sterilise your cup every few months. You can either soak it in boiling water or wash it with gentle soap - just make sure you let it air dry after. It's as simple as that.

Finances

Okay, here we go, this is a finance blog, so how much money does a menstrual cup save me? Over $100 a year. 

I have a reasonably unreliable period, which I believe is a side effect of the Implanon implant I use for a contraceptive. As such when I used tampons I was generally going through 40 a month for a period that would last more than ten days. The cheapest tampons you can by these days are 11cents each, or in my case, $4.40 a month. However I found the cheap options never worked consistently and led to leakage and buying new underwear. 

Between the slightly higher shelf tampons and buying replacements, I was easily burning through $100 a year on something I had no choice about. Invested over 10 years this costs over $1,450. For something I have no control over! Put another way if I wanted to invest enough to cover that cost I would need $2,500 in the bank. Just to pay for my period.

Buying two cups back in 2013 cost me a measly $100 after paying for shipping and currency exchanges (the Australia Dollar wasn't particularly strong then). In four years I've saved over $400 by using a cup, that's 100% return each year. You can buy one today and join the cheap, comfortable revolution!

Environmentally Friendly

I've saved a lot more than money though. Plastic takes centuries to break down, and every tampon comes individually wrapped. While the tampons themselves might be biodegradable, the process to make them requires a large amount of chemicals, processing and shipping. 

Cups are made from medical grade silicon, which also won't degrade. However after four years of usage my cup (produced once, and shipped to me once) has used significantly less resources than a four year supply of tampons, and created a significantly smaller amount of waste than hundreds of plastic wrappers.

While this blog is about personal finance and retiring early, there's no point in escaping the rat race to a planet buried under mounds of rubbish.

But it's gross!

This is the number one complaint from women who are reluctant to try a menstrual cup. This is something that we need to get over. As an adult woman you will bleed from your vagina once a month for thirty to forty years. Do you really intend to spend all that time grossed out by a basic bodily function? No, of course not.

Most times when I change my cup there is no mess. Occasionally you will get a small amount of blood on your hands. Wipe it off with some toilet paper, then wash your hands like you were going to anyway. In the worst case scenario you might want to invest in a nail brush, but I very very rarely need one.

What are you waiting for?

For a measly £25.99 plus shipping you can have the convenience, comfort and cash-saving powers of a menstrual cup from MoonCup UK.

And if you think dealing with your period sucks, try living in East Africa. Without access to proper supplies, and the cost of a packet of pads equal to 60% of the daily wage, women in East Africa resort to using things like twigs, leaves, mud and mattress stuffing. These substitutes are ineffective, and lead to infections and long-term damage. Young girls in East Africa miss up to 20% of their school year because they cannot afford sanitary products. If this blog was preaching to the converted, or you want to change someones life, you can donate reusable pads or a menstrual cup via Femme International.

How the Pink Tax is ruining your finances

Have you ever actually sat down and worked out how much it costs to be a presentable, functional human being. There's clothes, hair, make-up, hygiene, the inevitable caffeine hit to get you through the morning. Sometime in the past some smart marketing gurus figured out that if they make us feel bad about ourselves the way we are, they can sell us products to 'fix' ourselves. 

And then they realised they could hit women twice as hard. 

Some women are enamored with hair, make-up, nice clothes, nice shoes and will go the whole nine yards every day, whether they leave the house or not. Let's start by saying I'm not one of them. My makeup in high school was black eyeliner (as thick as it could go) and my hair was permanently in a pony tail. Unless I had just cut it in a vague attempt to be stylish, then I was just wishing for it to grow back.

But even with my minimal approach to hair and makeup, I was endlessly frustrated with how expensive everything was. And not just that it was expensive, but that it was more expensive for me than my partner. I once rang every single hair dresser within walking distance (I was young, I didn't have a car) and checked their pricing. On average to get a haircut was $40+. I then asked them how much it would be to get a haircut if I was male. If you're ever bored and want to make someone extremely uncomfortable, call a hairdresser and ask that question.

Me: "Hi, just wondering how much for a haircut?"

Bored sales voice "$40 for a style cut and blow dry"

Me: "Okay thanks, and how much if I was a bloke"

Very baffled person "... excuse me...?" 

Me: "If I was male, how much would you charge me for a haircut?"

Extremely uncomfortable person "Oh, ermm, ahh. Mens cuts are $20"

Me, super chipper "Thanks! Have a nice day!"

It was half the price, just for being male, not just at one hairdresser, but consistently at every salon. This was when it was becoming quite common for women to have short hair (I like to call them 'Power Cuts') and men were having styled, sculpted hair. Without seeing me face to face there would have been no way for the person on the end of the phone to gauge the amount of time and effort my hair would cost, but because I was female they were willing to charge me significantly more.

The same ridiculous costing applies across the board, anywhere a product can be classed male or female. A quick search of my local supermarket tells me that a 4 pack of womens razor blades is $17.60, while the same brand, same style for men is only $15.35. Identical toys for children could be priced higher merely for being pink, without any other differences.

In a popular Mr. Money Mustache post, he talks about the Universal Men's Grooming Device. While I love this post and all it entails, it frustrates me as just another example of Pink Tax. He recommends that all men toss away their razor blades, immediately cease visiting a hairdresser and pick up an electric razor for under $100. With the right attachments, this razor can be used for both facial hair and head hair and lasts for years. Which is amazing, especially when haircuts are $25 a pop. Except it's amazing for men. Women tend to be frowned upon when sporting a buzzcut.

Now this might seem like an entire post on social justice and a fair bit on whining on my part, but no one said you had to purchase the female version of things. It's just a giant marketing scam to try and tell you that your poor delicate female self needs special products. The fact is that you don't.

My partner and I signed up to the Dollar Shave Club. For $7 a month we received a fancy 4-blade razor, with 4 cartridges. After six months we had to cancel our subscription because we had too many blades. Even though we were both using them. And I have to say, after years of going through different brands of 'soft and smooth' women's razors, this is the best shave I've ever had. No Pink Tax, much higher quality.

The same goes for the soap, shampoo, moisturisers and haircuts in this house. I might have said above that buzz cuts on women are frowned upon, and I'm not saying you have to take the plunge with me but I love my buzz cut. I bought the fanciest set of clippers I could get for $100 when they were 50% off during the post-Christmas sales. They've served me faithfully for over a year when I first had an undercut and later moved to a full buzz cut. Since both my partner and I use them we've easily saved over $300 in haircuts in the first year alone.

If you don't want to join me in the buzz cut club (although I think every woman should try it once! such a liberating time-saver) the internet is full of tips and tricks for cutting your own hair. Sure you might not be able to manage the fancy layering technique your hairdresser uses, but if your hair lives in a ponytail anyway, you aren't missing out on much. Or maybe you could team up with a friend and learn together. No pressure, but if you give your bestie a bad haircut, you know she'll be the next one wielding the scissors!

Leave a comment and let me know what you're sick of paying the Pink Tax on. What tricks do you have? And guys, do you find yourself paying more for anything because it's "For Men"?