From cute animal-shaped stuffies to flaxseed, wheat or lavender filled bags, microwavable heating bags are reusable and ready-to-go in as little as one minute. From the very second I strapped the belt on, sex seemed immediately out of the question. I felt notably unsexy with a large wad of cotton doing parkour in my pants. The free-style movements of the pad had also left my underpants dotted with blood, which made me feel even less in the mood. I didn't remember getting this much blood on my underpants since I was Margaret's age, and had tried to hide my brand-new period from my mother by improvising pads out of bunched-up toilet paper. It’s important to remember that there are health and safety guidelines in place to protect us from nasty side effects. But menstruation is typically seen as a female ‘problem’ and is underfunded in medical research—so there may be issues with the standard of these guidelines in the first place. But as I neared the end of my five days with the sanitary belt, I had learned only to be grateful for progress — and more aware of the weight of history in how we view our menstruating selves. As a teenager, I'd always been confused by tampon ads that emphasized how you could swim or ride a bike while wearing them. Of course, I'd think — why on earth wouldn't you be able to? But those ads weren't speaking to me — they were speaking to the women raised before me, who certainly couldn't swim or ride a bike or feel very sexy in these belts. Even though the belts were long gone by the '90s, the cultural memory of what a menstruating woman couldn't do in them lingered.

With a chemical filling (often activated charcoal) and adhesive application, these have more of a deep, artificial heat feeling. That said, lots of buyers of these patches have attested to their effectiveness, so they're not to be overlooked.PORTABLE: The Ova Therma Belt is small, with an adjustable waistband, allowing you to use the device where ever you may suffer from pain, giving you greater flexibility, control and comfort – no matter what you’re doing. Towards the end of the 19th century, we start to see the introduction of the sanitary belt. Used between the 1890s and 1970s, these belts played an extraordinarily large role in menstrual care in the 20th century and were the precursor to the disposable menstrual pads which came to prominence in the 1980s. The belt is suitable for outdoor applications, is very cute, it is designed for high settings and has a heating design. Also, it is suitable for hot water, It looks so cute and has an automatic design. Finally, the Gotton period cramp belt is a great life saver, It is easy to assemble and has a convenient design. Depending on your flow and needs, some features may make your experience with pads more comfortable and discreet. I mentioned this earlier, but I struggled with some of the buttons, which also might be my own fault. Not everyone might have the same trouble with turning the belt on and off but this was my personal experience with it.

Most people’s first experience with menstrual products usually involves pads. They’re easy to use and less intimidating than tampons and menstrual cups. And yet, in our era of seemingly infinite menstrual options — I personally have a Diva Cup, regular tampons, O.B. tampons, and "overnight" pads under my bathroom sink right now — I wondered if anyone was still using a sanitary belt. I had friends who used washable pads, and I myself usually jammed a clear rubber cup into my bleeding ladybusiness. Was it so out there to imagine that maybe some people were still using sanitary belts by choice? We might also assume that tampons and pads are all made from cotton, organic or not, but the other major ingredient in menstrual products is plastic. By my third day with the belt, any novelty had worn off, and I was merely horrified at the entire situation, and at myself for doing this. Even though I had taken on the belt project as a goof, part of me had thought that I might learn something enlightening. So many blogs I had read over the past decade had sung the praises of the old-fashioned feminine fashions and pastimes — canning your own preserves, making your own washable menstrual pads, braiding your own hideous rag rug instead of buying a much nicer one from Ikea — that part of me thought there might be some positive lesson that I could learn from the belt. Maybe something about being more in touch with our bodies had been lost in the hurry to only have your period four times a year and whatnot. Most disposable pads are made from cotton. Cotton is an all-natural, breathable fabric that absorbs moisture, but it’s often grown with harmful chemicals that can be irritating and potentially unsafe. Buying organic pads is gentler on sensitive skin and delicate areas. Eco-friendly

The TensCare Ova Therma Belt carries on the Ova range which has helped millions with period pain using TENS Technology. This belt has both heat and massage modes to provide instant relief from period pains, dysmenorrhea and endometriosis. Allowing you to carry on with your day without the fear of pain. It is a small unit which means you are able to wear it out and about or sitting at home or desk. Providing you with comfort. Furthermore, it also helps with numerous other things such as reducing congestion, reducing bloating and relaxing abdominal pains - providing complete relief. With a unique fabric to allow for heat distribution efficiently and effectively will give you give pain relief utilising the 3 separate modes. Furthermore, there's no side effects or adverse impacts from chemicals, which could be found in more conventional pain killers and the unit is rechargeable. All pads share the same purpose, but there can be a lot of differences between two similar-looking products. Here’s what to pay close attention to when making your selection. Absorbency

BENEFITS: The use of both heat and massage therapies has been proven to help reduce: the feeling of bloating, relaxation of the abdominal muscles, soothe cramps, reduce congestion and deal with the effects of period pains and endometriosis. I, like countless preteen sensations before and after me, learned many of the hard facts about puberty, periods, and breast enlargement exercises from Judy Blume's Are You There, God? It's Me, Margaret. And I, like many many other young women since the book's 1970 publication, was completely befuddled by the book's reference to the "sanitary belt" that Margaret uses when she finally gets her period. I knew about tampons, pads, and the other terrifying accoutrements I would be expected to deal with in my own rapidly approaching menstrual career — but what was a sanitary belt? In fifty years, we'll probably have period products so convenient and effective, they'll make today's tampons look as absurd as sanitary belts look to us now. But I wonder if we'll have shaken off the baggage of all the menstrual products that came before. My period with the sanitary belt taught me that no bleeding woman is an island — we're affected by all the ideas and taboos about periods that came before us. An actual elastic belt used to hold pads in place before the invention of self-adhesive maxi pads, sanitary belts went the way of the dinosaur almost immediately after Margaret went to press — adhesive maxi pads were invented in the 1970s, and within a decade of publication, Margaret's struggle with her sanitary belt made as much sense to readers as that part in Little House in the Big Woods where they played with a pig bladder. Blume herself led the charge to modernize the book, infamously revising Margaret 's "sanitary belt" passages in the 1990s so that modern readers would not be mystified — and, okay, more than a little scared. Belts?! Pins?! Who wants any of those things near their precious ladyflower?! BESPOKE AND TESTED FABRIC: The Ova Therma Belt comes with fabric that has been tailor made to allow for more effective and safe heat distribution. Providing you with better muscle relaxation, blood circulation, which works together to relieve pain.

Okay, are heating pads safe?

NO SIDE EFFECTS: Unlike conventional pain medication, with many different chemicals, the Ova Therma Belt is natural and drug free meaning there’s no side effects and you can use it again and again with confidence.