no boys allowed in the room!!!!

i always hated getting rid of meaningful things, but moving a lot helped me with that. however, i still have at least 1 suitcase worth of things i haven't worn in years and couldn't bear to get rid of.

here is a case for keeping: before i moved, i was a little ruthless in getting rid of things, and gave away my black wool peacoat that felt a little too snug for comfort. now it would fit perfectly and my other coats are big and i'm stuck having to spend $ on a new one and also going through the agonizing process of finding the perfect replacement.

another story: i could never bring myself to get rid of that bcbg kimonoish black top, even though i had only worn it like twice 5 years ago, because it made me feel so fat and insecure, but this year i wore that shit for christmas dinner. so. keep the ones you love.

guys i didn't read the whole thread; what's "Q"?

quality.

ty!

Things I can't throw out are mostly vintage things passed down from grandmothers/mom/aunt, anything made by a decent designer, shoes passim. Part of the 'keep' impulse comes from being badly burned a few times after getting rid of something and having the item or similar 'revived'. Luckily there is no moth problem where I live now - clothes stocks were decimated a few years ago because ex-BF brought the moths' eggs back from camping trips, just to eat my cashmere.

if you want it to be, q is short for qute

that is how i had been reading it!

ok i made a pile of stuff i totally don't care about and can't remember why i was keeping it, including:
* a size 10 skirt with the tags still on it that a student gave to me
* a few heavily discounted/shrunken sweaters
* ruffled chiquitita shirt i picked up god knows where that had a hole in it
* scratchy polyester robe i bought in chinatown in 1997 and wore like 1x b/c it was so uncomfortable

clearly THIS is stuff i can get rid of. i know that.

lol ruffle skirts!

FYI I will not be posting the color of my bra on Facebook to race awareness of breast cancer. kthx

wow, this is really a thing. i'm not going to do that either.

fyi gr8080's is cheetah print.

hi everybody! i have just discovered this thread. my bra is light green but facebook doesn't need to know.

Eh whatever - I did it because why the hell not?

I'm going to post my preferred brand of tampon to increase awareness about gang violence.

OB

I didn't know about the breast cancer thing just thought it was a random meme. Oh well, whatever.

haha that's even better actually

OB here as well. one of my friends used to get heavily discounted stuff from a pharmaceutical company he worked for and ordered them in bulk for the women in his family, i'm kinda jealous.

lol Amanda

I like it as a random meme a lot more than I like it as a breast cancer awareness raiser.

diva cup for me, thanks

Dare I admit...

Diva Cup/reusable cloth pads

Now you know.

xp YAY!

x-posts Yeah, me too - that's what I meant. Probably wouldn't have done it if I had known what it was for.

Me too! The email I got suggested that we "let the boys figure it out". Barf. Breast cancer bras boobies boys.

I can't use a diva cup because I have an IUD. Tampax here or sometimes OB. I like both. Cloth pads here too but only for sleeping.

I used a Diva Cup when I had an IUD. No probs. Why aren't you supposed to?

Wait me= too slow.

I had a bad experience with the product known as "instead" so I'm OB original...bampon. I did not post about my bra to boost breast cancer awareness on fb.

Jenny you had your iud removed? You didn't tell me!

Not that you should have but I remember taking the bus with you on the way there. <3

They don't recommend using Diva Cups with IUDs because there is a risk of catching the string and pulling out the IUD when you remove the cup. Some people do use them together but doing so is generally not recommended. The idea of yanking out my IUD is so awful that I just don't want to risk it.

I got it taken out awhile ago. It was the Mirena kind with the hormones, so I after about six months, I stopped getting a period, which in and of itself is not terrible, but I also got a full-on hardcore compliment of PMS symptoms. So I'd be minding my own business, when WHAMMO with no warning, crying like a crazy woman, my face would break out, I'd be suuuuuuuuuper bitchy (more so than usual), my boobs would hurt and then... it would stop. No period at the end of that sentence. It made me a little crazy.

Erin, had I read that same warning, I would have heeded it. Thinking about accidentally yanking out the IUD was awful for me to contemplate, too. But as noted, I barely got a period so it was kind of a moot point after awhile.

Huh that really sucks that the Mirena had that effect on you esp since it's a local and not systemic hormone delivery system. It's not supposed to cause the dramatic side effects that oral or injected contraceptives can cause in some women. :/

I have the copper IUD so still get periods and while I'd love to try a Diva or something similar, I'm going to err on the side of caution. Btw, it's Erica. :D

Out of curiosity - how painful was the removal? Sorta dreading the day I decide or have to get mine taken out. I know it's be quick but my insertion was pretty bad so I'm sorta nervous.

^ "it's" should be it'll

I'm so sorry! I have been calling you "Erin" in my head for like at least a year now. Erica. Erica Erica. Got it.

I don't know that the IUD caused the PMS (I get PMSy to some extent no matter what), it just dried up my period so there was no notable endpoint to the PMS. That sounds weird, like a non-problem, but it really got to me. Like it was all anticipation with no denouement. I wanted the copper IUD but my period is super heavy on it's own and the gyn thought it would be a bad move.

The removal was a PIECE OF CAKE. I've had pap smears that were more uncomfortable. The insertion was awful awful awful, so I feel you about the nervousness. I was nervous, too, and pleasantly surprised.

contraception is just an awful thing to deal with. it is weird but kind of funny to be married and still using condoms... but the pill just doesn't sit well with me, and being in a new country i'm not super psyched to have some strange doctor shove something up my uterus (plus we did too much research and i kinda scared myself out of getting one, ever), so we felt like the best option was good ol' fashioned condoms. my husband is incredibly great about it, was the first to suggest it, but i do feel bad that it's not really the 'best' option for him. when will the day come that contraception is painless and side-effect free.

we can dream...

i hate the pill, too!

Gotta heartily recommend:

http://media.empr.com/images/2009/05/12/todaysponge_box_53131_53132.jpg

I was gonna get one to see if it would make my migraines go away, but my doc said it wasn't worth it. The thing was also going to cost me like a squillion dollars so forgetit.

AMEN to painless side effect free contraception.

i did not realize they still sold sponges!

They took them off the market for a while but reintroduced them a couple years ago.

Sponges, that is.

http://www.feministing.com/archives/015702.html

They are not perfect, but as someone in an exclusive relationship for whom an unplanned pregnancy would not be the end of the world, I'm a big fan.

yeah i was gonna say this is not a very safe option for me and i don't understand how someone like elaine benes could be all about em!

Plus we did too much research and i kinda scared myself out of getting one, ever.

Justine, there is A LOT of incorrect or misleading information out there regarding IUDs. There were a lot of problems with the ones in the 1970s but today's models are extremely safe and aside from sterilization, they're one of the most effective forms of contraception. I am 100% happy with mine and am really pro IUD in general. I love the fact that it's non-hormonal and that I never have to think about it. Also, it's extremely cost effective. There is a slightly higher risk of expulsion in women who have never been pregnant but it's a small increase in risk. Insertion is painful but you can get an anesthetic and take ibuprofen to lessen the pain and it's brief. I can't recommend the IUD highly enough tbh. It sounds like you're happy with condoms but I had to give it a plug because I get really pissed off that they get such a bad rep unnecessarily.

Btw, I have a Paragard: http://www.paragard.com/paragard/index.php

my major concern with getting one is that i've kinda got wacky periods - really irregular, sometimes super heavy and painful - and i read that copper ones can make it worse... or make it better... and i just don't want to go through the hassle of figuring it out. plus yeah, super expensive here, i bet, and i don't have great health insurance coverage.

i would like to more about this sponge thing.

i don't understand how someone like elaine benes could be all about em!

You know, I was actually thinking about that on the way home from work today! It was pretty irresponsible of her.

Also, I had my IUD for two years, I think, and I am also pro-IUD even though it turned out not to be right for me, if that makes any sense. It's a really good option. My least favorite bit of IUD misinfo is that you can't get one of you haven't had a child. I know women whose gynecologists told them that!!!

http://www.todaysponge.com/about.html

Justine, where do you live? In the US, they are located in the condom aisle. A box of three is $15 in Chicago, so probably a lot cheaper elsewhere.

...condom aisle of the drug store, I should say. And it's not really a whole aisle, just sort of a little section at the end of an aisle.

the thing i like best about condoms is the ~material-ness~ of it, as a contraceptive. like, when i was on the pill i would look at the little bugger before popping it in my mouth and think to myself 'how the shit is this gonna stop babies???'. and i always lived in fear that i would be one of the 2% or whatever that ended up pregnant. but with a condom at least you know if it worked or not (had to make an early a.m. pharmacy visit early last year, but just that one time).

would like to take this opportunity to give props to my husband, ytth, for doing most of the research when i was considering an IUD (i've had exes who wouldn't even pick up tampons on their way home because EWWWW)

think i'm gonna have to find some stats of the efficacy of this sponge first - an unplanned pregnancy WOULD be pretty much a complete disaster for us right now