How to Prepare For Your Child's First Period
I started to notice Sadie's body begin to change around age nine — she had small breast buds and could no longer just wear a t-shirt. I also noticed a few pimples on her face, discharge on her undies when I did the laundry, and she had pubic hair by the time she was turning 10. She's old for her grade, so none of her classmates were going through these changes. I talked to her doctor about it, and he said that within one year of noticing pubic hair, you can expect her period.
She was looking forward to this special day so much that the night before she turned 10 she said, "Wouldn't it be great if I got my period for my birthday?!" I knew she was excited to experience all we had talked about, but deep down I was thinking, "F*ck no! You're still my baby, and having your period actually sucks!" I also thought back to the time when she was five months old, and had to stay in the hospital for almost a month because she was having seizures that made her stop breathing. She made a full recovery, and here she was, almost 10 and talking about getting her period! I just smiled and said, "I'm sure you have another year to go."
Well, without me knowing, she was preparing! In her room one day, I noticed this little box she made where she collected some of the things I got for her. She had a few pads, period undies, a couple tampons (even though I told her she wouldn't use those for a while), and a little gold necklace that's actually a tampon holder. She was ready!