Content

• Steps
• Part 1 of 3: Choosing Hygiene Products
• Part 2 of 3: Preventing Leaks
• Part 3 of 3: Removing stains
• Tips
• Warnings

Many women at least once in their lives have faced the fact that in the morning they woke up in a bed stained with blood. At the same time, you cannot but be upset by the fact that blood stains are problematic enough to be removed from light sheets and clothes.However, there is no need to panic - find out what you can do to avoid getting your sheets and linen dirty at night or waking up in a red puddle in the morning!

Steps

Part 1 of 3: Choosing Hygiene Products

1. 1 Use night pads. The name of the night pads speaks for itself - they are designed to be used at night, absorb more blood and have less leakage. At night, you can use just one such pad, or with very heavy menstruation (or when your pads are constantly shifting), place one pad between your legs, and fasten the other on the front or back of your panties, depending on the position in which you sleep.
   • Some people advise using super absorbent tampons at night, but this is best avoided. If you are in your teens or tend to sleep for more than eight hours at night, a tampon left in your vagina for more than 8 hours can cause fatal toxic shock syndrome.
   • If you use pads and sleep on your back, place the pads offset to the back so they will better protect you from leaks. It is also wise to use longer spacers.
2. 2 Use a menstrual cup. This device, like a tampon, is located in the vagina, but rarely provokes toxic shock syndrome, therefore, unlike tampons, it can be used up to 12 hours (including at night). A menstrual cup holds more fluid than a tampon or panty liner, while sucking slightly inside to prevent leaks.
   • The risk of toxic shock syndrome remains if you wear your menstrual cup continuously for more than 12 hours, so remember to empty and rinse the device periodically when using it.
3. 3 Try reusable cloth pads. You can even make them yourself. Cloth pads provide better air circulation in underwear, and some women find them more comfortable than disposable pads. Also, if necessary, you can always insert an additional layer into them. The more comfort of the fabric pads will make you sleep more restful, so the pads will stay in place, instead of shifting and leaking.
4. 4 Wear two pairs of panties at once. It may sound strange, but two pairs of panties will better hold the pad in place while you sleep. Moreover, the second panty will provide an additional protective layer, which, in the event of a leak, will serve as another tissue barrier between blood and sheets.
   • Alternatively, wear thicker panties or tight night shorts at night that you don't mind getting dirty.
5. 5 Try menstrual pants. Menstrual briefs are also called panties for menstruation... They are specifically designed to absorb blood in a manner similar to panty liners. If you need some sort of safety net in case of a leak, or if you are just having a meager period, wear your menstrual underpants at night and they will collect any discharge.
   • Although there are some models of menstrual pants for heavy periods, most of them are designed for scanty flow (and according to some women, such panties are simply not suitable for them). Therefore, only use your menstrual underpants as a safety net if your periods are not scanty.
6. 6 Highlight the special "menstrual sheets". Most likely, you have sheets that for some reason have already lost their appearance, they may already be old or have stains on them. On the eve of your period, make your bed with these sheets - if your period comes at night or you have a leak, this will not be a serious reason for upset.
   • During your period, it is best to use dark sheets on which the stains will not be very noticeable. However, it is not recommended to use red sheets, they may mask fresh blood, but it will turn dark brown if it has time to dry, making the stains very visible.
   • If you don't want to have separate sheets for your periods, be aware that there are special sheets and mattress toppers that help protect your bedding from stains during your period.
7. 7 Check with your doctor if all else fails. If you have tried all methods and continue to run at night, make an appointment with your gynecologist to discuss your menstrual cycle with them. Heavy periods are not uncommon, but if you have to change your hygiene products more than every two hours, or if your discharge contains clots larger than 2 cm in diameter, you probably have some kind of health problem that affects your period.

Part 2 of 3: Preventing Leaks

1. 1 Use protective equipment if you suspect your period may start at night. If you know that your period is already on your nose, but has not yet started, use a regular or daily sanitary napkin before you go to bed. This step will help prevent leaks if your period comes unexpectedly at night.
   • You shouldn't use tampons before your period starts, as this step can trigger the growth of bacteria. However, menstrual cups can be used before the discharge begins.
   • If your menstrual cycle is just getting started and is still irregular, it will be difficult for you to know when your next period might start. Try to pay attention to the symptoms of PMS: consider if your breasts are swollen, if they are painful, if there are profuse rashes of acne, age spots, abdominal cramps, mood swings, and other premenstrual symptoms.
2. 2 Remember to change your pad or tampon before bed. The more blood the hygiene product has already absorbed into itself, the less blood it will absorb during the night (after which it will start to leak). To prevent this from happening, be sure to change your pad or tampon just before bed. This will make you feel more fresh.
   • It is best to switch from tampons to pads before bed, as overnight use of tampons can cause infections or toxic shock syndrome.
   • If you use a menstrual cup, empty it before bed.
3. 3 Place a dark towel under you on the bed. Towels will not help you avoid leaks, but they will minimize damage to your sheets and mattress. So that later you don't have problems with stains on the towels, the towels should be dark. By analogy with sheets, it will be useful to highlight special "towels for menstruation".
4. 4 Sleep in a comfortable position. There are no "right" or "wrong" sleeping positions during your period, but it is important to sleep in a comfortable position. This will help you toss and turn less, and the gaskets will no longer stray so much and will leak less. It will also make it easier for you to fall asleep in a comfortable position!
   • Regardless of how you sleep, try to keep your legs together, rather than spread them apart. When the legs are spread wide during sleep, the pad will move more.
5. 5 Get out of bed slowly in the morning. Even if there are no leaks during the night, you need to be careful when getting out of bed. With heavy periods, if you sit up abruptly, all the accumulated blood will begin to flow out very quickly and can stain your linen and sheets. If you know you can leak through your laundry when you get up, you can try rolling out of bed to avoid blood staining the sheet.

Part 3 of 3: Removing stains

1. 1 Don't let the stain dry. If you wake up and notice a stain, change your sanitary product and immediately go to wash the stained sheet or towel. Leaving the stain alone, or even staying in bed a little longer than usual, will make it much more difficult to remove.
2. 2 Use cold water to wash stains in the sink. If the blood is fresh, you don't have to do anything special with the stains - just wipe them off in cold water and soap. Never try to wipe off blood stains with warm or hot water, as this will set them in place, complicating your task.
   • If the stain doesn't wash off, try soaking it for an hour or two and see if this step helps.
3. 3 Use hydrogen peroxide to remove stubborn blood stains. If you can't wash the blood off with soap and water, and even soaking doesn't help, try dripping hydrogen peroxide onto the stain. You don't even need to rub the stain, it usually goes away after that.
   • Be aware that hydrogen peroxide can whiten dark fabrics, so if you wash blood from dark fabrics, either skip the peroxide or dilute it with water first.
4. 4 Remove stains from the mattress as quickly as possible. If the blood is soaked right down to the mattress, don't panic, this stain can also be removed. Blot the stain with a clean cloth dampened with hydrogen peroxide. Deeper blood stains can be treated with liquid detergent, or even a paste of water and baking soda, which should be left on for at least 30 minutes. Just do not wet the mattress too much so that it can dry quickly.
5. 5 Wash sheets and / or clothing in cold water. After washing the stain as much as possible, wash clothes and sheets as usual, but in cold water. This will make them clean again. Despite the fact that there may still be residual stains on things, they will no longer be as terrifying as they were when you woke up.

Tips

• If you sleep on your side, pulling your knees towards you, make sure that the pad is pushed back more. Since the front zone remains tighter and the back zone is wide open, this is where leaks occur when the pad is not wide enough or when you toss and turn in your sleep.
• Soaking stained sheets or clothes in milk will help you partially discolor or even completely remove blood stains.
• Try to remove blood stains with saline (or even just cold water and salt). This will be more effective than plain water.
• If possible, use winged night pads!

Warnings

• It is dangerous to use tampons during a night's sleep, as there is a risk of not waking up in time to change hygiene products. When the tampon is left in the vagina for more than 8 hours, the risk of toxic shock syndrome, which is fatal, increases significantly.
• Heavy menstruation with nocturnal leaks can be a symptom of certain gynecological conditions, including endometriosis, menorrhagia, or fibroma (a growing lump in the uterus). It may also indicate that your iron level in your blood is below healthy levels, so make an appointment with your gynecologist to check your health.