wow... i somehow failed with gladrags

[unearthlyfaerie.livejournal.com]

ok.. this is the single most disgusting thing that has ever happened.
ever.
and i love my period to death.

if you are eating, faint hearted, or unwell... don't read

So I bought 3 new gladrags this cycle, making a grand total of 6 rags and a keeper. (hurray)
Unfortunately I was very busy this week.. and my rags from half cycle on ended up soaking. with the cold water changed daily (they only soaked a few days)
I was going to wash them today.

(note: i always do this... never had a problem before)

I picked it up and was liek.. hmm.. what's that on my pad.
It was a MAGGOT.
They were filled with MAGGOTS!
THEY WERE MOVING!

I'm worried that the inner pads may be filled with them... I'm practically boiling them in a hot washing machine now.
I think i'm the most talented person in the world. It gives new meaning to 'living breathing vagina'.

Does anyone think I can still use them? Or have any idea besides just summer weather and neglect that may have caused this?

Comments

[puttysan.livejournal.com]

Maggots underwater? Weird.

[blu-birdie.livejournal.com]

::shivers:: that's the one thing i hate more than anything else. they scare me so bad.

i have no idea what could have made that happen, specially underwater.

personally i would never touch them again, but that's just cause i'm scared to death of..the m word. -_-

you might want to email the company with your story and ask what could have caused it, and what you should do.

whew. good luck. o_o'

[ex-willendor41.livejournal.com]

that happened to me once. I left one to soak, and forgot about it for two weeks. I just threw the whole thing away, soaking container and all.

the water was all stagnate and moldy and gross.

*shutters*

[krasota.livejournal.com]

o_O

i've left mine to soak for... too long... before. but maggots? i'd freak out. i think i'd boil them on the stovetop after washing them or add some bleach to the wash cycle (i'd prefer to know they were sterile rather than save the color integrity).

were they not completely submerged? how did the flies lay eggs?

[mylittleaadvark.livejournal.com]

Oh my God! Huge amounts of sympathy!

I wouldn't use them, but that may well be my OCD tendencies talking. I have fear of never getting things clean enough.

Oh, man, what a horrible experience...

There's no doubt I'm a procrastinator

[sylviamaris.livejournal.com]

I've got a strong stomach and there's no bodily fluid, emission, or function that puts me off, especially just a textual description. Warnings like yours I ignore and click without fear. I expected, I don't know, a hideous poop leakage story or something. I wish I'd believed your warning!

I'm so, so sorry. I don't know what I would have done in your situation. I would have cried. However, I'm ashamed to say that I know from personal experience that I should never, ever leave dishes in the sink to soak.. If I do I'll forget them until days later when there are hideous little wigglies in the water. I..I can't even say the word with the M.

I'm actually really glad I read this and can take it as a personal caution, because I've been planning to make a few pads for myself to accompany the Divacup, and never want to go through that. I think I'll continue to wear long skirts without unders for those first few days, or make damn sure I wash the pads daily.

I'd definitely throw some bleach in the water with them, before or during another wash cycle. As someone else has said, better to have faded pads than risk the alternative.

Re: There's no doubt I'm a procrastinator

[sylviamaris.livejournal.com]

I think I made up the word "textual" there, or misused it in the sentence. I wanted to say Verbal desc. but it's not by mouth....I don't know. I'm reeeal tired.

[bandit-art.livejournal.com]

EW! Personally I would NOT use them again. Into the trash they would go!

I had a dream about a week ago that I had maggots in my vagina...so anything to do with maggots really freaks me out right now. *HACK!!*

[ourika.livejournal.com]

I wonder if they would get maggots if you used the "dry sit" method instead of the soak method? I used to use the soak method, but I'd leave them for a few days, and they'd get really nasty smelling and funky. So I switched to rinsing them in the sink and then leaving them to dry in a bucket. I live in a very dry climate, so it works fairly well. They don't get the funky smell.

I'd freak out if I were you, too. I'm sorry this happened. Perhaps switching to no soaking might help thi not happen in the future?

[stratyllis.livejournal.com]

This is why I use tampons.

I would also never touch them again. I mean, filled with them? Just get new ones. Forget about soaking them the next time just put them straight into the wash.

[skeptictank.livejournal.com]

I dunno if it'll work or not, but I'd definetly try adding some sort of bleach-like substance to the water if you ever work up the courage to go that route again.

I know actual BLEACH is probably missing the point if you're going as far as to use gladrags and the keeper and whatnot, but I'm sure they make something that you can find at a health food store that'll do the same icky-ness killing that bleach will.

[xxxmariposaxxx.livejournal.com]

The only reason to soak the pads is to prevent staining. I think the whole maggot incident could have been avoided by just chucking the pads in the wash machine. I've never had a problem by doing that...but, I also don't mind looking at bloodstains.

eek. I guess that water + nutritious menstrual fluids made the perfect breeding grounds.

[unearthlyfaerie.livejournal.com]

I tried the washingmachine method last time actually. It didn't get all the dried stuff off the pad, so i was soaking to release the goo, then wash it all away. :) I don't care about stains either.

yeah.. them damned flies.

I love your icon... :)

[xxxmariposaxxx.livejournal.com]

Thanks...the icon was made by rhipowered.

Wow--I never had a problem getting the pads clean in the machine. Maybe mine is super industrial strength cleaning power or something and I didn't even know it.