…as my husband so kindly calls the rash that has erupted all over my nether regions which has tormented me for nearly a week now.
As I mentioned in my *rest* of the story post, I have an incredibly itchy, bumpy rash all over my butt, vaginal area, and inner thighs. Just when my stitches started feeling like they would finally heal and I was feeling a little more confident that that part of my body would one day return to normal, BAM!, I’m hit with this shit. It is so uncomfortable that I have spent all weekend doing my very best not to scratch it and crying from the awful itching sensation. Since I didn’t want to go to the ER for this, I soothed myself over the weekend by using up a whole tube of Kendall’s diaper rash cream on it and spraying Dermoplast on it hourly. When 9 am hit this morning I was calling my midwives as fast as my fingers could hit the numbers.
I had previously suspected this rash was due to too much moisture down there since I wasn’t that great at drying up the area with TP after cleaning off with the Peri bottle. I figured it was from sitting in a damp pad for two weeks, even though one would think a pad would be absorbent enough to soak up what little water would be left down there. While admittedly that wasn’t the smartest move, it turns out it’s not the cause of the rash. I have a case of contact dermatitis from using Always Maxi Pads. See, in my last minute nesting I ran out and stocked up on pads to use postpartum. I’m not a pad wearer usually, so I don’t have a favorite brand. I just grabbed the first recognizable package I saw. I’m a sucker for marketing and branding, I guess, and I assumed Always would be the best way to go. I mean, they DO have about 10 ads in every magazine I get these days.
So at my appointment this morning my midwife asks what brand I’m using and when I started getting the rash. It was a fucking Nancy Drew moment as we put together that the rash showed up when I ran out of the hospital Heiney Hoagie pads and switched to the Always pads. And since I have spent the whole weekend without a pad (in an effort to dry things out down there) my rash has become significantly better (although STILL terribly uncomfortable). My midwife informed me that Always pads are notorious for causing this and that the rash has nothing to do with how little I dried off down there.
Of course, I turned to my old friend Google as soon as I got home to see what I could find. Here are a couple of links that back up her theory –
http://www.mothering.com/discussions/archive/index.php/t-323836.html
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=1487684
Moral of the story – DON’T USE ALWAYS MAXI PADS!!!!
17 days old
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18 comments
Thanks for the info! What do they suggest, other than Always? Any brand, or something specific to avoid the rash?
Carrie, she just said to not use Always and don’t use anything scented or with deodorant.
Oh my God. I have this problem too during AF, but had no clue it was due to the pad. I am so throwing those suckers away. Thanks for the info!
Hey! I hope you don’t mind, I copy/pasted some of this entry and posted it on the 3rd tri board on the nest. Some of the girls were talking about using Always, and I wanted to warn them of what could happen. 🙂
[…] err, carnage… my vagina. Ugh. It’s been a long road, full of pain and stitches and rashes. I can tell you that it doesn’t, nor will it ever, look the same down there. There are […]
I know this thread is very old but I thought I would add that Kotex pads are the best (and cheapest) brand, in my opinion. All of the doctors offices use them. They feel more like natural cotton, whereas Always “always” makes me feel as though I am wearing a wet diaper, even when they are “dry.” Something about that awful synthetic material they use in order to make the pad thinner causes you to “sweat.” Sorry, TMI but it’s true!
Resurrecting again… Great to know. I can’t remember what I used after my first kid in ’08. I had other issues starting at the end of the first month. But getting ready to go thru this again first week of April or so, I will know to definitely avoid them this go-round. Kotex sounds good to me!
Thank you so much. I used Kotex and ran out and purchased Always Overnights. I broke out in rash and got hives. I went to the doctor and I did not remember to tell her I changed pads I thought it was something I was eating causing the hives. Red rash was around my hip and vagina area and the itching was unbearable. I sat down one day and figured it out I was poisoned by Always. Everytime I eat would excite the poison. After my period was over the hives and rash subside however i have to take and anti itch regime. DONOT BUY ALWAYS!
[…] Either way, they’ll eventually run out and you’ll need another solution. I’ve had horrible reactions to disposable pads like Always after wearing them for several days. Next time (a LONG time from now), I think I’ll try the […]
Is anyone shaking their fists at Always for this?
[…] Kendall, it was suspected I had contact dermatitis from Always pads, and that’s probably true. I likely had that all up in that area where the pads actually came […]
oh my gosh! I had the same freaking thing happen! My mom and sister ranted and raved over the always infinity pads and my mom even bought me a box….when I no longer needed the boats the hospital sent me home with but still needed SOMETHING I switched to those. GOSH it was HORRENDOUS!!!! My Dr’s decided it was an allergic reaction to the pads set on by all of the antibiotics I had to be on right after baby was born.
Wow, here I am wearing an always overnight maxi pad, postpartum 6 days and I have the burning itchy rash from them too. Maybe we need to speak up and tell Always about their product causing rashes. Guessing I will be switching brands to see if that helps clear up the rash.
Thank you for posting this!!!!!!
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I have always HATED Always pads. I used them a few times in my teens and noticed they trapped heat and moisture between my skin and the pad. Stopped using and noticed the “thermocool” technology with StayFree pads kept me amazingly dry and cool…and I have been using StayFree the last 15 years. Their pads aren’t fancy but they keep me dry and comfy.
When I ran out of hospital pads postpartum after both C-sections…or when I had hospital pads and wanted something thinner, I used StayFree. As I type I’m using StayFree and I buy them in bulk online now so I can make sure I always have them. The texture of the surface of Always pads always caused me an itchy, moist sensation, though my periods never lasted long enough for me to get a full-blown rash. StayFree pads are so comfy. If I don’t use those, I will use chlorine-free Seventh Generation or NatureCare Organic Cotton pads and tampons.
Had the same problem after my the birth of my son, luckily I realized the problem while I was still in the hospital I almost immediately broke out after a day of using them and did not with the hospital pads and then I remember that whenever I was on my period when I was younger I had the same problem never thinking it was from the damn pads I’ve now switched to the tena brand for sensitive skin and it doesn’t make me break out, glad to know I’m not the only one who had this issue!
In my first week postpartum, I nearly got TSS from the Walgreens brand overnight & regular pads. I was showing lots of signs from it and thank God I figured it out and caught it in time. Most pads are soaked with dioxin, which poisons the liver and the body. I broke out in the PUPPS rash, had tingling and zapping pains in the area down there and general pain from these toxic chemicals being on my skin and sore tissue. Sadly, these companies don’t care if they are poisoning you. Even if you take the time to inform them about what happened to you, they’re not going to do anything to make any changes to create a safer product. Once I switched to organic cotton pads the problem went away. Also, I took an oatmeal bath which really helped. I had put the oatmeal in a nylon knee-high sock. I had the idea to put this down in my area as well during the bath, which really helped soothe it, so when I got out I used it as a pad and it helped immensely. Sure it was wet and I had to wrap it in some towels inside my underwear, but the relief I got from that was incredible. I will only use organic pads and tampons from now on, but do plan to find a cup that works for me after I get my period again.