Guys buying tampons or pads

[crazylegs]

Whilst reading through the replies I've realised that sometimes the opposite can be true, women can be embarresed if they have to purchase their products via a male, as I found out during my first ever refund when a woman in her mid thirties pulled a box of tampons out of her bag with a receipt and stated she wanted a refund, upon asking why she sheepishly informed me they had no string!

[Kara]

You know how they have that thingy at Wal Mart that lets you find the right windshield wiper blades for you car by entering make/model? Maybe something like that would be helpful to the clueless guys out there.

Item # 23415: Super Long Overnight With Wings
Recommended Accessories
Pamprin
Chocolate
Sweat Pants
Chocolate

[sbandliz]

Australian commercial where a boyfriend purchasing tampons for his girlfriend compares...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bBOBg9tZgUw

[crazylegs]

Item # 23415: Super Long Overnight With Wings
Recommended Accessories
Pamprin
Chocolate
Sweat Pants
Chocolate

You forgot the wine

[Kara]

You forgot the wine

Actually, I prefer a Mudshake or two. Chocolate (see a recurring theme here ) + Vodka = Relief!

[Becks]

The man of the household doesn't care...much.

I usually buy my own (I work in a grocery store, after all...), but all he ever needs to know is "Overnight with wings". Gotta have the wings!!

[ibor132]

Sooo not a big deal, as long as I know what I'm buying. I've picked up tampons/pads/whatever for the women in my life, it just doesn't matter, on one condition - they need to be specific. I only have a vague notion of what the difference between the different types/brands/whatever, so if she wants me to get the rght kind, she had better be specific, because I don't have a clue what I'm looking for.

[gunsage]

Bash FTW...

http://bash.org/?412248

[XCashier]

Dad: *audibly wimpering* Why are there so many???? *more disconcerting, panicked wimpering*

I think they might just be overwhelmed by that isle. I guess it would be a lot to take in.

It is, and it can be baffling. It's a bit like asking a nonsmoker to get you some cigarettes. There are way too many brands, sizes and varieties to choose from. Next time you need a man to get your supplies for you, give him part of the label, or the exact brand name, type and description so he knows what to look for.

I gave him explicit directions on what to get, and the manufacturer changed the packaging on it, which sent him into a tizzy....I think maybe partnumbers of some kind of easy identification system would work well for the poor guys and the letter writer on PFB had a point about this.

My favorite brand has changed the packaging so many times I have to compare the UPCs to make sure it's the right one!

[Jester]

Somewhat related to this thread is a conversation I was having with a coworker. We were talking about her social life, and the guy she's been seeing, and I was giving her my advice, which she had asked for, when she suddenly apologized for talking to me so much about it. I told her flat out, "Darlin', you can talk to me about anything you want....except for 'feminine issues.' I mean, I'll buy tampons and stuff for girls, but I really don't want all the details."

She laughed.

[Jpurple]

It is, and it can be baffling. It's a bit like asking a nonsmoker to get you some cigarettes. There are way too many brands, sizes and varieties to choose from. My favorite brand has changed the packaging so many times I have to compare the UPCs to make sure it's the right one!

Try buying them when they're all packaged in a language you don't read! I have trouble getting exactly what I need, and I AM female! I would not send my husband out to buy them unless it was a dire emergency. Not that he would mind doing it (much) but I would have to send him with the empty box and cross my fingers, as that's generally what I do myself -I'm not surprised men get confused at all, but I don't understand why it's a big deal otherwise.

[Jester]

I just thought of a funny analogy to this.

To wit: My mother knows I love cycling. She knows I love getting cycling gear. She also knows that the best thing she can do if she wants to get me cycling gear for Christmas/birthdays is to get me a gift card, as she has NO IDEA what products I like/need/want. Honestly, the idea of my mother even walking into a bike store just gives me the giggles. I believe the last time she actually rode a bicycle herself was 1973! (And no, I am not exaggerating.....)

To a lot of guys, going into That Aisle is the same as my mom going into a bike store. Confusing, foreign, scary, unfamiliar, and strange.

[Rubystars]

But a guy who was online posted a COMPLETE tutorial on how to use one, in explicit detail and all the things to watch out for, how long it lasts, and so on.

Does anyone really need elaborate instructions on how to use a pad? Open package, peel, stick. That's it...

Also, I don't think women should send men out to get those things for them.

[XCashier]

Also, I don't think women should send men out to get those things for them.

I can understand why you feel that way, but when I was recovering from my C-section in the hospital, I rather needed my husband to get them for me (the ones the hospital carries are horrible). Likewise, if a woman is sick, she's not going to want to go to the store.

[MystyGlyttyr]

This reminds me of an amusing story.

Setting the scene...it's 1994. 12-year-old Mysty is in her first year of high school and running wild during a game of baseball in P.E. Stomping on the boys, rolling in the dirt, etc.

Stage left is "Winton", the new basketball coach...24 or 25 years of age. This is his second coaching job and his first one with a public school. This is his first experience with coaching girls.

Halfway through the game, little Mysty suddenly breaks from the line and runs over to Winton, proclaiming "Coach, I need to go to the bathroom."

Winton, not realizing that this is only the first of many embarrassing moments he would experience at the oblivious hands of this girl, asks, "What do you need to go to the bathroom for?" It's an innocent enough question for the uninitiated...does she need to use the bathroom or is this girl thinking she needs to comb her hair?

Little Mysty, however, replies in the complete truth. "I need to change my pad, Coach."

Winton's brain spontaneously aneurysms in self-defense, and he slams a hand over his eyes, stepping away and waving a hand at her. "Go, go, for the love of God, go!" And little Mysty, blissfully unaware of the havoc she just wrought, trots off into the gym to handle her business.

Poor guy was never quite the same after that...