All About Femme Kits
Femme’s Feminine Hygiene Management program has two components – EDUCATION and DISTRIBUTION. Participants are first led through a series of interactive workshops which discuss topics such as female anatomy, reproductive health, essential hygiene, menstrual health, and menstrual management. The second component is the distribution of Femme Kits to all girls who have completed the educational workshops.
Femme Kits are designed to contain everything a girl needs to manage her period in a safe, healthy and effective way. They include a small towel, a bar of soap in a protective container, a reusable menstrual cup, a tin bowl in which to clean the menstrual cup, and a small calendar for her to track her cycle, all inside a small canvas bag. Combined, all of these items make a girl’s period easy to manage, and ensure she always has everything she needs to stay safe and healthy.
Femme Kits are designed to contain everything a girl needs to manage her period in a safe, healthy and effective way. They include a small towel, a bar of soap in a protective container, a reusable menstrual cup, a tin bowl in which to clean the menstrual cup, and a small calendar for her to track her cycle, all inside a small canvas bag. Combined, all of these items make a girl’s period easy to manage, and ensure she always has everything she needs to stay safe and healthy.
The key component to our Femme Kits is the menstrual cup. Menstrual cups are made of medical grade silicone, and are a much healthier form of menstrual management than other commercial sanitary products. It is inserted about half an inch into the vagina to collect, rather than absorb menstrual fluid. When inserted properly, menstrual cups provide comfortable, leak-free protection for up to twelve hours. The best part about these cups is that they can be re-used for up to ten years.
Menstrual cups are an ideal solution to menstrual management in communities like Mathare, where adequate latrine facilities are few and far between, and accessing potable water is a daily challenge. Menstrual cups require very little water – they can be removed, emptied and re-inserted without washing, if need be, since the silicone is anti-bacterial and anti-microbial. At the end of the period, they must simply be boiled in water for about 5 minutes before being put away until next month. When inserted properly, a vacuum seal is created around the top of the cup which prevents any leaking. It also provides twelve hours of comfortable protection, allowing girls to attend school and participate in daily activities without worrying about her period. The girls are most impressed by the range of activities they can enjoy while menstruating – running, playing football, swimming, dancing.
Menstrual cups are an ideal solution to menstrual management in communities like Mathare, where adequate latrine facilities are few and far between, and accessing potable water is a daily challenge. Menstrual cups require very little water – they can be removed, emptied and re-inserted without washing, if need be, since the silicone is anti-bacterial and anti-microbial. At the end of the period, they must simply be boiled in water for about 5 minutes before being put away until next month. When inserted properly, a vacuum seal is created around the top of the cup which prevents any leaking. It also provides twelve hours of comfortable protection, allowing girls to attend school and participate in daily activities without worrying about her period. The girls are most impressed by the range of activities they can enjoy while menstruating – running, playing football, swimming, dancing.
Femme Kits give participants a new level of independence. The menstrual cup removes the financial burden of menstruation, and allows her to spend her money on other essentials or activities. Having her own tin bowl to clean the cup allows her to do so without asking to borrow her families cooking pot. It is the unique combination of health education and the distribution of the Femme Kits that make our Feminine Health Management program so effective, and sustainable.
We believes that by providing participants with Femme Kits, we are enabling them to take control over their bodies and take advantage of all academic and professional opportunities they may come across. Femme Kits enable girls to stay safe, healthy, and in school – every day of the month.
We believes that by providing participants with Femme Kits, we are enabling them to take control over their bodies and take advantage of all academic and professional opportunities they may come across. Femme Kits enable girls to stay safe, healthy, and in school – every day of the month.
We invite you to be a part of this change. Donate a Femme Kit! Each contribution will make a lasting impact on a girl’s well-being.
Sabrina Rubli
