5 fun and fresh ideas for celebrating your tween or teen’s first period
Are you expecting your tween or teen to get their first period soon? For some of us our own first period was an exciting occasion and we want our kid to share the same joy we did at that age; for others menarche was a sad or stressful time and we would like our kid to have a better experience of this important life milestone.
Either way we applaud you for finding us and for playing your part in shifting the paradigm of periods. Your kid will gain confidence and a sense of empowerment from a first period celebration. In fact, we’d go so far as to say that a first period party could be positively life changing! So, let’s get started with some fun and fresh ideas for how to mark the occasion.
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Create a period kit. While period kits can be practical and functional, they can also be fun and fancy. A basic period kit needs to include tampons and/or pads, wipes, and a clean pair of underwear. A powered-up period kit could also include chocolate treats, or an uplifting letter or note (maybe sharing your first period experience? Or your hopes for your kid? Some memories from their childhood?). You could add some brand new period underwear (very popular with tweens and teens) in bold and bright patterns. Maybe an anatomically correct cuterus plushie from Etsy? Or some spa treats like a sheet mask or bath bomb? So many possibilities for building an empowering and inspiring period kit.
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Have an at-home spa day with cucumber slices, foot massages, and hair wraps. This low key bonding time is perfect for the days around their first period when they will crave quiet and coziness. Keep it period themed with red clay face masks, strawberry smoothies, beet and apple juice, heating pads for backs and shoulders, and yoga stretches to ease bloating and cramps. Watch a movie together that highlights the coming-of-age struggles they might be going through or a comedy so you can laugh together.
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Cycle sync their period week. The cycle syncing lifestyle is gaining in popularity and tweens and teens can benefit too. Choosing the right meals, movement, and activities that support their current menstrual cycle phase can make the puberty years pass with less stress. Create meals with nutrients that boost their health and are comforting during this time (like soups, stews and broths). Satisfy their cravings and support their menstrual cycle with treats like hormone-healthy fudge (check out our Instagram for the recipe). Promote rest and gentle movement like stretches and walks. Encourage them to dream and imagine, create mood boards, and set goals for the month ahead. Talk about what’s going on with their hormones at this time and how this impacts how they feel physically and emotionally.
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Decorate a journal as a gift. They could use this to journal their own thoughts and feelings, write out positive affirmations, or to share notes with you (and you can reply, also in writing). Add sticker sets, fun stationary, and pens so they can truly make it her own and fulfill their creativity. Journaling can be very supportive and therapeutic during the luteal phase and menstruation when hormones make introversion and introspection the focus. This might also be a place to share your hopes for their teen years or your own first period story.
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Introduce her to the Teena app and tracker. The Teena app allows you both to explore educational information on periods and puberty that is positive and empowering. Bite-size articles, age-appropriate video guides, and an interactive, animated journey through the menstrual cycle provide opportunities for questions and conversations. Cycle syncing tips and shares on how to approach each menstrual cycle phase and plan around their mood shifts. Anatomically-correct and bright, bold illustrations. Teena is created to make learning about periods and puberty at home full of fizz, excitement and love. The Teena tracker comes in five color choices. Get them started with basal body temperature for accurate period tracking, real time cycle phase information, and mood insights. Refresh your own memory of puberty changes and learn together.
Of course, you could also throw a period party for them and close family, or for their friendship group, depending on their comfort level. Period parties are becoming more popular and could include red velvet cake, red balloons, party games like pin the period on the pad, and gift bags that could be mini period kits!
Don’t feel bad if your kid is not into celebrating at all and definitely doesn’t want a public party. These have become more mainstream and since some kids worry this will be how their parent reacts to news of their first period and keep quiet as a consequence. It’s a good idea, if you’re not sure how they might respond, to give your kid some options as to how to celebrate so they feel a sense of control and respect for their own feelings. Every kid is going to enjoy some attention, love, comfort and encouragement at this time.
