5 year-old asking about maxi pads?

Question

My oldest just turned 5 this week and he's a bit mature for his age. Today he saw one of my pads and was asking my husband about what it's for. A few months ago he walked in on me in the bathroom while I was putting one in my panties. I don't want to be a lazy parent who gives my child a b.s. answer but I'm not quite sure what to say to him. He seems confused , like he's not sure if it's more like a band-aid or more like a diaper lol! I don't want to scare him and I'm certainly not going to give him all the details but I refuse to straight out lie to him either. Agree or disagree with me, but I know I hated it when my Mom lied to me about something instead of giving me an age appropriate answer. Suggestions? And yes, I will lock the bathroom door next time.

Answer 1

Just tell him that at certain times of the month girls/women need to use them.

It was what my mom told me and I'm a girl.

Answer 2

Tell him they are special band-aids for mommies but there is nothing wrong.

Answer 3

I would tell him the truth, I asked when I was that age where babies came from and my mom gave me a straight answer. It takes a lot of "what the heck did my parents tell me that for?" away

Answer 4

Just tell him that each month, mommy's need to wear a speical pad for there period. Honestly, if you give them a name for it, they don't ask any more questions. If he asks why tell him that it's so they can be a mommy. Don't worry about telling him too much. It's better to learn at a young age. My sister-in-law told her children (10 at the time) that babies come from magic. Boy, did she confuse them 2 years later when she was trying to explain to them what was going to happen to them!

Answer 5

Be honest with him! You dont have to go into a big biological explanation of it, but just a quick, honest answer should do the trick. Ive always heard people say they were thankful their parents didn't BS them with stupid answers to serious questions when they were kids..IM sure that one day your kid(s) will feel the same.

Answer 6

say that it's for wetting your pants or something. He won't think it's all that great, forget about it, and when he's older find out what it's really for. He's not going to remember what you told him before. I didn't.

Answer 7

My daughter was 5 the first time she saw me buying pads. We talked about the differences between boys and girls. The most important thing is to reassure your son that it is normal for a little bit of blood to come out and that you will be okay. My daughter was terrified of blood. I think the band-aid comparison would be easier for him to understand. Maybe you could even say the maxi-pad is a special mommy band-aid that is used once a month. I absolutely agree that lying to children is inappropriate.

Answer 8

I would let it go for now.  A normal 5 year old will not spend the next 5 years wondering about a maxi pad.  In the meantime, I would practise much more care when taking care of my sanitary needs.

Answer 9

unless he keeps bringing it up.. forget about it.. he most likely will forget all about it.

Answer 10

ewww he walked in on you changing your pad....thats disgusting. Anyway ughh tell him it's a mommy diaper or something...You know I had 2 older sisters and didn't know what a pad was until I was 11 when they show you those puberty videos. You need to work on those parenting skills...The next thing you know he is on 13 on the computer suffering violent p**n...Get it together sweety.

Answer 11

Well maybe you can just make something up that's really silly, he may want to experiment or just play around with it or just use the whole 'I'll tell you when your older.'

Answer 12

OK I tell my boys there special things for mommies and only mommies use them.  Usually my boys dropped it.   But this time around my youngest found a new unused tampon in the bathroom today and came out walking all excited   Mommy looky its a  big  q-tip.    Talk about YIKES

I try to be straight forward with my kids I agree you have to tell him something but just not everything.

Answer 13

just explain to him simply what it is used for

e.g it's used to catch the liquid that comes out of your tummy. Every now-and-then girls tummy insides have to be cleaned out so the pad is there to catch what comes out so your pants don't get dirty.

sounds strange but it works

Answer 14

my mom told me it was a big band aid. I'm not sure what else she told me about it.

Answer 15

I would tell him the truth. I would not sugar coat it because it is not fair to him. My mom told me the truth since I first asked her questions when I was four. I know what sperm and eggs were, that a pregnancy could happen even if you are a teen or if you weren't married. My friends thought the stork bought the baby and guess what? Most of them had babies when they were teens! I was 27 with my first. I'm just saying, i just told my 8 year old daughter (who is already developing pubic and underarm hair the truth and demonstrating how a pad works and a tampon in water). She was not scared at all and gave me a big hug and said that she's happy that I'm her mom. just tell him the truth that girls and women have a period. It's when we bleed to clean out our bodies and it's ok because we're not hurt, it's just to clean our bodies of what it needs to get rid of and all women go through it. Hope this helps.

Answer 16

Tell him Mommies are strong, and they can have babies. But if you don't have a baby in your tummy, every month, your body does some cleaning....the pad helps you to stay clean while your body is doing its stuff...Then tell him you will be happy to tell him more about it when he's older.

Answer 17

Lol...i remember one time I asked my dad (poor guy) what one was on a commercial. I remember to this day, he told me it was a wagon wheel!! (like those chocolate, marshmallow things...ha ha)

My son is only 6 months old, so I really have no idea what to tell him, but I agree with being honest! Good Luck!

PS Ignore the idiots telling you about "parenting skills." That is the stupidest comment I've read on this site yet!

Answer 18

Mommy band-aid sounds good.  He's 5 and WILL repeat whatever you tell him......maybe at your next dinner party.....so keep it simple.