My husband came home yesterday and pulled me aside. He heard from a friend about how Indonesian ladies clean their soiled sanitary pads. I have always thought that like us, they will just wrapped it up and throw it away. Yes, they do that but they had to wash the blood away from the pad and then only wrapped and throw it away. Can you imagine?!! Toilet will be reeking with the smell and if it's not washed properly...urghh! Then they will be caring and feeding our kids, they cook... eeekkk urghh! I was shocked!
After he told me, I spoke to my maids. Is it true! I asked what for?! They have to throw it away anyway after that?? They were surprised that we asked. In fact, it is so normal for them. They were taught to do so in Indonesia. One says that she heard that if she doesn't do this, rumor says she will go crazy... so she had better believe it in case. Another story is something along the lines of Pontianak feeding on it .. urgh! And my maid told me she was just taught to do so... don't know why. Immediately, I told them not to do that. They are in Malaysia. We have proper rubbish bins and garbage trucks disposing rubbish, unlike like the close quarters in Indonesian 'kampung' lifestyle. Under no circumstances that they practice this.. purely for hygiene reasons. It is no wonder sometimes my common bathroom stinks and I didn't even know why then. No matter how you hose it down, it will still reek with the stench unless you do a complete scrub and wash... but each time...no way! Thinking of it now gives me the shivers!
So I told them NOT to. If by not doing so drives a lady mad.. I'd have been mad long ago!
We didn't scold the maids. It wasn't intentional. But it took us only now to know... all these while when we have Indonesian maids... shivers! Urghh! Gross!
17 comments:
Hi there, stumbled across your blog by accident. Just a note about this sanitary napkin habit. I'm a Chinese but have a lot of Malay colleagues. It seems that your maid's and my Malay colleagues' habit are the same! I was also shocked when they say they have to wash first before throwing it away. Not sure whether it's their religion's teaching or not.
When I read this, I suddenly recalled an old tale told to me by my Malay friends (while in primary school). That was the time when they used to talk about "hantu kum-kum"...a female ghost/pontianak who feeds on the period on such sanitary napkins. I thought it was just a way to discourage girls from simply disposing their used pads into the toilet or rubbish bins without properly wrapping them.
I guess it makes sense to wash the napkins back in those days when the napkins were actually cotton cloth. Guess these tales continued and they just don't realize that things have changed.
Yea , now that you mentioned it, I remember abt the hantu kum kum stuff. And you are right, it was really those days when ladies used cloth instead of the disposable sanitary pads that we have now.
I asked my maids. It ain't religious matter - just belief and tales. I guess, they still practice it now. I'm not sure abt the Malays but the Indons do.
Hi,your discovery about Indonesian maid practices is quite interesting.I'm Chinese, born & lived in Indonesia all my teenage years, but never have heard such things. But I heard about the "hantu & pontianak" things when I was little. :)
hi anonymous :) same with me.. born & spent my teenage in indonesia as well :) i'll just throw pads after wrap it properly.. never have to wash it beforehand.. about that hantu, i've heard it as well.. but can't recall if the name is kumkum :)
i came across this blog by reading the article or kumon vs enopi.. nice blog, joanne.
thanks! Havent had the time to blog but Ill try. Been bz tho I have lots to tell.
Hi, saya adalah silent reader of your blog...saya hanya ingin memberi sedikit penjelasan tentang cerita maid anda tentang sanitary pad itu.
Agama saya iaitu islam menyarankan kaum wanita yg datang haid supaya membasuh pad mereka kerana bagi kami itulah caranya kami menjaga kebersihan diri semasa haid. Tentulah tidak elok jika kami membuang pad kami yg masih berdarah, dan bagaimana jika ianya bersepah-sepah di tempat pembuangan sampah serta digonggong oleh haiwan yg berkeliaran. Saya minta maaf jika penulisan saya ini mengganggu Joane, tapi saya hanya ingin memperbetulkan pernyataan maid Joane itu sahaja.Bagaimanapun saya sgt tertarik dgn isu2 yg Joane tulis dlm blog anda ini.
Hi,
I also happened to stumble upon your blog post and this topic also interest me. I am a malay and I second the explanation of Anonymous (30 Nov 2010). Each culture and/or religion have their own beliefs. I also belief in washing my pad before wrapping and disposing it away. Imagine if our trash somehow spilled and our pad (still unwashed) is exposed.. although it is already outside of our home but still, it is an item used by us, it's kind of not nice to leave it still 'dirty'. I also don't intend to offend anyone, but you get my drift, right... -Peace-
Thanks for the 2 Anonymous readers for clearing some air. It is certainly considerate to think of others on matters of hygiene. Then again, it has to be done properly too and not leave remains behind in the bathroom where children will be in and about. I'm personally very particular abt hygiene esp where my kids are concerned. So, dont get me wrong. I'm not against it but if it is done in my house, it has to be totally clean.
I am a muslim & yes that we should wash our sanitary pad. Eventhough it is our period blood, it is still part of us.Hence should clean the dirty sanitary pad before wrapping it nicely in an old newspaper.Its not nice to have others see our personal stuff. And yes,it's a true story with the way indonesian maids deal with their sanitary pad.It's a common stories shared by all indonesian maid's employers.
I am a muslim & yes that we should wash our sanitary pad. Eventhough it is our period blood, it is still part of us.Hence should clean the dirty sanitary pad before wrapping it nicely in an old newspaper.Its not nice to have others see our personal stuff. And yes,it's a true story with the way indonesian maids deal with their sanitary pad.It's a common stories shared by all indonesian maid's employers.
does that mean that we should wash babies diapers before throwing it?
Babies diapers are not same as women's smelly blood discharge. Imagine, if we throw the used sanitaTy napkins just wrapped, it might get more dried up, more smelly of blood n cause our environment n the small tiny living creatures to be affected from it. In order not to cause any trouble to any living organisms, we r told to wash it n dispose it by wrapping it nicely. When washing it must wash inside the potty and flash it so the toilet doesn't smell.
Hi I am aware of the ladies in the village who use cloth instead of napkins and they re use them after washing...very unhygenic ...but prevailent in some part of rural Asia
I guess it makes sense to wash the napkins back in those days when the napkins were actually cotton cloth. Guess these tales continued and they just don't realize that things have changed but that's okay,even my mother before used to do that. It's so cost-effective. What matters most is that you live healthy with out letting living organisms live in you sanitary cloth. You need to be hygienic.
Hygiene Services
http://impacthygiene.com.au/
Please google that it is not compulsory to wash your pad. It is a traditional not related to relogion.
Malaysians muslim are taught from young age to wash their pad. This a tradition no related to muslim teaching. Please refer to Ustad Azhar youtube and this link
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