I Think Thinx Is the Future of Periods

Senior Editor Darcie Burroughs explores breaking the taboo of periods in 2021.

Courtesy of Thinx

“Well, F$!K.” I woke up on a Monday morning, the day I was driving down to our Atlantic City Swim Search shoot, and realized I left my NuvaRing in for an extra week. This should come as no surprise to anyone -- least of all myself -- considering that I have a 16-month-old, am a senior editor at SI Swimsuit, run a construction business with my husband, and care for my chickens, dog and horse. In other words, my life is sometimes chaos and things slip through the cracks. A planner by heart, the birth control mishap meant I would not know when my period was coming and that sucked. I also live in rural upstate N.Y. -- my neighbors are foxes and black bears, not Duane Reade and Starbucks. It’s a 45-minute drive to get a box of tampons and I didn’t have time before my long trip to A.C. Rushing out the house, I threw the Thinx underwear and leggings into my duffle bag and crossed my fingers.

When I got into my room at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City, I changed into my new Thinx All-Star underwear feeling the impending menstrual cycle. IYKYK. I’m not going to lie, I was skeptical. Don’t get me wrong, they were comfortable A.F. It was like a down comforter for my lady parts. But would these underwear really hold the blood? What if it leaked? Would everyone on set know I’m wearing them (flashback to my adolescence wearing thick pads)? But with these fears came some confidence because the underwear is really freaking cute. They aren’t your granny’s panties -- they are chic, lace and sexy. Yes, periods are sexy.

Darcie Burroughs on set in Atlantic City

The first day wearing my Thinx on set was awesome. When you’re on a SI Swimsuit shoot, you’re usually off the beaten path finding a bush or sand dune to pee in. Even though we were shooting on Margate Beach, there weren’t options for restrooms. Being on set with your period is a thorn in your side, but I didn’t have to worry about where to change a tampon in the “wilds” of New Jersey.

I’ll be honest, for me it wasn’t as “tidy” as using tampons. But it was convenient. It was comfortable. It was surprisingly liberating. And it was sustainable. When the day ended, I washed the underwear in the sink of my hotel room. What’s funny was that the menstrual cycle synching was strong in A.C. I think 90% of us were on our periods or started them during that week, so I was preaching to whoever listened about my fabulous period underwear. I made some believers out of our Swim Search finalists.

The future is in sustainability. I absolutely love that I can reuse the underwear instead of wasting more paper and plastic (more so than I do with all my other products). They’re extremely well designed and look like “normal” underwear. And the best part is, they work. I was even able to squeeze in a virtual workout in the Thinx leggings and, to no surprise, they worked like a dream. Impressed is an understatement. #Thinx4Life guys, #Thinx4Life.