I’ve been reviewing many products of late that have to do with puberty and sex but so far none have impressed me like the My First Period Kit & DVD that I recently reviewed for PBN.

This must-have for parents includes:

	An informative, 99-minute DVD to view WITH your daughter featuring the Healthy Chats for Girls™ seminar with a sensitive-yet-fun presentation of the changes associated with puberty, basic pad and tampon demonstrations, and more.
	The bonus DVD Extra: The Birds & the Bees with Ease!™ The comfortable, age-appropriate explanation you’ve been looking for!
	Gifts for your special girl: A handy Butterfly Pad Purse to slip into her schoolbag and a fashionable Butterfly Wristband.
	Added help for you: A detailed Parent Guide, a convenient Quick Reference Card, and 1-year Healthy Chats Online/Interactive Subscription with insightful newsletters and email access to Dr. de Freitas.

Dr. Freitas recommends that parents should view the DVD prior to watching it with their daughters but since I’ve already talked to my girls about the birds and the bees and all related already I figured I would be pretty comfortable with what is on the DVD.

Not only was I comfortable but quite impressed. The seminar with the doctor, mothers and their daughters is set up like a chat. Dr. Freitas uses slides and props to explain puberty and menstruation while asking for input from the girls and their mothers.

I liked how Dr. Freitas gives age appropriate information in a language that children understand. Some may balk at her using the word “potty” rather than toilet but I think her silliness and gift to speak like children adds to her charm. It definitely makes everything seem so less medical and more personal.

I also liked her use of props such as a balloon to represent the uterus and vagina and red dyed water to show how much bloody fluid is lost during an average period.

Dr. Freitas not only discusses the physiological aspects of puberty and menstruation but also the emotional. She also goes into great detail about how to wear a pad, dispose of a pad, make a pad out of toilet paper (what woman hasn’t had to do this at least once in her lifetime?), and used the balloon to show how to insert and remove a tampon. She also discussed how there can be a sudden gush with standing up, coughing, or sneezing. Early on I can remember worrying that I was going to bleed to death when that happened to me. These are all things I wish my mom had shared with me but probably never thought to. It certainly would have saved me a lot of embarrassment in my trial and errors.

During the entire “chat” I couldn’t help but to feel like my daughters and I were part of some exclusive female only club. Call me premenstrual but I couldn’t help to tear up when Dr. Freitas told the girls, “Welcome to the club.” She really had a great way of making the whole business of menstruation feel like an amazing thing that shouldn’t be feared but celebrated. When I was growing up menstruation was considered “the curse” and most of the women in my life treated it like it was a dirty secret that happened to women.

I teared up again (I swear I’m not premenstrual. I don’t even have a uterus anymore!) when she told a story about a girl whose father gave her a dozen roses when she got her period. How sweet is that? I’ve made a mental note to encourage my husband to do something special for our girls when their time comes.

The second part of the DVD features a chat just with the moms about talking to their girls about sex. It was interesting to hear about how the mothers felt about “the talk”. I couldn’t help but to laugh at the mom who told her daughter that she could get pregnant by shaking a boys hand. I realized that I’m much more open and comfortable about talking about sex with my girls than I thought.

The cool thing is Dr. Freitas never made any of the moms feel like their views were wrong however she did a great job of explaining that giving information doesn’t mean giving permission. I couldn’t agree more. I would rather my kids find out from me and to know my beliefs than hear the wrong information from a friend.

I also have to agree with Dr. Freitas that the earlier we tell our children the better. My oldest daughters were 7 and 9 when we had “the talk” and my 7 year old was much more intrigued and interested than my 9 year old who couldn’t get over her embarrassment.

The birds and bees chat is a separate segment on the DVD for those parents who aren’t comfortable yet with the topic or would like to save it for later. Either way I think at some point it should be viewed because Dr. Freitas does an excellent job of explaining it and getting her message across that sex is a big thing that can have big consequences such as pregnancy or diseases. She does talk in the traditional sense that you need to be married but at that point parents can elaborate on their values if they differ.

My First Period Kit & DVD is designed for girls ages 9-12 can be purchased here for $19.95.

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