>So I am kind of grossed out by the idea of buying underwear with the intention of bleeding into them and then washing the blood out and then doing that again.
that probably it. Back in USSR times the single use pads were a luxury, and women frequently were getting by with kind of self-made and somewhat reusable pads. The moment [western] single-use pads/tampons became available they stopped using anything else.
In particular, i think, there is an issue with washing out as it is not only blood there, and all the stuff wouldn't be washed out completely, especially from inside built-in padding material. Things change of course, yet 30 years ago regular detergent in regular cloth washer wasn't enough.
The moment [western] single-use pads/tampons became available they stopped using anything else
Which is a shame, as it is not exactly ok for the environment. Same goes for diapers. Tons and tons of throw-away material every single day. Which is the reason my wife uses reusable pads and our (future) children will use reusable diapers. My wife has no problems with the pads whatsoever (not claiming no women will ever have, but it definitely indicates it can be a proper substitute - although in might be in contradiction with what marketing tries to make one believe) and none of the parents we now who are using cotton diapers have problems either (again, same remark).
I have seen conflicting reports regarding the environmental impact of cloth vs disposable diapers. Cloth diapers have to be washed. They use water, detergent, etc. It isn't a clear "win" for the environment to forego disposable diapers.
For me, I have a genetic disorder. Treating it conventionally is extremely expensive (~$100k or more annually, which grows the older -- and sicker -- that you get). I have found that throwing out contaminated clothing is a drop in the bucket compared to what the medical expenses are supposed to be and far more effective in terms of giving me high quality of life (a la "an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure" -- it is just so much better to protect myself than to let myself get sick and then try to treat it).
Also, I am somewhat skeptical of self-reported anecdata concerning "we do x and it causes no problems" when someone has a stated up front agenda because of the tendency humans have to attribute "bad" outcomes to something they have decided is "bad" and "good" outcomes to something they have decided is "good" and do not confuse them with the facts. I have seen way too much of that in life. People are seldom objective or logical.
I have seen conflicting reports regarding the environmental impact of cloth vs disposable diapers
Me too. At least a couple of studies mainly took into account the amount of energy used for production vs washing. That is basically nonsense as it discards the waste. So even if both came out equally regarding energy consumption (hereby properly considering the washing machines these days use way less energy and water, latter might even have been collected from rain) there is still waste left with one and not so much with the other. And plastic isn't exactly that easy to get rid of.
Also, I am somewhat skeptical of self-reported anecdata concerning "we do x and it causes no problems"
Which is exactly why I also pointed out that I do not take it for granted that it works for everyone. And obviously for you it doesn't work, at all. And I'm fine with that.
Reusable cotton diapers are great, if you have access to a washing machine. Doing it by hand is not an option and you don't want to let them sit unwashed for long.
Another thing that's great, if they work for you anatomically, is the little plastic mentruation cups. They are to the tampon what the cotton pad is to the single-use one.
that probably it. Back in USSR times the single use pads were a luxury, and women frequently were getting by with kind of self-made and somewhat reusable pads. The moment [western] single-use pads/tampons became available they stopped using anything else.
In particular, i think, there is an issue with washing out as it is not only blood there, and all the stuff wouldn't be washed out completely, especially from inside built-in padding material. Things change of course, yet 30 years ago regular detergent in regular cloth washer wasn't enough.