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azenari
Feb 4, 2010, 8:48 PM
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Do you have any good advice on this? I'll hopefully be doing a big wall soon and have never done so before. Is there anything extra I should get to make portaledge life easier?
I've already heard about getting those she-is things so you can urinate standing up. I've already heard about getting on the pill and skipping the placebo pills so you can stop your period. Anything else?
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kiwiprincess
Feb 4, 2010, 9:23 PM
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Panty liners rather than changing may be good.
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clausti
Feb 5, 2010, 2:06 AM
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macherry wrote: kiwiprincess wrote: Panty liners rather than changing may be good. changing what?
yeah no kidding, lol.
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azenari
Feb 5, 2010, 4:14 AM
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@macherry : I did a cursory subject search typing in "big walling" and "women" that revealed nothing useful (I didn't consider Dr. Piton to be useful) and I also clicked back at least 3 pages on "The Ladies' Room" forum to see if someone had posted recently on the subject. nada.
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jeepnphreak
Feb 5, 2010, 5:19 AM
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joanneding
Feb 5, 2010, 5:31 AM
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My husband and I did the Nose last summer. My first experience big wall was moonlight buttress 3 years ago. I had the freshette but it wasn't good enough. Maybe I wasn't good at using it but it's so hard to pee with your harness on. I ended up with pee all over me. When we decided to do the Nose, I made myself a crotch zipper pants. I wasn't much a sewer but I found a used pair of this: http://www.rei.com/product/790829. Took off the stiches around the crotch and sew a zipper on it instead. It might looked funny but it works perfect and I was so stealthy doing # 1 and #2 without any need of freshette on the wall. It's what I wear now everytime we go climbing because I don't have to ever take off my harness. Big wall is much harder for women because you have to do bodily function so often with your harness on. Practice doing them in your harness at home. Good luck!
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azenari
Feb 5, 2010, 5:28 PM
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wow those threads go back to 2002 & 2004! Thanks macherry!
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azenari
Feb 5, 2010, 5:30 PM
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That sounds brilliant! Big walling pants for women! I can sew so i might make my own.
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granite_grrl
Feb 6, 2010, 5:22 PM
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joanneding wrote: My husband and I did the Nose last summer. My first experience big wall was moonlight buttress 3 years ago. I had the freshette but it wasn't good enough. Maybe I wasn't good at using it but it's so hard to pee with your harness on. I ended up with pee all over me. When we decided to do the Nose, I made myself a crotch zipper pants. I wasn't much a sewer but I found a used pair of this: http://www.rei.com/product/790829. Took off the stiches around the crotch and sew a zipper on it instead. It might looked funny but it works perfect and I was so stealthy doing # 1 and #2 without any need of freshette on the wall. It's what I wear now everytime we go climbing because I don't have to ever take off my harness. Big wall is much harder for women because you have to do bodily function so often with your harness on. Practice doing them in your harness at home. Good luck!
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iamthewallress
Feb 8, 2010, 1:35 AM
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Thanks for the trip down memory lane. 2002...Geez. I think I met holdplease2 in 2002. She sure got her system dialed and has suffered a few of my foibles anyway since then.
I don't really have much new gender-specific advice except that I wouldn't trust the pill to keep your period away. The consequences of hormonal upheaval are bad enough to suffer the extra weight of an OB or two. Pulling my pants down and holding the elastic butt straps out of the way on my harness works just fine for me w/o any special zippers, clips, or devices.
Have fun, be brave, back up your jugs, and make sure you know how to haul w/ mech. advantage and put the bag on a load releasing hitch if you have a large load and are not a total hoss.
(This post was edited by iamthewallress on Feb 8, 2010, 1:38 AM)
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clymbrchk
Feb 8, 2010, 2:39 AM
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azenari wrote: Do you have any good advice on this? I'll hopefully be doing a big wall soon and have never done so before. Is there anything extra I should get to make portaledge life easier? I've already heard about getting those she-is things so you can urinate standing up. I've already heard about getting on the pill and skipping the placebo pills so you can stop your period. Anything else?
First and foremost, have this conversation with your partner. I'm assuming they have been up a wall before and know you well enough to help you prepare for the experience in way that we cannot because we don't know you personally. (Well, speaking for myself anyhow - I don't know you, so I'm kind of guessing here.)
That said, my biggest suggestion would be to think about the amount of gear (i.e., overall weight) that needs to be hiked in and the distance of the approach. Since you mentioned a portaledge, I'm assuming that you will spend at least one night on the wall, which means you'll need food, water, camping gear, and climbing gear - the weight of that stuff adds up. Talk with your partner to get a sense of how much weight you'll need to carry how far, and then make sure you are fit enough to deal with the approach. Hiking a pig is a PITA.
If you're worried about your period, then schedule the trip around it. Although, I've bled on trips before, and it's not that bad - dealing with a menstral cycle is really the least complicated part of doing a wall - just put any used items in the poop toob and call it good.
Depending on the route that you're doing and the size of available ledges, peeing on a wall is not much different than peeing while free climbing. If you have a party behind you and they're closing in, you can just say, "I'm peeing" and they'll respect your privacy.
Drink plenty of water and know thyself.
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wonderwoman
Feb 8, 2010, 5:00 PM
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azenari wrote: I've already heard about getting on the pill and skipping the placebo pills so you can stop your period. Anything else?
This doesn't work with every pill. Talk with your doctor, first.
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azenari
Feb 9, 2010, 2:15 AM
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yeah I'm gonna. I haven't been on the pill in years and I'll only be on it for the purpose of stopping my period. Having a period on the wall is not feasible for me because I am a heavy bleeder. The one time I went to Yosemite for climbing, something about the strain, elevation, or stress triggered a really bad period. I lost almost a pint and half of blood in 3 days. The docs of course found nothing unusual afterwards. typical b.s.
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wonderwoman
Feb 9, 2010, 2:46 PM
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Sounds unpleasant! Can you get referred to a gyn? Sometimes the body gets out of whack, and sometimes things go back to normal just as easily. But I would have that checked out for peace of mind.
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smallclimber
Feb 10, 2010, 10:04 PM
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Bloodly hell, that sounds like more than just a period...... Can't you schedule your climb around it, even if you are a bit irregular if you aim for right in the middle of the cycle you should have some leeway.
Someone else mentioned making sure you drink lots - this is very true, I tend not to drink enough when going to the loo is hard (ice climbing) but sometimes have some stomach pain at the end of the day. Might be not related, but am trying to drink and just put up with having to stop and go find a a bush. Avoiding caffeine while you are out might be a good policy as well.
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