Earlier in her life, Maxine Bentley faced circumstances that meant choosing between buying period products or a loaf of bread.
"It just really astounds me in this day and age the indignity that some women have to go through during their periods," she said.
Ms Bentley now collects donated sanitary items for people in need at the toy shop she operates in Sale, in Victoria's Gippsland region.
She has been volunteering for several years because she believed it was "everybody's right to have that level of dignity in their lives".
"Can you imagine … you haven't got anything, you're scrunching up a piece of newspaper, you're rolling up paper towels or even using a sock because that's all the choice you have?" Ms Bentley said.
"It's not right."
Ms Bentley is a member of the national volunteer team for charity Share the Dignity, which works to provide period products for females facing financial hardship.
According to a 2021 report by Share the Dignity, based on responses from more than 125,000 Australians, almost one in five women and girls who menstruate had to improvise on period products due to the cost.
Almost half of the survey's respondents had worn a tampon or pad for more than four hours because they did not have any more to use.
Volunteer shortage
Founder and managing director of Share the Dignity Rochelle Courtenay said the organisation ran collection drives twice a year.
"Volunteers … pick up those donations and get them out to the domestic violence services and homelessness services and community centres in the local area," Ms Courtenay said.
"So if you donate in Gippsland, Bendigo, Ballarat or Broome, they stay in that local area to help those women who need them."
Rhonda Chapman, who was the leader of the Gippsland volunteers for several years, said more people were urgently needed for the collection drives.
"Unfortunately with COVID, a lot of people changed jobs, changed family things, and we lost a lot of volunteers. So we're actually really struggling at the moment," Ms Chapman said.
"We desperately need new volunteers, especially in the Central Gippsland and Bass Coast areas, and even Moe, Warragul, Drouin … Maffra."
There are 24 collection points across Gippsland this year and almost 1,500 period products have been requested by charities in the region.
Ms Chapman said major retail franchises hosted most of the collection points, but a range of small businesses had been involved including medical clinics, restaurants, and a photography studio.
Demand for products 'so much greater than ever before'
Ms Courtenay said she was worried about meeting the demand for period products as the cost of living continued to rise.
"People are really struggling to afford their rent and electricity and food and fuel. So people are less likely to donate," she said.
Ms Courtenay said only half the charities that received period products from the charity had submitted their requests for this month's collection drive, and the number was already more than 150,000.
Donations so far are down on last year across Australia. The charity has collected 6,750 products compared with 8,300 products collected by March 2022.
In her toy shop, Ms Bentley said families were spending less.
She has not had any donations at her store yet, but she was hopeful that posting call-outs on social media pages and putting more signs up in the store would help.
State government rolling out more support
During last year's state election, the Victorian Labor Party vowed to install vending machines to provide free pads and tampons in public places if re-elected.
The policy is due to commence in July this year.
Minister for Women Natalie Hutchins said Victoria was also the first state in Australia where pads and tampons became available in public schools for free.
"We are expanding that to up to 700 public sites, including public hospitals, courts, TAFEs, public libraries, train stations, and major cultural institutions such as the State Library of Victoria and Melbourne Museum," she said.
