Thoughts on Depends

Recently, I've gotten my hands on a bunch of premium adult diapers from Northshore Care: Mollicares, ATNs, Wellness Briefs, Abenas, and NorthShore's excellent in-house brand. I've tried all of them except the ATNs and they really work well for me.

However, I honestly enjoy using cheaper store-bought diapers more. I know Depends (especially the more recent styles) have a somewhat infamous reputation here - most people consider "Depend" a byword for low-quality and inconvenience. Others have no choice due to living situation or finances. A smaller number of people are fans. Clearly, I fall into the last category.

Depend Protection with Tabs are, I'm guessing, many people's first tape-ons. They were mine, too. It's ironic looking back to my first experience with them. They seemed so big, unfolding them like a map, and they held much more than adult pull-ups. Now I know better. So why do I still gravitate towards them?

First off, I like having 3 tapes. True, the tapes are thin, the adhesive is hit-or-miss, and they can't be re-adjusted at all. Pulling them off destroys the landing zone. But the third tape seems to keep the front of the diaper flatter in my experience, and that helps with tucking. Secondly, they aren't as absorbent as premium brands, and I like that. It takes longer to absorb, and I like the feeling of the wetness sloshing around and pooling momentarily wherever gravity dictates. They get really soggy and the padding isn't very thick or super stable, and I really enjoy squishing and squeezing myself through the plastic. I worked a week on 3rd shift, going to bed as soon as I got home, and wore Depends to bed every night, soaking myself in bed before going to sleep (I don't sleep-wet). Every morning, I woke up soggy and warm, and very aroused, and that doesn't happen in my premium diapers. The capacity is perfect, too. 1 or 2 full soakings and it's full from front to back, and I like feeling the wetness on my butt. It's the perfect amount of time and capacity to get that soaked feeling while getting sexually wound up, and I don't feel like I'm wasting a nearly-dry diaper when I take it off to indulge in some self-love.

I guess the traits that give Depends a bad reputation are the same reasons I like them so much.

I'll put my thoughts on other Depend products in subsequent posts to this thread.

I should have stated that my review above is based on the S/M size, as are the rest of my reviews in this thread.

Depend Adjustable Underwear:
A short time after I started lurking here, I realized that some diapers had velcro tabs rather than tapes. I knew I had to get my hands on some. I really liked the idea of being able to get a nice tight fit while wearing and wetting, but then being able to loosen up to get access to play with myself while sitting in the squishy, warm diaper.

Depend Adjustable Underwear fit the bill. By default, they are cloth-backed pull-ups with a large waistband, but have two velcro tabs per side, and perforated side panels, making either style of diaper change easy. I like the simplicity putting on a pullup and then cinching it up. It made newbie diaper taping easier, and if I messed up, it was no problem to re-adjust the tabs. A word of caution, though: the point where the back of the tapes is attached to the diaper can be pretty weak, so if you're used to pulling the tapes tightly, you have to ease up or risk pulling the tabs right off.

The Adjustable Underwear doesn't perform as well as the Protection with Tabs due to the absence of standing leak guards. Honestly, they leak every time I wear them. I wouldn't recommend them to others, but I will continue to use them until mine are gone.

Depend Real Fit for Men pull-ups:

I remember when these first hit the shelves when Kimberly-Clark started on their "better fit" updates to the GoodNites and Depend brands. Back when I was still wearing pull-ups, I bought a box of these. They were/are packaged in "discreet" boxes containing both blue and gray briefs, and plastic wrappers for the bulk size without the blue color option. For some reason, I feel like the ones in the boxes were different/better than the bulk packs, but I don't trust that recollection much. I just wish the bulk packs also came in both gray and blue.

The cloth-like covering is definitely more comfortable and discreet than the rough elasticized paper of the cheaper Depends and generic brands. They do fit better than the real cheap pull-ups, not that this really means much. Sometimes duct tape and paper towels would fit better than the cheap pull-ups. The point is, they do provide pleasant pressure and swelling behavior similar to GoodNites etc., but as the crotch is wider so the bulking is not as quick and noticeable (to male-bodied people).

The RealFit for Men briefs also lack standing leak guards. The elasticized leg holes seem to contain everything decently, though I have had leaks. I think 2 moderate soakings from the average male bladder is all they can take under the most careful circumstances, or 1 full soaking if leaks are not acceptable.

I think I should also say that my first experience with messing occurred in the Depend RealFit for Men pull-ups. Definitely an interesting experience. They took a pretty big load as well as could be expected as I pooped, but I took it off immediately. Messing while sitting or sitting/laying down afterwards would be a disaster unless you want your poop squishing out...

They're not my favorite but I still like to have them on hand. They're a great, inexpensive diaper when you want something thin and discreet or want to wear for a little while and don't want to feel as though you've wasted a premium product. Their quality has slipped from their not all that impressive peak in 10+ years ago. They were a little thicker and the plastic was a little more durable but they're still worth it for me, particularly being the only readily available plastic outer shell diaper that's sold retail.

After posting that second post, I remembered that I had also used the non-RealFit men's pull-ups. To me, they're useless. Uncomfortable, bad fit, and not worthy of my pee. If they work for you, that's great! But 1 pack was all I ever needed.

I just picked up a sampler pack of Depend Silhouette Active Fit women's pull-ups at Walmart a few days ago. Unlike the other Depends products I've tried, they are rated for "moderate" absorbency rather than "maximum". The pack had 2 beige and 2 blacks, and I've only used 1 black one. It looks really sexy IMHO. Too bad there aren't more black diapers, although I've heard Fabine is re-releasing their black tape-ons.

Performance-wise, they're not a daily-use deal. One moderate wetting, if that, is all they can take. The absorbent lining is about the same as a bladder leakage pad. Really only useful or appealing because of the color and fit/form, for partnered diaper sex...

As I've said before, the best pull-ups are Always Discreet. They fit well, for men, too. They absorb a reasonable amount, they have small but useful standing leak guards, they look cute, and they smell nice.

Anyone else have thoughts on Depends? Anyone else prefer them to premium diapers?

The problem I have with Depend goes deeper than the thrift store quality. For a company that has made billions of dollars for themselves in incontinence there "underwareness" campaign is raising awareness that younger people like me need and use "different underwear" is great but thrum this campaign they will donate "as much as " 3 million dollars to incontinence research that is insulting. They pay more than that to have the employee parking lot plowed and the grass cut at corporate offices. This stinks like my diaper in the morning! Does anybody else feel this way or am I a lone wolf??

Tetra said:

The problem I have with Depend goes deeper than the thrift store quality. For a company that has made billions of dollars for themselves in incontinence there "underwareness" campaign is raising awareness that younger people like me need and use "different underwear" is great but thrum this campaign they will donate "as much as " 3 million dollars to incontinence research that is insulting. They pay more than that to have the employee parking lot plowed and the grass cut at corporate offices. This stinks like my diaper in the morning! Does anybody else feel this way or am I a lone wolf??

Click to expand...

Seems to me like it's up to $3M more than it might have had otherwise. They'd be spending money to put themselves out of business, so while more would be nice, it's better than nothing. Not being incontinent, maybe I look at it differently, but they're not the alpha and omega of diapers for anyone who is paying attention, so I don't expect them to fix everything.

I get why that number might seem insultingly low, especially to someone who HAS to deal with incontinence on a daily basis. On the other hand, they're a diaper company. They don't have any obligation to fund incontinence research at all. (They do have an obligation to make better diapers for incontinent folks rather than cut costs by letting the quality go downhill and pretending that their products are better than they are.) In fact, funding incontinence research is kind of counterproductive for them, isn't it? I know 3 million is not much compared with how much it costs to do fruitfull research, but it's also a lot more than what most companies donate to various charitable causes.

Just my 2 cents...

Trevor and TG I cant argue with the logic for sure you make very valid points. If I was not incon I would still wear diapers they feel very nice although it been so long since I wore anything else I really don't remember what unpadded life was like anymore.

we get depends in Australia that are very good actually. Not that you can get these type in any old pharmacy, shop, retail outlet. I not see them in the rest of the world online however we can get in Australia and NZ DEPEND BRIEF SUPER PLUS - LARGE - 3100ml - 15 PACK
Key features:
Improved padding formation with embossed pattern and long side leakage guards ensure absorbency, comfort and reliability
Features a full length wetness indicator to enable a more informed change time decision
Unique dry lock core reduces odour and keeps the wearer dry
Improved fastening system with frontal patch allows multiple re-fastening and adjustment
Top layer quickly draws moisture away from skin into absorbent core, with Dry-Touch granules, locks liquid away to prevent leakage and odour
Gentle leg elastic and waist elastic at the back of the briefs helps provide a closer fit for better protection
Absorbency: Available in 8 different absorbency levels, from an 1800ml capacity (Normal) all the way up to 4180ml capacity (Super Plus).
Size: S, M, L and XL (depending on absorbency). Please check the size tab for full details.

Depends are not worth my urine. Their capacity is below 1 wetting from me no matter how slow I go. I have not seen the taped briefs in stores in years and cannot rate those currently. They were barely 1 over a decade ago. I have tried the real fit and found them comfortable. If I am wanting to wear basically disposable underwear, they are a decent choice. As a diaper, they are worthless to me. Since 2003, I have bought each of their new products over the years once and considered it enough each time.

When I started to wear for a slight dribble I used real fit for men and they worked ok for a month or so but when I started to flood they did not have the capacity and leaked right away. I tried the depends taped diapers and they were better then the real fit for absorbancy but they still failed and they were not very comfortable. I then found Dry 24/7's and the Abena premium diapers and haven't looked back at depends.

Stay with premium diapers they Handle wettings better and are more comfortable you pay more per diaper but you have to change less and the secure feeling you get with a premium diaper is worth the extra cost.

Don't get me wrong premium diapers still leak once in a while but over all you will be happier in premium proper fitting diapers then cheap Depends.

Kimberly Clark, the parent company, makes quality products for younger people. I've never understood why they refuse to manufacture similar products for such a large and growing market.

Thanks everyone for the replies!

For some reason, since I posted this thread, I've become interested in collecting all sorts of store brand disposables. I just picked up a huge case of Walgreens Certainty tape-on "Fitted Briefs" and a pack of their "Well Beginnings" girls pull-ups, as well as a full-size box of the new Depend Silhouette Active Fit women's pull-ups.

Like I said before, I know from experience that none of these are going to come close to the performance of the premium brands I also have on hand. I guess for me it's like Pokémon, right? Gotta wet 'em all!

I like Depends. They are a good choice for me when I want to wear for only a few hours. I usually pee a number of small wettings that add up to one and the Depends Tap usually will not leak.

i like the new depend form fitting silouttes disposible panties. Fit great, always undetected. Also, Always in now making a highly asorbant lite-weight form fitting panties for women. They're great for men too. I can wet off and on, for 8-12 hours before I change with no leaks. Or, two full wettings in a 3-4 hour setting. I like no one knows when I do small shots of pee, while out shopping.