OT-For Ladies Only-Which cup do you like best?

[robinb]

There's no need to wipe it off, wave it around the room, wash it or anything else.

*snork* That's what I've been doing wrong !

 

[kacaju]

Due to using the nuvaring I have a very light flow. I LOVE using Instead and would try one of the others if I could not buy instead anymore. I will never go back to pads or tampons!!

 

[piglet33]

I have never heard of these before and just read up on them. I decided to order a pink LadyCup. I found a coupon code and saved 15% on it too. We'll see how it goes when I get it.

Thanks for posting this.

 

[Cruise]

How about when you're pulling your panties up and the sticky side flips up and then not sticking to your underwear you have to get it off - you. Ok I can't be the only one that this has happened to... and if I am lets just say ouch!

What about when you're taking your panties down and for some odd reason your pad has gotten rolled up and over and the sticky is against you? Talk about bad bikini wax.

I'd say Mrs. Pete is accurate in her description of those who have used a cup regularly and are comfortable with it.

And I'll agree with your agreement.

And, again with the TMI - There is way way way more mess for me if I use a tampon. Like I said before, I always have leakage with a tampon. The string itself is even covered in yuck. Pull on string, tampon pops out.....and goes swinging. Maybe I should be grabbing the string closer to my body to avoid the "swing," but gravity always seems to take over. Not as much of a problem when we're just dealing with liquids, but everyone knows there's some tissue loss during a period too. (I did say TMI!!! You were warned!) I just can't even fathom the concept of a cup being more messy for me. I haven't had that problem since I got used to it (about 3 cycles).

I usually empty my cup in the morning before a shower, wash it out, pop it back in, shower clean and I'm good for the rest of the day. Get home from work, and empty it. No mess with grabbing the bottom of the cup because everything is on the other side - inside the cup. On lighter days, I can just empty it and put it back in. On medium days, I'll empty it and wipe it with a bit of toilet paper and put it back in. Only on my heaviest days do I bother with a full rinse/cleaning on this second emptying of the day.

 

[twoeeyy]

I have been using the Instead for about 5 months now. Yes they can be messy sometimes taking them out. My question is and this is going to be TMI but the Instead can be worn during ' play time ' can any of the other cups be worn then or will the ' stump ' be in the way ?

 

[Mrs D]

OP here - I have no worn a cup before, but I believe I have read that you MUST remove it for play time. I think the entire thing would be in the way. I am sure an experienced user will confirm or deny this.

BTW - I am so glad to get some more technical info on the using the cups. Thanks to all who have shared their advice!

 

[MrsPete]

I have been using the Instead for about 5 months now. Yes they can be messy sometimes taking them out. My question is and this is going to be TMI but the Instead can be worn during ' play time ' can any of the other cups be worn then or will the ' stump ' be in the way ?

Instead and the cups cannot be compared in any way. The shape of the two products is completely is different. Instead sits "up high" and huts the cervix -- like a diaphram -- while the cup sits low, barely inside the ******.

Perhaps other people "don't get" that the cup sits . . . um, so close to the outside, and perhaps that's why people think it's so messy. You don't have to reach way up inside to get to the cup. In fact, if you've ever used those no-stick tampons (are they OB?), you have to reach much farther inside to use them.

It would be 100% impossible to have any "playtime activities" while wearing a cup.

 

[queenarmadillo]

Going well into TMI again I think, but:

if I use tampons, particularly on bad days, I find my body pushes them out (like active muscle contractions I imagine kind of like giving birth, not just slipping out). This makes liners completely necessary for me, so I would love to try the cup but Im a bit worried that my body would just end up really uncomfortable if it was trying to get rid of it and couldnt. Is there anyone else who has similar problems with tampons who has had success (or otherwise) with the cup?

 

[threeboysmom]

OK, ladies! Stop it! Now you've got me thinking about trying one again....

Looking into a pink Ladycup. Anyone have any experience with this specific brand?

And.... are you SURE this is not going to be messy???

 

[Cruise]

OK, ladies! Stop it! Now you've got me thinking about trying one again....

Looking into a pink Ladycup. Anyone have any experience with this specific brand?

And.... are you SURE this is not going to be messy???

I won't guarantee anything while you're getting used to it, but once you've got the hang of it, it won't be messy. If you're worried while you're getting used to it, before you begin, take a bit of toilet paper off the roll and fold it up so you'll have it right there handy ready to grab without trouble.

Your first couple of cycles will be a learning experience, but after that, if you find there's blood on the part that you're actually grasping to pull out, then it either isn't positioned correctly or you need to empty a bit more often. There's a learning curve. But, barring any physical problems that might make you "shaped" unusually and cause it to not work well for you, I swear once you have the routine down, you'll never want to go back to pads and tampons.

 

[Mrs. Bradbury]

Is there anyone else who has similar problems with tampons who has had success (or otherwise) with the cup?

As I responded several posts before, Tampax tampons feel like they are crawling back out of me, and Playtex tampons hurt upon removal, but Kotex brand tampons are juuuuussst right. I have no problem with comfort or performance. I was really beginning to think that something was wrong with me because I had used Tampax brand fine in high school, but either they or me changed because they just didn't work for me anymore.

 

[KristiKelly]

I'm going to have to disagree here. When I was learning to use it, yes, I made a mess. Every single time. Now that I've been using it for more than a decade, that's no longer true.

WARNING: Graphic information ahead:​

When I REMOVE the Keeper, I do not get messy at all. Grasp it by the little tail and pull. Keep it straight up so that nothing can spill, then tilt it sideways to empty it out. Never remove it from above the toilet so that there's no possibility of spillage. All the blood is in the cup or above the cup -- you're touching the side of the cup that's blood-free (unless you've gone too long between changes and things have over-flowed; this does happen occasionally, regardless of whether you're using a cup or disposables). Remove the Keeper while sitting on the toilet, dump it into the toilet. This is easy if you sit a bit farther back than you normally would.

Once the cup's empty, it's easy to fold it in half with one hand and reinsert it. There's no need to wipe it off, wave it around the room, wash it or anything else -- remember, the outside, where your hand is, is not bloody. In one movement, pull it out and dump it, then pop it right back in. When reinserting the cup, two fingers and the thumb DO get messy, but if you're working quickly you're not talking about massive amounts. Do the little twist-pull to set it in place. Take a tissue and wipe yourself, eliminating any drops of blood that escaped during the changing process. If it's a heavy day, take a second tissue and wipe your fingers -- if it's a light day, this won't be necessary because in the quick process of changing, realistically, no blood will've escaped. If you're in a public restroom, it's easy enough to simply close your fingers as you walk to the sink -- you're not going to have blood up to your wrist or anything. Once you know how to use this product effectively, the mess is quite minimal.

Once you know how to do this well, it takes all of about 20 seconds to empty and reinsert the Keeper.

Mrs. Pete, thanks for clearing up the cleaning aspect on this. There are videos on google. They instruct to empty, wash w/ soap & water, reinsert. I was picturing myself in the bathroom @ WDW, stepping out of the stall - cup in hand, telling the next lady in line, "I'm not finished, just washing my cup", then going back into the stall. LOL

I have never heard of these until today, I think I will look into it a little more now.

 

[MrsPete]

I won't guarantee anything while you're getting used to it, but once you've got the hang of it, it won't be messy.

Exactly. I think I said earlier, you should plan to use it first on a light day, and you might not be completely comfortable 'til you've used it a couple months. It does take some getting used to, but once you've mastered the technique it's no more messy than pads or tampons.

There are videos on google.

Videos? And I was a little embarassed that I was being so graphic!

 

[KristiKelly]

Videos? And I was a little embarassed that I was being so graphic!

One was a puppet show with a puppet ****** & tampon. No words for that???

 

[Cruise]

One was a puppet show with a puppet ****** & tampon. No words for that???

And just when I thought I'd gotten to the end of the internet.... they add more.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

Another Diva cup lover here!

I had tried the Instead many years ago and that was awful. Leaks everywhere and still creates trash each time.

I heard about the Diva cup here on the Dis (where else can we find such reliable info?!) and decided to give it another try. This was around 14 mos ago and never looked back. We shop at BJ's and still have lots of paper products though we haven't bought a thing in all this time.

My cycle lasts a good 8 days and is very heavy on Day 2. I do wear a back up pad only that day cuz I work in a hospital and if I'm in the middle of a procedure, I can't always run out to a bathroom. (Even when using disposables, I had to wear a super tampon and huge overnight pad to bed on day 2 so no 1 item alone would work anyway.)
Ok, so 1 pad per month is all I need to buy anymore. To keep from having to 'need' the pad, I honestly have to empty the cup about every 3-4 hrs. By the next day (day 3) I only have to empty in am, once on my lunch or early afternoon, then at bedtime. The rest of the time I only empty before shower and before bed.

I discovered after I had children, even though both were c-sections, tampons were just so darn uncomfortable, like they did want to come out. I've tried many brands and they are all the same. I was using pads all the time which is just gross having to see it every time you go pee.
I also skeeve trying to move a tampon string out of the scene when going #1 or 2. Just gross...
I also hated that feeling if a tampon hasn't absorbed enough liquid, it felt like my inside were being torn out with it.

So here's my list of Pros of the cup:
1. One time cost, last many years
2. Environmentally friendly
3. More comfortable than tampons.
4. No nasty tampon string while toileting or showering or feeling it wet afterward.
5. No chemicals/bleach that could possibly be absorbed by my body.
6. Packing light when on vacation.
7. Never have to worry about supplies dwindling or having dh buy jumbo sizes at BJ's.
8. Between the Diva cup and Motrin, sometimes I forget I have my pd.
9. I can put it in when anticipating my pd without that awful dry feeling that tampons would cause or knowing that I'm wasting those products when it still hasn't come. (It can be anywhere from 4 days early to 4 days late. That would be potentially 8 days of wasted pads just being careful.)

Cons:
1. Learning to use it definitely takes a while. Just use a pad until you know you've got it down. Remember way back the 1st time you tried a tampon? We didn't all do it right the 1st few times.
2. Some ladies may not be comfortable being so intimate with one's self. For me, this wasn't that big of a deal.
3. A little messy on my 1 heavy day when I have to empty often. (every 4 hrs.)
4. Trying to boil it at the end of my cycle without my boys seeing it. Now I do it while they're at karate. Last time I tried to sneak it in, they thought I was cooking something and came running to see. Ds12 looked at it bobbing in the boiling water and said, "Oh, is that some 'birth thing'?"

For anyone considering buying one, give it an honest try and not just once. It takes a while to learn to be comfortable and confident that you're doing it right.
For those wondering how to deal with this in a public bathroom, I just use one that has its own sink. In a very busy place like WDW where it's very likely someone will need the w/c accessible stall, I wet a paper towel first and take that in the stall with me so I can wipe my hands well enough to exit the stall then wash at the sink. Then when I get back to a regular private bathroom, I wash it thoroughly.

hth! good luck all!

 

[AnnaS]

i've NEVER heard of a menstrual cup...i went to the link and it looks rather large!

Do these things really work?

I am laughing here. I have never heard of such a thing before. How long has this been around? I have never heard anyone discuss it. Is it fairly new? Will it be available in supermarkets soon?

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

forgot to mention:
to the pp who asked, no you can't with a cup inserted.

 

[Cruise]

I am laughing here. I have never heard of such a thing before. How long has this been around? I have never heard anyone discuss it. Is it fairly new? Will it be available in supermarkets soon?

Actually, someone posted this link which was very interesting: http://www.mum.org/MenCups.htm

Apparently, they've been around since the 1930s. Why so few people have heard of them? Cause heaven forbid that women talk about periods. Really.

I was able to buy my Diva Cup in a store about 5 years ago, but it was a very specialized health foods store and in the San Francisco (ie: major city) area. But really, with everything being available over the web now, anyone can get one of these in a matter of days no matter where you live.

 

[jenniy122]

I am laughing here. I have never heard of such a thing before. How long has this been around? I have never heard anyone discuss it. Is it fairly new? Will it be available in supermarkets soon?

Most Whole Foods stock keepers/divacups (the 2 US brands of cups), but that's the only store I've actually seen them in, but you can order them all over online.

I have both a keeper and a divacup. I got the keeper first, and actually prefer it, but developed an allergy to latex while using it, so I got the diva, which is silicone. The diva is a bit too long for me, so I'm still keeping an eye out for the Moon Cup by keeper, but with them stealing the name from the UK mooncup company and using questionable business tactics, I don't plan on finding it. I don't like to order things online, which is why I've stuck to these two brands. I also don't particularity care about color, they all end up semi-blood stained anyways.

For people looking for more information about cups, the community on livejournal (http://community.livejournal.com/menstrual_cups/) is amazing. There are users who have bought all the cups and taken measurements and pictures for comparison.

Edited to add that it's true that you can't do the horizontal mambo with a regular cup in, however with disposable insteads, which are soft, it's doable. I'd be too afraid of spillage to try.