If you’re considering ditching tampons and pads for menstrual cup, please read before you jump onto that bandwagon. I have not included any body part or bloody photos in this post, however use your imagination, the writing will be quite raw and graphic. This is a bit of a TMI post, but I think it is important to share what using menstrual cup actually involved. It’s 2019, time to try something new, right?

 

In short, the first time inserting it AND removing it was a bloody mess. Pun intended. It took me 20min to insert and 30min to remove. Sadly, I am not exaggerating. My husband got really concerned and offered to help at some point LOL

 

Insertion

It took me 20min of trying to position it correctly. That’s right. During which I had to deal with bloody hands and floor. Thank goodness I had the good sense to attempt this in the shower. O and whenever I lost grip with compressing the menstrual cup, it “bounced”, so basically, blood sprayed. Compressing it or rolling it is the only way to insert it. So make sure you have a firm grip.

 

When I finally got the menstrual cup in, I couldn’t get it to move up enough to not feel the menstrual cup. At that point, it has been 20min of trying, I wasn’t going to give up. So I had to push it up with many “pokes”.

 

Once it was in position, it was fantastic. Cannot feel anything and ZERO leak for a full 7 hours!!! At that point, I was a believer and thought that it was the greatest invention. Then… the moment to remove it came.

 

Removal

One had to insert at least 2 fingers to remove the cup. If you’re uncomfortable with inserting/removing tampon, this will probably top it off. The trick is to squeeze the cup to break the vacuum. It was incredibly uncomfortable to insert 2 fingers to find the cup AND squeeze the cup enough to break the vacuum; it maybe just me though. Normally, one will use thumb and index finger to pinch anything right? Well, imagine trying to do that inside your vagina. 30min later, I somehow managed to break the vacuum by using my index and middle finger. I pushed the bottom of the menstrual cup against the wall. Okay, please bare in mind that whenever you squeeze the cup in anyway, blood will come out. Again, thank goodness I did this in the shower.

 

Cleaning

It is very important to wash the cup properly. Besides rinsing it between uses, it is necessary to sanitise the cup when the cycle is over… Boil the cup in a pan for 5-8 minute. (Or put it in the microwave) I find this exercise awkward. I don’t want my menstrual cup entering the kitchen. Like, no worry hubby, I am just “cooking” my menstrual cup.

 

Will I try to use it again?

Probably. If I know that I have 1 hour to spare that day. I can already tell that the menstrual cup is the ultimate solution for swimming. Despite my clumsy first use attempt, it had ZERO leak. I mean come on, neither tampon or pad is leak proof.

 

I understand that it is supposed to be a majorly eco-friendly product, but I don’t think it is for everyone. Period by itself is hard enough. Menstrual cup is not user friendly at all in my humble opinion. If using a tampon without an applicator is difficult, then this is difficulty x 3.

 

Can virgins use menstrual cup?

The marketing states that it is safe for virgins. Here’s my female thought. “How about NO?”. It maybe “safe”, but it will hurt like hell to get the cup pass the hymen. Did I mention that you’ll need to insert TWO fingers to get the cup out? I am betting that the person who wrote that it is “safe” for virgin is a guy. “Discomfort” is an understatement. Anyways, if you are a virgin, please make sure that you get the right cup size for you.

 

Reasons to buy a menstrual cup?

• You intend to persevere and replace tampon/pads with menstrual cup.
• You’re trying to be more green / ecological / reducing trash.
• You want to save money. **One cup lasts for 5 years. That’s 60 cycles.
• You’re into camping or swimming.

 

Reasons to NOT buy a menstrual cup?

• It is trendy.
• You already have one. (you only need ONE, pointless to buy multiple)
• You’re not comfortable with touching yourself.
• You’ll be too embarrassed to sanitise your menstrual cup (aka housemate / bf / gf / husband etc.)
• You struggle to insert tampon without an applicator / lubricant.

 

100% my personal opinion and experience. I bought the cup myself and the brand does not know that I exist LOL.

 

My cup is from Intima Cup in size T2. My bestie has hers from Diva Cup. The brand doesn’t matter at all. All menstrual cups are straight machine made 100% silicon product and you won’t see it when you use it. However, any brand that market their cup as organic I will recommend to stay away from. That brand is clearly full of shit. Silicon is man made and does not occur as a free element naturally. So a brand that place the word “organic” screams that they will put anything onto their packaging to get extra money out of their customer.

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