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I'm back, reporting as your trusty women’s health investigator! I’m now completing my first cycle using the DivaCup and I have plenty to share. Basically, I love it. Don’t worry, I plan to mix emotional gushing with some legitimate explanations.
I purchased my DivaCup (after weighing the options between it and the Keeper) from a Whole Foods grocery store for $39.50 including tax. Glimpsing the price of tampons as I walked down the aisle, I felt good about my investment in a reusable product, as ultimately it will take me about 4.5 periods to make up what I would have spent on tampons.
I arrived home and immediately called a friend and fellow-DivaCup user for some advice on insertion. Once out of the package, the cup looked frighteningly large, and despite my previous enthusiasm, I was suddenly nervous. Luckily, the cup comes with straightforward diagrams and directions, (in addition to a cotton bag for storage and a pin that says “diva”!) which helped me to fold the cup in the correct way to make insertion easy.
I sat at the edge of my toilet and gently pushed the folded cup inside me, spinning it slightly after it was 3/4ths of the way in to create the suction that holds the cup in place. It felt similar to inserting a tampon, though required a little more manual effort and a lot more trust in my body. Of course, being the amazing creation that it is, my vagina adapted to this foreign object, and I felt the muscles and tissues in my lower region stretch and accommodate immediately. Once inserted, I couldn’t feel the cup at all. No string hanging down, no chemicals inside my body, no mess, no stress. I went about my day without thinking about the cup once. (Except to gloat about the fact that I was wearing a DivaCup and didn’t need to think about it.)
Twelve hours after insertion, I admit I was feeling nervous. The DivaCup website cautions against using a menstrual cup with an IUD, as there is the potential to dislodge the IUD by accidentally pulling on the strings that hang down into the vaginal canal during the cup’s removal. So, in order to facilitate the process, I crouched and pushed down with my pelvic muscles (per DivaCup’s instructions) and after some initial attempts, was able to grasp and carefully wiggle the cup out of my body. No harm done! No pain, no waste to add to the trashcan, and still no mess or stress! Luckily, it seems that with common sense and mindfulness, there is no danger in using both IUDs and a menstrual cup.
Throughout this period, I have been truly amazed to see how little blood is actually expelled from the uterus. As someone who generally uses Super tampons, I was surprised to see that even after 12 hours, the fluid only filled a very small portion of the cup. The blood was also darker and more viscous than I ever realized.
I was also amazed at how clean I have felt during this monthly bleeding. Often with tampons, I’ve misjudged how long a Super will last me, or been frustrated by the hanging tampon string that’s always in the way, or felt like my pad is a bulky diaper. None of these problems occurred with DivaCup. No mess, no stress.
Please, PLEASE feel free to leave a question or a comment below. I know my DivaCup and I are headed for a long, committed relationship and I’m convinced that many women could enjoy a cleaner, healthier, cheaper, less stressful period, if only they were willing to experiment with being a diva too.
And no, I’m not even going to apologize for that awful play on words.
Add a Comment3 Comments
I loved this article. I'm contemplating getting a diva cup (both of my wonderful roommates have them) but I can't decide. My main concern lies in how to clean it and keep it clean. Any advice?
October 29, 2010 - 7:16amThis Comment
I really need to join this website!
I got my DivaCup, after much debate, at a local health foods store. I literally stood in the aisle, circling around, too nervous to ask where they were, what they were, how they worked... About 25 minutes later, I was approached, and I asked about a 'cup thing' for periods. Even after the saleslady showed me the MoonCup and DIvaCup, she admitted she was too afraid to use one, and went with the reusable cloth pads.
Despite the first cycle with the cup being a bit... dramatic, I'm feeling confident for this month! I got it in each time with no problem at all, it worked, no leaking, and my extremely heavy days didn't even signal on my radar at all. It was like I only had to deal with my period at night, when emptying it (amazing!). But every time I tried to remove it, I ended up screaming, crying, or shrieking out in frustration. My husband thought I was having an episode and repeatedly tried to burst into the washroom! My arm isn't long enough, my fingers aren't long enough, and the little thing to grab onto isn't long enough. I'm contemplating buying a new one with a really long stem (if there is a such thing).
Despite the intensity that is the REMOVAL process, (it is possibly just my anatomy having a laugh) the DivaCup is a wonderful product!
September 29, 2010 - 8:00pmThis Comment
Thanks for writing! I'm glad you still think the DIvaCup is wonderful, even after screaming fits and frustration! But you are in luck - there IS a product with a longer stem, which would probably make removal much easier.
The Keeper (or the MoonCup - a clear, non latex version of the Keeper) has a much longer stem - perfect for easy grasping! You might want to look into purchasing one of these.
Otherwise - have you tried squatting and bearing down with your pelvic muscles (sort of like you are pooping) while reaching for the stem? The first times I tried to remove my DivaCup, I sat on the edge of the toilet and it was certainly a much more difficult task. The squatting position positions your vaginal canal more appropriately for removing something (think: Birth), and using your pelvic muscles to push on the cup can help to release the suction and also ease the process. See if experimenting with different positions helps. Report back! I can't wait to hear.
September 30, 2010 - 3:47amThis Comment