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ummmm :confused: :confused: :confused: not a clue! it's some soft somethingy on the edge and then has a catch basin made out of somethingy else. (good thing there aren't any men here - all this technical jargon would leave them confused and searching for their "tech talk for dummies" book) It might be worth a try, the catch basin is structured Much differently than the Diva which is why I'm thinking it's more comfortable - but then I never tried the Diva.
Try the website for the Instead Cups...www.softcup.com ...for more info.
From the website:
Q: Does the INSTEAD® Softcup® have any latex?
A: No, there is absolutely no latex used anywhere in INSTEAD® Softcup®. The INSTEAD® Softcup® reservoir is made of Polyethylene.
I've never managed to find these, but I'm so happy with the diva, I haven't gone looking either...
Carrie Anne
Wow, I am feeling so naive. I've never heard of any of these before. Do they hurt to get in and out? Can you get them in stores? Are they sanitary?
Wow, I am feeling so naive.
I've never heard of any of these before. Yeah - I wish I had known about this before I reached a stage in my life where I really don't need them anymore! :o
Do they hurt to get in and out? No
Can you get them in stores? Yes
Are they sanitary? Very
Actually I found the Instead cup way more comfortable than using a tampon ever was.
I bought the Instead cups at my local grocery store. You should be able to get them at a Wal-Greens or something like or your local health store.
They are as sanitary as you keep them, I wash my Instead cup under hot water and make sure it's clean before reinserting.
You can't buy the Diva/Moon Cup in the stores (I don't think) but the websites are located here within this thread. I tried the Instead cup first to see if I would like it and was very pleased. The Instead will tell you to use once and toss but I would rinse mine out and reuse them just like a Diva or Moon Cup. Only 1 per cycle but still it was cheaper than buying tampons all the time.
I use diva and love it. The website is diva.com I think. There is also the keeper at keeper.com I have been using the same diva since I first started over a year ago. So fabulous for travel. No need to pack anything. There is definitely a little learning curve to using diva. But once you've figured it out; heaven.Quote:
Originally Posted by shetris703
Well, having just finished another cycle, I was thinking about coming back here and thanking everyone again for introducing me to this
I have been using a moon cup since Autumn (your spring in the northern hemisphere) and its fabulous.
And am trying to comvert other women to it - so much cheaper, environmentally friendly - as well as more comfortable on the bike than other "arrangements'
Hmm, okay I just got a diva cup to try and well maybe i'm just challenged in some way :P I couldn't get it in at all and finally gave up trying to get it in and got a pad instead. I folded it up into that U shape they tell you to and then put it in.. it goes in about an inch or so and then after it it just starts hurting. :( Any suggestions on what I can try to do to get it in?
Here are a few suggestions:Quote:
Originally Posted by liksani
Wet the diva with tap water before you get started. You can even try KY jelly if you want.
First time I actually had to squat all the way down to the floor with my knees out. But now I can insert it easily standing perfectly upright, so there is definitely a learning curve.
Make sure you are aiming to the small of your back, not straight up.
I assume you have no problems with tampons?
I personally think that the U double-fold shape in the literature is a crock. Someone on another forum taught me how to fold it like this:Quote:
Originally Posted by liksani
http://diane.rokatek.com/hair/diva1.jpg
Also, make sure you get it farther in before letting it unfurl. The pelvic floor muscle is about an inch in and that tight narrow stretch is what you're running into. Once you get past that ring of muscle the canal widens a bit and is much more elastic - you want to get the rim of the cup into that region. Try to consciously relax, and as doc mentioned a deep squat is a great position for insertion and removal. Also seconding what she said about moisture/lube.
I use lube, but I also make sure it's *right by* my cervix before I let it open, or it never 'seats' right. but with all that fidgeting- *use lube*.
I find it has to have some small degree of 'suction' in order to completely prevent leakage. Has anyone else found this to be true?
I think I know what you're saying, but that's not exactly how it works. Once it's seated properly, you will feel a bit of suction if you try to move the cup around. But the suction is not what actually prevents leakage, since air bubbles have to be able to escape as the cup fills up with liquid.Quote:
Originally Posted by Kitsune06
TMI: I can always tell when I'm flowing hard when the cup is burping a lot. :rolleyes:
I've been using my Keeper for a year and a half. I started having periods of Old Testament proportions due to peri-menopausal weirdness and I ordered my Keeper on the day I went through 17 tampons in an afternoon. :( The first month using the Keeper was one big trial and I had a couple messes, but after I figured out how to make it work/fit with my body it worked like a charm and I will never go back to a disposable product. I fold mine just like Dianyla does and get the edges wet to ease insertion. I've worn it on several rides of 50+ miles and never had it leak. It is so worth the investment in terms of money and in terms of the health of your lady-bits!
I am having the opposite experience ... I've been using a Diva Cup for about three years but I am about to toss it and go back to tampons. I had trouble with fit ... I bought the big one because I was over 30, but around my house we call that thing "the doorknob" because that's what it felt like. Even the smaller one feels too big to me sometimes, and sometimes it leaks because it just will not unfurl. (I also wrote the Diva Cup people to tell them that they should find a better way to describe when you might need the larger size, because what they had online sounded like, "When you get old and your vagina starts to turn into a giant sagging canyon to match your big fat hips ..." Wow, I feel empowered!)
Recently I am also finding that it is just plain uncomfortable. I have never found it to be as comfortable as promised, and it definitely never helped with my cramps -- I wear a pad instead if I am having really bad cramps. But in the last six months I have had two really awful leaking incidents, and I am too old for that nonsense. I have been using it on light days but those are the days when it is most uncomfortable, so I am about to just give up on it. Too bad, because the reusability appeals to the environmentalist and to the cheapskate in me, but I think I am just not shaped right for the cup.
Depending on how your inner environmentalist competes with your inner gross-out factor, you could try Glad Rags or some of the other reusable/washable pads. They also make sea sponge tampons.Quote:
Originally Posted by xeney
Reusable pads:
http://www.gladrags.com/gladrags-cot...pads-c-21.html
Sea sponge: http://www.gladrags.com/alternative-...s-c-22_36.html
You could also try the Keeper, which might be a little differently shaped, but probably not significantly enough for you.
You mention that you got your Diva cup about 3 years ago? I bought my cup in spring 2004, right before they changed their product design. The silicone of the pre-2004 cups is very stiff and can be quite uncomfortable. The newer cups made since mid-2004 are much more soft and squishy, from what I am told by people who have both cups. The softer the cup, the easier it is to insert and remove, and the more comfortable it is when it's inside you.Quote:
Originally Posted by xeney
At any rate, I never bought a newer Diva. I switched to a MoonCup because it is smaller and shorter than the DivaCup. With the Diva, I could always feel the cup inside me, and sometimes depending on the position of my uterus the base of the cup would poke me on the outside (even after trimming the stem off). The Mooncup is about 1cm shorter in length and much more flexible and it fits me perfectly. I guess I am just smaller/shorter inside than other women. The MoonCup is almost exactly the same proportion and squishiness as the Keeper, but it is made of silicone instead of latex.
Because of the smaller size it has slightly less capacity but the comfort increase is totally worth it. The only problem I have now is the occasional overflow incident because I completely forgot I was even wearing it. :cool: