For the ladies - Mooncup

I've used a small LilacCup for almost three years now. I love it, more than words can describe
It has its flaws, and the learning curve isn't exactly fun, but it literally changed my life. I used to always feel so self-conscious and disgusting at that time of the month (I used disposable pads, tampons freaked me the hell out so I wouldn't go near the things), but now I actually forget I'm on my period a lot of the time. I very rarely feel it in (only sometimes, normally when my cervix is sitting lower and the stem stabs me, ouch), and whilst I get a very small amount of leakage on some heavier days, it's not an issue for me.
I use the C-fold for insertion, and point it towards my tailbone, and as LadyCups are all squishy and the smalls are really quite narrow, I've never had much pain with it. For me, I don't put it in far at all (the base of the cup [minus stem] often sits about an inch in, for me), but your vag may vary After it's in, I give it a quick twist, and nudge the stem backwards so that the opening is pointed towards my cervix. Sometimes I have to do a bit of a hip-shimmy wiggle dance to get it in the right position, haha, but it normally goes in fine. I find sitting on the loo is the best angle for me, but I seem to be in the minority there: I gather most people find squatting best. Taking it out is more awkward and by the end of the week I can get a bit sensitive and ouchy...I sort of grab the stem with my thumb and forefinger, push down, and use my middle finger to break the seal and kind of fold the cup a little (a little like the push-down fold). Occasionally it pops open too soon (whilst going in or coming out) and that is NOT fun.
I just can't get mine to work for sleeping on the first three days (I'm a pretty heavy bleeder), so I have to use it with pads at night. I sleep on my side, and have a pretty extreme hip to waist ratio, so I reckon the seal gets broken and it sort of slips out of position. I'm tempted to get a MeLuna because I gather those have a firmer rim and therefore should seal better...plus they come in glitter colours, which is just awesome. I'm a bit of a sucker for silicone, though, so I'm not 100% sold on them.
I really wish I had known about menstrual cups earlier. When I was younger I thought the only options were tampons and pads and they both grossed me out (either in theory or practice). I'm so much more comfortable and confident in my own body since I got the hang of my cup; it's amazing what a difference such a small thing can make. I want to sing its praises from the rooftops! Okay, I'll stop gushing over my lovely cup, now, haha. Seriously, though, they're awesome once you get the hang

Oh, and I'm sure it must have been mentioned before, but this community -- http://menstrual-cups.livejournal.com/ -- was completely invaluable to me in helping decide which cup to buy for me, and how to work through initial 'teething problems'.

I got the Feemecup, which works pretty well. http://www.amazon.co.uk/Femmecup-FEM001-Menstrual-Reusable-Cup/dp/B00198771W/ref=cm_rdp_product

You can also get Mooncups at a great price from amazon

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Mooncup-Menstrual-Cup-Model-A/dp/B001EC6FWK/ref=pd_sim_d_1

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Mooncup-Menstrual-Cup-Model-B/dp/B001EC7YPC/ref=pd_sim_d_1

Oh before I forget. The feemecup has a few holes around the top. Does the mooncup have similar holes?

Iv never heard of these but now I'm rather curious :-)

I've thought bout trying these. I accidently left a tampon in at the end of my period, 4 days later i realised it was there, but only after having unexplained leg pains! Lady Luck was on my side that time!!

i love my mooncup. wouldnt ever go back to conventional products. never had any problems and barely know its there.

Does anyone have problems with spillage ect when removing

im so glad so many women are using/ tryin/ thinking about moon/femcups. i absalutely love mine and would never ever go back to anything else.

i have been using mine since my second or third period so i suppose i must be bit of a pro by now :) my mum ordered mine for me off the websight and ordered one for herself too. she had a go but couldnt be bothered to get use to it. i took to mine almost imedieately. it was a bit tricky at first and the bigest thing i leant was not to get air trapped in it cos then you feel like its trying to hoover you up. appart from that and learning to empty it without making the toilet seat and mat look like a crime sceen i can really remember having any other problems.

i found the stalk a little uncomfortable and not a lot of help when it cae to removing it but reasuring whilst i was getting use to it.   i started by rounding off the end which made it a little less scratchy and cut it shorter and shorter but after not that many months cut it off comepletely.

sizing i discovered, after forgeting mine on holiday and using mums, (she only used it once and we gave it a very thouror clean first) makes verry little difference.

now iv had it for a good many years it has become rather discoloured but thats hardly surprising. i boil mine up after each cycle and rince in the sink between emptying. make sure you dont forget about it though, iv only just managed to rescue mine a fiew times when the pan boiled dry. cleaning can be bit of a hastle if your in public loos and there isnt a sink in the cubicle or if your camping but a wipe round with loo role till you can get to a sink does the job. i also reguly clean the tiny holes using a cocktale stick to make sure the vacume stays working.

something i found recently was that i can even use my internal vibrator whilst i have it in. i  actualy forgot i had it in (thats how comfortable i find mine) then realised the next day that i had had it in.

i have shown my boyfriend.

Do you need to wear a panty liner with them then? And are they all kinda similar or would anyone recommend a specific brand!

Really interested in these!

When you are first learning how to put it into position it's advised to wear one, also some people wear one on their heavy days.

I really like the femmecup but haven't tried the mooncup. The femmecup only comes in one size, which I guess may be a problem for some.

Thanks, think I'll go-a-browsing! lol x

Here's a helpful blog with reviews on different brands http://menstrualcups.wordpress.com/

 Just noticed this post - and wanted to say - I'm a mooncup user and proud!

Bought mine 3 years ago now and it's still going strong. It has to be one of the best decisions I have ever made. It has changed the whole way I perceive my period and has really reduced problems I used to get. 

I am extremely prone to both thrush and cystitis. I found tampons very drying and they seemed to result in me getting thrush problems more frequently, but I hated using towels, they just make you feel so un-sexy. The dryness also made sex during my period quite sore, and sex just afterwards... basically they just generally irritated me. 

I've found I've had a massive reduction in thrush since using my mooncup, and I also enjoy sex whilst on my period much more. Not only this, but we can do things like mutual masturbation whilst it's still in and not even notice (the tapon string is something else that is horribly unsexy). I've also had anal sex with it in place, and it just stays there perfectly. 

I don't know if it's affected the frequency of my cystitis attacks (but I'm on prophylactic antibiotics that I take one of after sex now for that anyway, might start a new thread to discuss this as I'm sure it would be of benefit to lots of you out there), it seems like I have cystitis less often. 

As for spillages on removal - in the past 3 years I've only had one... which did cause quite a mess.  Somehow I managed to flick it and the contents just splattered everywhere. Luckily it was at home and on the lino floor, I think it was just me being clumsy. It was a couple of years ago and has never happened since. 

I would HIGHLY recommend trying one of these if you haven't already. I will never ever be going back, they're so comfortable, much less hasstle, cheaper, sexier.... and I guess strangely you feel more at one with your body... if that's not too hippyish of me to say. You know what your flow rate is (there are measurements in mls up the side) and you know the changes you see in it's consistency during your period: something I find quite interesting. 

If anyone has any questions feel free to direct  them at me. Maybe I should do a review on the blog on it, giving you all the gory details! Watch this space....

Lucy xx

The Nymphomaniac wrote:

Oh before I forget. The feemecup has a few holes around the top. Does the mooncup have similar holes?

Yes it does... so that the cup can form a seal inside you :-)

acoupleofwankers wrote:

The Nymphomaniac wrote:

Oh before I forget. The feemecup has a few holes around the top. Does the mooncup have similar holes?

 

Yes it does... so that the cup can form a seal inside you :-)

I thought so =) It's just harder to see in the mooncup pictures I've seen.

The Nymphomaniac wrote:

acoupleofwankers wrote:

The Nymphomaniac wrote:

Oh before I forget. The feemecup has a few holes around the top. Does the mooncup have similar holes?

 

Yes it does... so that the cup can form a seal inside you :-)

I thought so =) It's just harder to see in the mooncup pictures I've seen.

They're very very small!

after hearing about them on this post i am now very tepted to get myself one of the coloured ones (probably red or black) even though i have absolutely no need to appart from mine being slightly discoloured. iv had mine for about 5 years so its not even that old. the new designs such as the ball or ring and the one with nothing look quite nice. imagin the plain ur ball one would be very comfortable for reguler users and the ring great for new users. stalk is good though for being able to cut shorter as you get more useto it.

Bump for new members. Still loving mine. I think I have a femmecup.

 I gave up with mine ... I should really give it another go... it wasnt that bad

I've used mine once and thought it was great for heavier days but when it started getting lighter I found it a bit uncomfortable. Will persevere though!!