people don't know! shocking!
Okay, this is probably another TMI post, but...please, hear me out :)
Basically, virtually nobody knows about the existence of menstrual cups beyond the disposable Instead cups (which suck, imo). I mean, you'd have to be clearly looking for it at Whole Foods or be on some womens community where all people do is worship the cup in order to know that there is such a thing.
It's honestly an amazing alternative to tampons, and I wish more women knew about it (and I wish guys wouldn't go all "ewww wtf?!" at it...). It's basically a reusable silicone or rubber cup slightly smaller than a shotglass, costs about $20-40, depending on which one you buy and where, and lasts for years. At first, it seems expensive, but when you consider the amount of money saved not buying tampons, it actually starts saving you lots of money after a couple of periods. You don't have to deal with the whole TSS thing and tampons, you don't have to throw away tons of trash with used applicators and stuff or worry about clogging the toilet flushing tampons, you don't have to waste any space in your bathroom for boxes of tampons either. Heavy periods? Cups hold a looot, for hours on end too. Light periods? Cups are easier to insert and don't dry you out. Cleaning? Water, soap, or..piece of toilet paper or whatever if you're too embarrassed to clean it in a public restroom in front of others (and yes, some women with cups actually do this, albeit you know..not dramatically). Boil (silicone) if you can at the end, rubbing alcohol...but that's up to you. And well, you can't have [vaginal] sex with it in (obviously), but same goes to tampons. Why do so guys hate period sex so much anyway? bah.
And honestly, ladies, two words: no leakage. Not a joke. This doesn't mean you can leave it in for a whole day on your heaviest day and have it not leak...but it means you can go for longer without emptying the cup than you would have to when dealing with (not absorbent enough) tampons.
I know cups aren't for everyone, and there is a slight learning curve (the biggest issue would be insertion/removal, almost guaranteed)..and for some people, it'll just never work. Good news though, if you do decide to try it out, the Divacup makers will honor their 1 year moneyback guarantee regardless of condition if you buy it through their website. The divacup's also supposed to be the hardest to get used to, but...
Links:
Four different manufacturers (scroll down), and also the profile page for a great resource on cups: http://community.livejournal.com/menstrual_cups/profile
Size comparison with commonly used and expanded tampons: http://community.livejournal.com/vaginapagina/10170715.html
General AWESOME resource for women's health..stuff (cups, tampons, toys, sex, plan b, pregnancy, whatever!): http://community.livejournal.com/vaginapagina/
Basically, virtually nobody knows about the existence of menstrual cups beyond the disposable Instead cups (which suck, imo). I mean, you'd have to be clearly looking for it at Whole Foods or be on some womens community where all people do is worship the cup in order to know that there is such a thing.
It's honestly an amazing alternative to tampons, and I wish more women knew about it (and I wish guys wouldn't go all "ewww wtf?!" at it...). It's basically a reusable silicone or rubber cup slightly smaller than a shotglass, costs about $20-40, depending on which one you buy and where, and lasts for years. At first, it seems expensive, but when you consider the amount of money saved not buying tampons, it actually starts saving you lots of money after a couple of periods. You don't have to deal with the whole TSS thing and tampons, you don't have to throw away tons of trash with used applicators and stuff or worry about clogging the toilet flushing tampons, you don't have to waste any space in your bathroom for boxes of tampons either. Heavy periods? Cups hold a looot, for hours on end too. Light periods? Cups are easier to insert and don't dry you out. Cleaning? Water, soap, or..piece of toilet paper or whatever if you're too embarrassed to clean it in a public restroom in front of others (and yes, some women with cups actually do this, albeit you know..not dramatically). Boil (silicone) if you can at the end, rubbing alcohol...but that's up to you. And well, you can't have [vaginal] sex with it in (obviously), but same goes to tampons. Why do so guys hate period sex so much anyway? bah.
And honestly, ladies, two words: no leakage. Not a joke. This doesn't mean you can leave it in for a whole day on your heaviest day and have it not leak...but it means you can go for longer without emptying the cup than you would have to when dealing with (not absorbent enough) tampons.
I know cups aren't for everyone, and there is a slight learning curve (the biggest issue would be insertion/removal, almost guaranteed)..and for some people, it'll just never work. Good news though, if you do decide to try it out, the Divacup makers will honor their 1 year moneyback guarantee regardless of condition if you buy it through their website. The divacup's also supposed to be the hardest to get used to, but...
Links:
Four different manufacturers (scroll down), and also the profile page for a great resource on cups: http://community.livejournal.com/menstrual_cups/profile
Size comparison with commonly used and expanded tampons: http://community.livejournal.com/vaginapagina/10170715.html
General AWESOME resource for women's health..stuff (cups, tampons, toys, sex, plan b, pregnancy, whatever!): http://community.livejournal.com/vaginapagina/