A community for the curious, the experienced, and the newbies with menstrual cups and discs. Advice and user experiences for everyone to share.
A community for the curious, the experienced, and the newbies with menstrual cups and discs. Advice and user experiences for everyone to share.
Resources
The Menstrual Cup Coalition The Menstrual Cup Coalition supports the safe use of affordable menstrual cups by sharing knowledge and good practice globally. Resources on their website include detailed instructions (with diagrams) for using menstrual cups, lists of published research, charitable projects and an FAQ
Filterable Cup Comparison List by menstrualcupreviews.net
Cup Comparison Chart by putacupinit.com
Cup Comparison Chart by menstrualcups.wordpress.com
Subreddits we recommend!
/r/menstrualcups
Just bought my first Saalt (I think that’s it?) small cup after having a friend recommend using a cup over tampons. I’ve been thinking about it for months but finally bit the bullet today when I ran out of my last tampons and started my period. I’m still adjusting to wearing it and given that it’s my heaviest flow day today, and from what limited reading I’ve done from this group I’m guessing the leaking is somewhat expected also as a first time user and still learning proper insertion and all that. I also just bought the first cup I saw so I have no clue if it’s the right size but I’ll give it a few months with the small before I try another one.
I do have some questions though, like how do you use the restroom with it, specifically a public restroom with stalls and not a private sink. Do you just pray it doesn’t come out and deal with the potential mess with toilet paper if it does come out? Do you wash it before putting it back in? Should I plan to carry wipes with me for a while as I get used to peeing with it in?
I’m excited to be wasting less money on tampons and pads and contributing less waste but I’m also nervous because I have such a heavy flow for 2-3 days most cycles. Should I get some period panties or keep with the pads and panty liners route for heavier flow days?? Any advice is appreciated!
My son put essential oils in my cup sanitizer thinking it was a diffuser. Anyone know if this will mess it up or if I can clean it some how?
I tried to use a menstrual cup once, and idk if I just didn’t put it in correctly or if my flow was too light or if I should’ve used lube or what, but it got stuck inside me so badly that I had to pull for what felt like hours just to get it out. I thought I’d have to go to the ER, but fortunately I was able to remove it myself. However, it felt like it was trying to suck out my guts while I did. I wish I knew how to use a menstrual cup without this happening again, but I’m traumatized.
I’ve used a diva cup for around 5 years or so now. At first it was great. However now 9/10 times at night it shifts and it’s not even a little leak. Placement has become an issue too and it “slips” down throughout the day or if I sit on the loo, I have to use my muscles to keep it there if that makes sense. This has been going on about a year.
I’ve been doing a lot of googling (never a good thing) and the advice is mixed, some say too high (although it’s always been placed the same), some say I’ve got older so need something different, some recommend a disc but then some say they leak more.
I’m struggling to figure out if
A. I just need a new cup due to it softening after years of wear. As I’m not sure (cause I can’t remember) it may have been firmer when I bought it.
B I need a different cup all together.
Supposedly I have a high cervix if that makes any difference although I’m not 100% on that one
Tengo 22 años. Compré mi copa en el 2020, pero no la he usado como quisiera. Siempre lo mismo: cuando voy a orinar, se abre y se derrama todo el líquido, pero también se llena de orina (pues comienza a derramarse)
Dejé de usarla y cambié a toallas reutilizables, pero voy a la playa y quiero intentarlo
Consejos?
I'm sure this is a post you've all seen, but... how on earth do you find the cervix?? My poor finger just kind of goes up into oblivion, I don't reach an end. I've done my best to research this very problem, but I can't find a specific answer.
So really my question is, are you meant to go digging straight up until you hit gold, or is there a different path to take lol? I know it usually sits forward in the body, but even then I'm not really feeling anything impressive. I've been trying to find it, and it's at a point where my body is aching from trying to get my finger up any further haha. Surely, because it's at the end of the vaginal tunnel, I'd reach it by just sticking a finger in and feeling around? Do I just have a high cervix or am I missing something?
Also, can I get away with ignoring cervix height, or is it a necessity? How do y'all deal with fitting it all through the vaginal opening? I can barely fit a finger through, I'm not sure how I'd fit a folded cup in 😂
guysss I've been wearing my cup since last year... 🫣🫣🫣 will I be ok???
(it's 12 am on January 1st)
happy new year!!!
A sticky home for sales, promotions and bargains to share with those looking for a new cup.
I have been using a size small ruby cup for a few months now and definitely prefer it to tampons and pads - I do still experience quite a bit of leaking and need to wear a pad with it, so the goal is to be able wear just my cup.
I’ve found that my cervix is quite tilted. After confronting Google and trying a bunch of different methods, I found the best one to be flipping my cup inside out, inserting it with the c fold, and letting it pop open when it’s just barely inside - meaning the inverted base of my cup can be felt right at the opening of my vagina. This causes me no discomfort whatsoever. When measuring with my finger, my cervix is slightly farther away from my opening than the length of my cup without the stem, so it’s perfect for this method - in theory. The problem is that it rides up after a little while of walking and such. This defeats the purpose of inserting it the way I do, as the cup often misses my cervix when it rides up, causing leakage.
I have checked the suction and my cup always appears to be popped open when I run a finger around it after insertion, so my question is how can I get my cup to stay suctioned close to my opening without it riding up whilst I move around and live my life?
I’m not able to purchase another cup in a different size and I doubt a different size would be helpful either way, so does anyone have any insight on how I can troubleshoot my problem? Any advice or tips are very much appreciated, and I’m happy to answer any questions if you need more info about my situation!
I am an adult living with my parents and they have a cleaning service that comes every other week. Last night I was taking a shower and removed my cup and since it’s the end of my period I rinsed it off and set it on the edge of the tub instead of re-inserting. Well by the time I was done showering I completely forgot I put it there and apparently didn’t see it so there it sat. I slept in this morning and when I got after the cleaners left up my cup was sitting on a shelf in the medicine cabinet. 😬 I can only hope it was my mom who saw it there and moved it before the cleaners came in because at least she knows I use one. But I still feel bad that someone else had to move it.
Hello. I’ve been using a deva cup for the better part of a decade and will sing praises about it to anyone who will listen. I also have pretty easy periods with minimal cramping. Day one of this period I did not use my deva cup, day two was yesterday and last night before bed I put it in and it was immediately uncomfortable so I took it out and put it back in. Cramped for a couple hours so I took it out and I’ve continued to cramp all night and morning even without the cup in.
Just kind of wondering if this is an obvious sign of an issue or a fluke I can ignore lol.
Hi, friends, I have a Saalt disc that was working fine at first with some cramping/pain but no leaking.
The first few times we had period sex with it, it was mess free and okay. The more times I’ve tried though, the more uncomfortable and painful it’s gotten. The most recent time, it was uncomfortable and leaked. And now it won’t hold a seal in general. And it feels more uncomfortable just to wear. The disc doesn’t look damaged
Any similar experiences or suggestions?
first time user, my Lena cup large arrived today, my period’s supposed to start in a couple days (give or take, it can be a little irregular) so i thought i’d give it a “dry run” first. apparently the push down fold is supposed to be pretty easy for insertion for beginners, but my cup felt like it was sitting way too low, and the stem was only just inside my vagina after a bit of shoving. i’ve seen people with low cervixes have this problem, but my cervix is so high that i can’t easily reach it with my finger. is this just a case of practicing until i get it right? i’m worried i jumped the gun a bit getting the large size, but the website said most people can use either and i have pretty heavy periods and didn’t want to end up buying the larger size in a couple of months anyway. any positioning tips would be helpful!
Sooo, I’m a first time cup user and have been practicing using it, I have the small flex cup. I’ve been getting the hang of putting it in, but have quite a bit of discomfort removing it. Yes, I break the seal with my finger and pull with that pointer finger until the bottom is at my opening and I can grab it with my thumb as well. However, it still hurts cause it feels too big to come out, I end up tensing once it gets close to the rim at my opening, any tips for staying relaxed and not tensing throughout the whole process?
I've been using the sirona cup small for my first cycle and the cup is fairly small and it bold up like 16 ml of blood and I have to wear a pad everytime cuz I leak. I ordered a small cup of another brand called peesafe and their rim size is larger and holds like 20 ml of blood , so will it work differently for me?or should I order the medium of the previous brand ?
Has anyone experienced constant leaking from their cup since getting an IUD? I thought it was something wrong with the two cups I had, I’ve had them for a few years so I thought, perhaps it’s possible they both broke down at the same time? So I threw them away. Just bought two new ones yesterday of the same kind and the leaking is still happening. This directly correlates with the timing of getting an IUD so I’m wondering if it’s possible that it’s effecting the suction somehow? Not sure how that would make sense though.
Anyone else experience this? It’s pretty frustrating because I’ve used cups for years… tried tampons the last two cycles and they SUCK.
Whenever my menstraul cycle begin, sometimes I would have a day "-1" or "0" which would usally be a bit of spotting. The spotting is very minimal to the point when I used the small pad, I can only see a bit of yellow rather than red. My day 1 and 2 would usually be the heaviest flow and I could need to use 35-42cm pad.
I finally tried using the cup I bought a week ago. The cup is quite firm, 29ml.
However, I tried to insert my cup twice, first time when I woke up and found I was spotting, and second time when I was bathing just now. However, it is VERY difficult to insert. I tried various fold like C fold, Lubia fold, punch down fold, 7 fold, etc. I think I had a little bit of success with punch down fold, but I only managed to insert maybe halfway through before I gave up. It's also a quite painful to insert. I tried to have the fold position downwards, and also tried to insert more horizontally but it didn't work. I was inserting in half squat half standing position. I also tried to breathe in deeply before continuing, but this did not work. I tried squating position but this also didn't work. I tried half diamond fold, but my cup is too firm :(
I think it's because I tried to repeatedly insert, I probably damaged my wall or my opening a little bit, and a bit blood came out (maybe it's not period blood? I don't really know)
I decided to give up today. Wondering if is it because it's "spotting" rather than actual day 1 period, hence it's very difficult to insert? Is it ok to try inserting again on my actual day 1 (probably tomorrow or day after)? Is it ok to find where is my cervix located during day "-1" or day "0"? I can't find it just now, maybe I have high cervix. But I heard cervix location changes during period, so I'm not sure if is "day 0" considered as beginning of a period and can be used as a gauge.
Also I don't have a lubricant.
Any tips for inserting is also appreciated! Hopefully I can learn to use it in time for my April trip, as it'll be a pain in the ass to travel with super heavy flow and no toilet paper readily available
Edit: Do you also slowly insert, and take a break with hand not touching the cup when inserting (and the fold stays folded)? Or do you always hold the cup (without letting go of the cup) while inserting?
Edit 2: I tried to use my middle finger to feel my cervix, maybe I can feel my cervix? I'm not really sure if it's cervix, but there's some sort of area that wraps around that part. Is like something that drops down, then when I used to feel the gap between my vagina wall and cervix. That part that sticks out is also more firm. I need to try to find cervix again during diff days of period and off-period
Edit 3: Managed to insert with triangle fold on my 4th attempt! This time I went to kitchen bathroom for the purpose of peeing, then nonchantly washed my hand with soap, and used triangle fold to insert. It worked, and first insertion as well!
Maybe going to bathing bathroom was having a "psychology" effect on me as I don't usually go to bathing bathroom unless I'm bathing, and maybe I get tense because I was trying to just insert the cup. This time I went to different bathroom mainly for purpose of peeing and tried inserting cup after that (after washing my hands).
It felt a bit too long, maybe my cervix is on the lower side. My stem might be protruding out a bit.
Will see how is it tomorrow when trying to remove!
Instead of applying lube to the cup or disc, there are applicators you can get that you can use to lube yourself internally. That way you don't compromise your grip but still have that extra slide when you need it. Just thought I'd bring it up just in case someone hasn't thought of it for themselves before.
so… I don’t know if this is just normal or if this is just me. I have the regular size Saalt cup and, i guess where it’s kind of firm, I struggle to poop. I can feel that I need to go and I kind of can at first but then it’s like i can’t finish. I think it’s where the cup is open and cutting off the pathway needed for bowel movements, because J don’t have this problem without it.. Does anyone else experience this??
Hello, I was hoping to get some help on which cup I should try next. I currently have the regular small Lena cup (not the sensitive one). I’m thinking I need a bigger cup because I leak ALOT on my first 3 days. Especially on days 1,2, I gush a lot and the small Lena just isn’t working. I’ve tried looking for my cervix during my period and I have trouble finding it, but I’m pretty sure I touch it almost immediately (it’s pretty low during the first couple of days of my period). I have terrible cramps, and the average firmness of the lena doesn’t cause me any additional pain. The Lena works fine starting at day 4 but I STILL sometimes get leaks, not sure if it’s because it’s in a weird position (if I pull, I feel the suction so it’s opening well) but I find that the higher the cup goes up and a little to the left, the less leaks I have. I need a bigger and shorter? Cup for my first few gushing days, and then another cup for the rest of the week when my cervix moves all the way up… I’m looking at the Merula Shorty size L, the lunette size 2, or a saalt cup… or I could try the bigger Lena cup. I’m just not sure anymore on what to do.
Hi, I was heavily considering using menstrual cups ever since I learned that tampons have TOXIC CHEMICALS + I want to be more green. I have some light/medium flow days but I have 3 days where I can have seriously heavy flows like I have to change the super plus sized tampax tampons every 1 hour for one day and the other 2 days I go like 3-5 hours on a tampon and then for the rest I can last on 1-2 tampons per day. Anyways, I also go to college and I commute and I'm out for like LONG DAYS sometimes like let's say 8am-10pm type shit. But a more average day for me would be 9am-6pm. So, I was curious a) how often would I have to change the menstrual cups/how often do people need to? b) and knowing that i'm going to be out for SO LONG are menstrual cups right for me? Are they easy to dump out and put back in public toilets? How uncomfy are the "used and emptied" cups? How messy is the blood? c) How often do you guys boil them? I assume I'll rinse them at night everyday and probably boil them after my period ends? Do you dedicate a specific pot for the cups or is it like a pot you also use for cooking? I live with my family so we like share the utensils obviously so I'm concerned about that
I used to use a mooncup with NO leakage whatsoever. But I'm coming out of a few years with no period (due to contraceptive implant) and now everything I'm trying leaks! Moon cup leaks, Diva cup leaks (both sizes), Hey Zomi disc leaks. No obvious changes to my body/vulva since the moon cup used to work (I haven't had a kid or anything like that) and it's not like it's full before it starts to leak, because it'll often leak straight away... anyone got any ideas?
I have been using a cup for the last 15 years. Loved the two that I had. But about 2 years ago, at 48, it started giving the worse cramps ever, at first I thought it was just the first day when my cramps are stronger, so I switched to pads just for day 1. And kept using my cup but I was getting cramps throughout my cycle...to the point that I had to stop using my cup. I would get instant relief when I took it out. Since I tried a disc, Ayora, and I just can't get on with it. I have loads of leakages and it makes such a mess to empty. I so miss the ease of my cup. Any ideas? Do how body change so much internally?
I tried using my cup today, but even slight contact around there nearly makes me jolt. I've never touched myself there, and don't want to do so (unless using menstrual products). I've always used pads, so will using tampons help get me used to the sensation? Will the sensitivity still be an issue while using tampons? Is this level of sensitivity psychological, and do I just need to shut up and shove it?
I'm using the peesafe XS teen cup (which still looks too big despite using 7-fold)
Edit: Took a deep breath and tried again, it feels like I'm trying to push it into a wall.
and for that I am sorry!
I have been using the Diva cup for over a year now, and while I had some qualms at first, I LOVE it. Sadly, the other night while half asleep migrating from couch to bed I made a quick detour to the bathroom and I believe I flushed my cup. fml. After exhaustive searching of both potential locations, I am confident that it is long gone.
SO I am looking for recommendations from anyone who started with the Diva cup and then found another option they switched too that didn't break the bank, I am also HIGHly interested in going the disc route, it just seems like it wouldn't hold a lot of volume?
Please share what you love here so I can order a new one, the Christmas-Day-Only-Gas-Station-Open-Tampons are bleh to say the least.
Addtnl Info: I'm in Canada and planning to order by way of Amazon, Diva cup was lvl 1? No kids. Moderate to Heavy Flow.
Thanks in Advance!
In March, I got my Nexplanon removed after 6 years (2 separate ones). The Nexplanon stopped my periods completely. In April, my period returned, so I purchased the Saalt cup. I’d used a Diva Cup years before, so I had prior experience.
I inserted the Saalt cup without issue, but when I went to remove it, it was completely stuck. I tried for over an hour to remove it before asking my (then) boyfriend. He was unsuccessful, even after 3 attempts. I decided to make an urgent care appointment for the next morning. When I got there, the providers were incredibly kind, but struggled to get it out. They tried for 45 minutes, using multiple tools, without success. The PA then gave me two options. He said I could go to the emergency room where they’d have better tools or he could try one more time with his hands. I asked him to try one more time. He put me in “birthing position” and reached on, finally breaking the suction and getting it out. The cup had migrated upwards and suctioned tightly to my cervix. The whole thing was embarassing and painful, but I was relieved that I didn’t need to go to the hospital.
I knew my cervix was high, but I didn’t realize how much the Saalt cup disagreed with my anatomy. Thankfully the company gave me a refund. I’m sure I could have found a cup that worked with my anatomy, but I was very worried about a repeat incident.
I used pads for a couple months, before I considered a menstrual disc. I started with the disposable Soft Disc. I was nervous about a repeat situation, but I couldn’t believe how easy it was to reach and pull those suckers out. I decided to try the Flex Disc reusable, which is the same size as the disposable Soft and Flex discs. I’ve been a huge fan for several months now. Not once have I found myself crying on the bathroom floor because I couldn’t remove it. It makes my life so much easier. Not leaks. No suction.
I know discs aren’t for everyone and some people do find them tricky to remove, but if you’ve had trouble reaching the cup to break the suctions, due to a high cervix, consider trying a disc. There are some brands that even have a pull tab for easy removal.
Okay so my period is beyond heavy - 38ml cup full in 7.5 hrs, I usually have a liner but when there r no WC and I leak through both it’s rlly hard. Today I was playing football and I leaked (I had no access to the bathroom) so I had to rush a 5min walk to my home. I used xl tampons before finding there amazing hero’s 😻 but I’m curios if I don’t have access and wanna keep them for extra long can I put a tampon in (half way though the time of cup in so I don’t get tss) im not worried abt pain since my cervix if very deep and can easily hold an xs tampon diagonally below the cup. Is that safe, will the cup still work, and has anyone ever done it???
Edit: thx u guys, I won’t 🫶
I started using a small size cup at age 17 and now i am 21. Do i need to change to a medium size?
Hi all! I’ve been using a Saalt soft small since…2018? I love it and it works well for me. But (there obviously has to be one) I’m 14 months postpartum and I’ve had my cycle back about 5 times. I’ve noticed the last few cycles my cup just can’t keep up the first few days and I’m having to change it multiple times a day. I’m not sure if it’s placement or flow or what. The last few days of my cycle everything is fine! So I’m wondering, if it’s a flow thing, are y’all using two different cups, or just fully switching to a larger? Thanks!
Just inserted a cup inside and also wearing a pad for safety lol
Also whenever I pee I feel like it's gonna come out 😭