Diva Cup gifted me a menstrual cup to review, a few months ago. Three cycles later I am feeling ready to share my thoughts with readers about the product and my experiences with what was a steep learning curve.
The Diva Cup is a soft, flexible silicone cone which sits at the opening of a woman's cervix during her bleed, catching the blood as it leaves her uterus. Initially I was put off by the idea of a menstrual cup because the word silicone brought to mind implants and dangerous foreign objects. I was relieved to learn that the silicone used to create menstrual cups is unlike that used in breast implants and is perfectly safe for wearing day and night during menstruation (for more information please see
Diva's FAQs).
Menstrual cups area brilliant invention. I had reservations in the beginning. I gave up disposable pads and tampons seven years ago after discovering that they were the cause of regular cramping, heavy flow, rashes and long seven day bleeds. I used cloth pads from then, but it meant there were some things I couldn't do while menstruating that tampons had afforded me, such as swimming.
To ensure I was using the cup correctly I watched youtube video clips made by experienced cup users. You simply fold the cup so that the rim forms a letter "C" and insert like a tampon, though not as high up. The cup also came with instructions from Diva and one of the wonderful things about menstrual cup companies is that they are all very supportive and let me know that should I ever need tech support not to hesitate to email them. In the end I found the best source of help were friends who have cup experience.
The very first time I used The Diva Cup I found it was comfortable around the house to begin with. But it quickly moved as I did and for fast paced life outside the house I found myself in pain. I learned that this had everything to do with the stem of the cup, which is there to aid removal. Every menstrual cup user says "trim the stem immediately!" I trimmed the stem as short as I possibly could without damaging the actual cup, but still a small nub remained and I still found this caused problems. I found that I had to be very precise about the angle I was inserting the cup at, and no matter how precise, inevitably it would move out of that position and require adjusting. The solution for me was to turn the cup inside out and use it that way.
Once I used the cup inside out it was so comfortable I forgot it was there. It didn't matter how much I moved or how fast I moved, or how little thought I put into inserting the cup, it was comfortable. All those awful tampon commercial cliches about mountain climbing, running on the beach and dancing are true IN THE CASE OF MENSTRUAL CUPS! Minus the health risk of toxic shock syndrome!
The only issue with using the Diva Cup inside out is that this decreases the depth of the cup slightly, which means I need to empty the cup more regularly. Also, the flexibility of the cup means that I can't simply push the cup upward if it moves down because this action can cause the cup to start to turn the right-way out, causing overflow. I overcame these minor issues by removing the cup completely if it needed adjusting, rather than just pushing up on the base of the cup and emptying more regularly.
Of the three menstrual cup brands I have used, the Diva was by far the softest. This was great for learning and adjusting to the new sensation of inserting, wearing and removing a menstrual cup. Once I became accustomed to how heavy my bleed is and how frequently I need to empty my cup, flipped the Diva Cup inside out, and re-learned how to remove it without accidentally turning it the right way out, The Diva Cup made menstruating almost blood free! And it is safe to wear all night as well as all day (providing you empty before bed and on waking). The cup only needs emptying a couple of times a day which can easily be scheduled for when you're at home and can be rinsed under the bathroom faucet before being reinserted.
If this review makes it sound like cup using is a challenge, let me clarify: it is a learning curve, but once learned not a challenge at all (and I remember tampons being quite the learning curve once upon a time). I have focused on the learning curve for this post because those are the aspects of cup use of most interest to readers wondering about giving cups a go. There was a time when I could not imagine even trying a menstrual cup. Now, I recommend every woman do herself a favour and face the learning curve for comfortable, chemical free menstrual cycles!
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| Size 1 for under 30yrs and/or child-free, Size 2 for mothers and over 30yrs |
***I did not receive payment for this review**
