Thursday, March 26, 2009

Male Readers Turn Away For A Second...

...Unless you are interested in dealing with the female blessing or curse (depending on how you look at it).

Ladies, the female monthly reminder is something that is so private, yet shared by all of us. We are often shamed into treating it as a dirty occurrence, and to hide every piece of evidence that it exists at all costs. Commercials show blue liquid cascading soothingly into whatever pad or tampon they happen to be advertising, as if we don't all have blood, RED BLOOD coursing around inside of us. We deny the natural in our society. Anyhoo, a year or two ago I discovered something that has made my cycle easier to manage. The menstrual cup.

Menstrual cups such as the DivaCup or the MoonCup make cycles easier in the following ways:
1. They are re-usable and last for a year or longer (DivaCup recommends replacing once a year). You can boil it between uses which cleans/disinfects it.
2. Because of the re-usable nature and long-lastingness (is that a word?), it saves you a lot of money (cost of a cup is about $30) compared to buying pads and tampons throughout the year.
3. Eco-friendly. Again because of the re-usable nature, you won't be contributing all the plastic and other materials to dumpsters and landfills via multiple pads and tampons.
4. Convenience/mess factor. The DivaCup can hold a lot. Most people can get away with only changing it once a day, depending on how heavy your cycle is. The easiest/non-messiest way to do it is to change it in the shower. This also eliminates odor as opposed to pads and tampons.
5. The DivaCup is made of natural rubber/silicone that does not irritate you or harm you inside while it is inserted. This is a welcome change from tampons which can scratch you, dry you out, and make you more susceptible to infections like Toxic Shock Syndrome.
6. You don't have to worry so much about leaks (especially if you know when approximately your cycle will arrive; you can insert the cup ahead of time). It even says you can go swimming, but I reeeeallly don't think I would do that.

Anyhoo, that is my female-friendly PSA for the day. Here is the DivaCup website. If you want/need more details, ask me in the comments or email me at bohemianbahamian@gmail.com. If you have used/are using a menstrual cup, share your experience in the comments as well.

16 jewels of thought:

Mrs. Mary Mack said...

I was introduced the "the cup" a few years ago in college. I CAN'T! I don't like not being able to control what's going in and around and up there! I fear getting it "lost is space". I will stick to my old fashioned methods...I mean when the curse returns, because right now it's on hiatus for 4 more months. LOL

LaMaraVilla said...

How about I was just telling my girlfriend how rich Procter & Gamble has gotten because of every woman and her beautiful body...

I remember reading about this in a magazine years ago, but I thought the idea of it was kind of unclean. I just went on the website though and literally read every link, all the faqs, and every testimonial lol, and I am going to give this a go!!! I'm one of those women who is highly sensitive to smells, and whenever it's that time of month all I can smell is blood, even though no one else can smell it, so hopefully this will help me...

Thanks for blogging about this Gem, good looking out for your girls in cyberland ;)

InnyVinny said...

I generally love mine. It's been a little trouble on the leak front, but I think I need to switch brands...LOL.

It's no more unclean than a tampon and carries WAY less health risk.

Step outside the box, y'all. Once you get the hang of it, you'll love it.

There's a pretty large cup community over at livejournal. Lot of information there. A whole lot.

Admin said...

thanks for writing about this! i'm going to look for one in the drugstores next month.

Anonymous said...

I'm gonna have to try this little contraption LOL :D

NOT to be confused with "contraceptive" lol

ChocolateOrchid said...

I love mine! When I opened the box, I was a bit concerned that I wouldn't be able to handle having to put it in right or removing it but it works out well. It's so convenient and, in my opinion, a lot cleaner.

Bella said...

when i start to get regular periods again i will have to check this out. my birth control (mirena IUD) makes my period super light so all i have to concern myself with is pantyliners. i dont even get cramps, headaches or bloating :P yeah sorry i HAD to stick my tongue out cuz im an asshole BUT there is one catch. my period makes me a basketcase. like a sensitive lil punk ass bitch, i'll cry for anything or even nothing. rather ridiculous.

The Jaded NYer said...

you lost me at "inserted"

I love this planet and all, but I'm gonna have to be one of those, congesting-the-landfill-with-my-monthly-body-waste heifers 'cause I CANNOT deal with menstrual blood collected in a cup that I INSERT.

Nope. I refuse.

Chanel said...

lol @ thehoustongirl

yea this sounds like something id like to try. thanks girl! ;)

Kerry Abdow said...

i'm a huge diva cup enthusiast! save money, time, the environment- YES! what sold me on diva versus the others i researched was the website. i was, frankly, really nervous about trying it- it took me two months to try it after i bought it!! but i kept reading the info on the website until i felt comfortable... and then when i realized how great it was i was kind of annoyed with myself for not using it earlier. i love it! and i'm slowly getting all my friends to try it, too! all women should use a menstrual cup! and i love my diva cup!

Anonymous said...

I used to use it, but found it incredibly uncomfortable. It's just my body; it could never go up high enough.
I also used sea sponges for a few years but ever since I discovered natracare I'm back to that.

Your blog is wonderful. I found you through Vesper. Thanks, Vesper!

kit von b. said...

hmmmmmm.

im def gonna look into this gem! thanks!

Gem said...

La Maravilla, Vesper, thehoustongirl, Chanel, KB: Let me know if you try it how it works for you!

MMM, Jaded: HATERS! Lol, j/k. I think it is a mind ovr matter thing, but I understand your position. MMM, "lost in space"?! I hate you, lol.

Alicia, ChocolateOrchid: I was hoping you ladies would chime in; thank you for sharing!

Ekodiva: Thank you for stopping by and sharing your experience, you are crunk over there, I see you! I really appreciate it.

Chrispito: I'm going to have to research sea sponges and natracare, thanks! Thank you for the compliment too, that is really kind of you.

Mimi (Mae) said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Mimi (Mae) said...

Have any of you diva cup users ever use the Nuva Ring? I found that to be uncomfortable, so I wonder if having the cup inside will be uncomfortable as well...

Junebug said...

I have been using "Instead's" off and on for years.. fantastico!

http://www.softcup.com/

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