Brand new user here (thanks to all you Diva Cup evangelists), and I’m having some, um, issues I hope you can help me with.
Issue No. 1 – Really! It’s an issue with Number One – namely, the kinked hose syndrome. Is there some trick to positioning that prevents the cup from pressing on the plumbing? It doesn’t always do that, but I can’t figure out what I’m doing differently when I get it positioned so it doesn’t.
Issue The Second – So named because it’s NOT about Number Two. How do you know when to empty? Unfortunately, I’m figuring out when to empty the same way I knew it was time to change a tampon – that telltale gushing feeling. My periods are very heavy, and today I was getting that gushing feeling every 3-4 hours. Emptying that frequently wouldn’t be a problem, except for…
Issue No. 3 – Taking it out hurts! Inserting it? No problem. Twisting it to get it seated properly? No problem. But, when it’s coming out, that lip at the top and the ridge underneath it scrape against things in a most unpleasant way. Is there some way I can squish or fold the top to make the exit easier? I’d rather figure out how to keep the contents from squirting all over than have my girly bits beat up.
#1–not sure what you’re talking about. Can you not pee? #2. I just empty once in the evening, and once in the morning. Never had it even close to full.I don’t know if I’m typical) #3. I stick a finger in and push in the side so that it starts to fold in, like how I got it in in the first place (see #2-- not really afraid of anything overflowing the side because. . . well, if it’s coming out I’m on the can anyway and I’m not saving it for later.
Yes, that’s the problem. I’ve experienced not being able to pee at all as well as being able to pee but knowing I’m not fully emptying my bladder.
My experience is that if I push in the side, the contents tend to squirt out. It doesn’t all land in the can. There is a hole in the bottom of the stem, after all.
Sometimes it’s just the angle that it sits at. Try adjusting it. It took me a few cycles to get it just right. Every now and then I still get it wrong and it feels like I have to pee, but I don’t actually have to.
I have the same issue now that I am off BC pills and have an IUD. Soem days rae worse than others. On violently heavy days I empty it 3-4 times, or every 4 -6 hours. Now, like with tampons in the past I just get that little feeling that it;s time to change.
I remember when I first started using it I was a bit sore after all the in and out [bad pun]. You should get used to it. Or try experimenting at home different ways to take it out to lessen the irritation from the ridges…
I am not very good at trying to describe how it might work, but others here have had some excellent advice in the past on the DC.
Wait, what? There shouldn’t be a hole in the bottom of the stem. It’s hollow, but the bottom of the cup is sealed. Otherwise, it wouldn’t work.
Regarding issue #1 - tilt the cup slightly back if you have to. Not drastically, but a little to keep that upper edge off your urethra. I’ve noticed that once in a while myself.
Duh. I guess the way I’ve been managing to squirt the contents all over the place made it feel to me like there was a hole in it, but you’re right, of course.
Make sure you break the seal. If you don’t, it can hurt, I’m not sure if that is what you are complaining about as far as pain goes.
The only time I’ve had a problem with it being too full, was a day I had a migraine and was pretty out of it, the pain, sleeping, etc, made me forget that I was actually having my period. When I realized, the cup was almost full and it was a LONG time.
The down side to the Diva Cup is that I have to remind myself I’m having a period.
The problem I have with it, and the only problem so far, is that it seems to press on my bladder and makes me feel like I constantly have to pee. Do I not have it in quite the right spot?
Make sure you’re relaxed when you’re inserting/removing it. If you tense up it gets a little uncomfortable. Just take a deep breath, let all the tension go, and then go digging. I squeeze the base of my cup and kind of twist as I’m pulling it out.
Not sure what to do about the peeing thing. Maybe try repositioning it once it’s in? I insert mine, make sure it’s popped upen, then grab the stem and kind of wiggle-shove it a little deeper in until it’s comfortable.
If your cup overfloweth, like mine always tries to do on day 2, you may just have to try to dump it more often. I have to dump every 3 or 4 hours on that second day; kind of annoying at work, but still a lot better than soaking through a super plus tampon plus a maxipad every hour or so. Once you become familiar with how your flow varies, you’ll be able to predict when you need to empty your cup.
My big problem with it is the (TMI) suction cup noises it makes while inserting/removing it I need to use the type of restrooms that are divided into stalls and I hate that. i occasionally have a problem with it not popping open. That can be very frustrating especially in public situations. I know if it isn’t popped open it will leak (duh), but sometimes no matter what I do it seems like it won’t open up.
I’ve never had a problem with not being able to urinate.
I have learned to remove it by bearing down, pushing my thumb in the side enough to break the seal, then very carefully pulling it out - keep it upright! Thee first time I pulled it straight out and that hurt!
Yup to all the above. Just make sure that, if your cup sits high enough that your cervix is in the cup, you’re not pushing on your cervix in the process of folding the cup in to get it out. OW.
To get it out, stick two fingers in (usually middle finger and thumb). Bear down on the cup as hard as you can (like you would for #2), squeeze cup a bit and use middle finger to break the seal. Ooch it out like others have said. Stand over toilet to make sure that any overflow goes in while you’re pulling it out.
Your cup may be a bit low, have you tried pushing it up higher when inserting? Or the reverse.
As for fullness, I’d say you just have to get an idea of how fast you’re bleeding and empty before then. Sometimes I can feel it when the cup is getting a bit heavy, but most of the time I just have to watch the clock and trust to a liner to keep my clothes clean. (I bleed like a PIG. Have to empty a pretty full cup every 3-4 hours the first few days)
When I used to use tampons I’d go through a super-plus tampon every hour for the first day, and then every hour and a half for the second day. With the cup I’d only have to empty it every 3-4 hours for the first day.
Then the cup really saved my sanity when I had some problems with dysmenorrhea (very heavy bleeding, and polyps which were eventually removed). For about four days I’d be filling the cup completely every hour. If I’d still been using tampons, I’d never have been able to be away from a bathroom for more than 20 minutes.
Now I’m on the pill and my periods are much lighter, and even on my heaviest day and empty the cup when I get up in the morning, at lunch, when I get home from work and before bed, and even then it’s maybe only half full each time I empty it.
I have a Mooncup, which is pretty much the same… To help with getting it out, just push down hard, like you’re pooping… While you’re pushing, grab the stem and and just pull slowly and it will eventually slide down, the seal will break and it will come out without a drop spilled.
How often to change it - I have pretty normal periods and I change it just twice a day - usually first thing in the morning, and after I get home from work (so, about every 12 hours). And it’s never more that 1/4 or 1/2 full. It will take some time before you figure out what works for you.
I just want to say that I love my menstrual cup!! I have had it for at least 3 years now, and haven’t used one pad or tampon since, and I always feel so much cleaner! I adore it.