I beseech thee for answers, my sister Diva Cup devotees.
I’ve been using a Diva Cup for about 6-8 months. It works pretty well for me but for two things. One, I still usually have one or two nights per period when I awake to discover the cup had done runneth over. Not sure what to do about that, other than wear a pad, which I resent, because the Diva Cup was supposed to be my deliverance from that!
The big issue, however, is this: If I try to remove it according to the instructions, it hurts like hell. I’m fine until that ridge that has the little holes in it emerges. YOW! Makes me really glad I’ve never had an episiotomy.
So what I usually do is insert a finger and kind of mash the cup flat – which of course results in “Carrie at the prom” splurting. it’s a real mess, and since I’m often doing this in a public restroom at work, it is a genuine PITA.
Is there some trick or technique that would help me remove the cup without causing pain to my girly bits AND keep me from feeling like I am in an abattoir?
I usually just stick my finger up the side and push the top in to break the seal. It keeps the cup from spurting all over your hand, and you can keep it upright until you are ready to tip it into the bowl.
As far as overnight bleeding, I don’t think there is anything you can do except maybe wait until right before you go to bed to insert it. Even then it might still happen if you are a heavy bleeder.
On your heavier nights, can you empty the cup more frequently, whether it be by waking up in the middle of the night or just waiting until the last minute before you go to bed to put it in?
Emptying it more frequently could help with the second spillage problem. Incidentally, maybe you’re wearing the wrong size? I experience some mild discomfort when I remove the DC sometimes, but nothing that makes me think of episiotomies.
I have the same problem re: overflowing in the night, usually on the 2nd night of my period. The only solution I’ve come up with is to wear a pad on that night, which is irritating, but it’s still better than fiddling around with pads and tampons for the entire week, since on that 2nd and 3rd day I used to go through a super tampon every hour. Now I only need to dump the cup every 4 hours or so on those days.
When it comes to removing it, I do like Shera does, sliding a finger up just enough to break the seal and pulling it straight down. You might be tensing up, too; make sure you’re relaxed when you’re yanking the thing out.
I think they mention this in their little leaflet but “push” down, as if for a bowel movement during removal, it seems to help. I also find that when she’s “ridden up” a bit high this helps me get a better grip. If I have a feeling that there’s going to be what you describe as “Carrie at the prom” I actually sit down on the toilet and remove it so that everything goes directly into the bowl.
I try to empty the cup right before I go to bed and right after I get up in the morning; even on my heaviest nights, it’s rarely an issue with being so full that it breaks the seal. I do, however, wear underwear to bed just in case something happens during my period and I ‘spring a leak’.