I don't think I've ever been so happy to have it get here. Now I don't have to deal with it at the convention! YAY! (oh god, could you imagine in a corset and all those skirts? No wonder women just stayed home and laid about)

quote:

Originally posted by Maeve:
I thought I found this thing at Walmart, so I bought it, only to bring it home and rip the package apart to discover that I bought disposable thingys. sigh.

There's a hippie health food store in town that I'm pretty sure has these things, I just rarely get in there.

Just a warning if anyone uses the disposable version that is available in the US pretty widely... they can cause allergic reaction. So be aware. I guess that can happen with any of them but I have seen it several times with that one in particular.

*hugs Ava*

*grumbles* want to be home laying down. *grumbles*

Sometimes I feel this thread would be better off in Flame Wars so I wouldn't have any concerns about the following statement:

Fuck. Fuck. FUCK. I don't know what the hell my body is doing. PMS for a WEEK, then seeming like it's going to start for TWO days before it actually does?? What the fucking hell?!?! It's bad enough that I'm not pregnant, but my body needs to quit jerking me around and figure out what the fuck it's doing.

(Oh, and I'm SO getting one of those cup-thingies! I wish I had been able to find one in time for this cycle!!)

I've been done for four days, but it seems today I am making up for the lack of bitch I had earlier.

Oh, I've been a total bitch for a week. Now, in some cases, it was COMPLETELY deserved so I don't feel bad about it. A couple, though, I didn't need to be that sharp/mean/etc.

Apparently my husband find my inner bitch sexeh.

i am fed up with the blood. make it go away.

seriously contemplating just having my whole works removed if A and i haven't decided to have kids by the time my coil is up for renewal (in 2013) because OW.

quote:

Originally posted by Circus [Uqbar?]:
Will report back once I've got a handle on how this thing works...

<snip>

All in all, the cup seems like a win...if I can figure out how to use it without making a complete mess.

I said this a while back and forgot to report back. So here goes:

There is a serious learning curve to using the cup. It took me two cycles to get it down.

First cycle
Epic fail, as I couldn't figure out how to get it to open all the way, and I couldn't get it to rotate, and it was uncomfortable. I was feeling some irritation with it from inserting and removing it so many times to get it to sit properly. Tried two different folds (you have to fold it before you insert it) and neither one seemed to work. Nearly gave up on it.

Second cycle
Reminding myself that getting things right the first time takes all the fun out of it (and I'd spent $40), I gave it another shot. I trimmed down the stem, took a deep breath, and tried again. Again, I had trouble getting it to open -- so I went searching online for helpful hints from others who use it. Surprisingly, the product's website came to the rescue, and I was able to figure out an alternate insertion method. I got it to open and rotate just fine.

General notes (once I got it working)
After an initial few minutes of being aware of it sitting there, it became so comfortable that I didn't actually notice it. I was able to use it almost the entire period -- no pads, no tampons, no sense of being limited in my activities. It was amazing. I've always had really bad periods, and no matter what form of protection I used, I always felt anxious and filthy and very much limited in what I felt comfortable doing (even with tampons). Not so with the cup, emphatically. I felt like I feel between cycles. It was incredible.

Okay, so the "gross" part -- removing and such. Not so bad, really. The vacuum action seems to keep everything actually in the cup, so there's not much mess to deal with beyond dumping it out. I haven't gotten it to the point where I'd feel perfectly comfortable dumping it in a public restroom, but I think that's just a matter of practice and time.

Strangely, my period also ended much more abruptly when using the cup. Normally I get a few days of annoying spotting -- not this time around. Don't know if the vacuum action is responsible for that, but I was really thrilled.

We'll see how it goes next cycle, but as of now I'm sold.

I'm totally sold too.

Started using it yesterday, drove down to Los Angeles last night with it in and after 6 hours in the car it just leaked a little on the light pad I was wearing as a back up. Not bad.

Each time I've put it in I've had to try 2 or 3 times to get it just right, but when it's in properly you can really tell a difference. I've had the same problems as Circus with it not opening fully and/or not rotating but once it's in right I can't feel it at all. It's amazing. As I just told my sister, this is the best I've EVER felt on my period.

I don't know that I'll ever be comfortable dealing with it in a public restroom- the idea of only wiping it off squiggs me out a little. But since I can leave it in for up to 12 hours, it shouldn't be an issue! I can just wait til I have access to a more private restroom where I can rinse it off before reinsertion.

I'm hoping the shorter period is also a common side effect. That'd be double awesome!!

Does it work for sports? Because nothing is more annoying than trying to be active with an uncomfortable tampon.

Why is it that this thing alway happens early when I have a three day weakend.

I don't know about sports, but I walked around quite a lot and it was fine. The only trouble I had was when I was in a hurry and thought it was in "fine" but it wasn't quite right. Won't do that again!

my mind worries me. i'm in the middle of an INCREDIBLY light period. i mean, like, i wouldn't know if it wasn't for the cramps and a bit of PMS a week or so ago.

but last night i dreamt, in really really detailed terms, that i took A's advice and went to see a doctor (or actually, he called out a doctor for me, because he was that worried about me and my sad little cramps (they're really not all THAT bad)) and it all got a bit graphic and haemorrhage-y at that point. i wish my mind hadn't decided to put me in a bath full of water right then, too. the amount of detail my mind can produce when i'm dreaming is a) scary and b) off-putting.

and i'm really glad i didn't talk in my sleep again last night, because i seem to be doing it a lot lately (or is it just that there is suddenly someone around to notice for the first time in 7 years?) and i give a lot away wheni'm sleeptalking, apparently.

oh, this was a ramble of a post. sorry, everyone.

why am i ALREADY crampy again? it's less than 3 weeks since my last period! WHAT THE HELL, body? bastard cramps, LEAVE ME THE HELL ALONE.

*snicker* That's hilarious, is what that is. But no thanks, I'll just keep mine in the bag it came it!

I stumbled on it whilst trawling Ravelry for pattern ideas and it just baffled me, completely and utterly.

!! That's ridiculous!