i have only posted comments on this community so far but i thought it was time now to post an entry.
thanks to everyone here for sharing your experiences, it's really helpful to be able to read up info on here!

my name is Annina, i'm 25 years old, no virgin and have not had any children.
i found out about menstrual cups on a random lj userinfo of someone who had put a link there that said "i love my divacup" and it lead to the divacup site. i thought it was interesting but i was also a little chicken to try it out. after a while i went for it though, i had looked for a shop here in Sweden and found one online and got myself the Diva size 1 (smaller). i mainly went for that one because the onlineshop offered a 3-months-return guarantee. this is the shop by the way, in case anyone from Sweden is reading and wants to know.

i have used my divacup for two cycles now and i really like it now. at first i found it a little big for me and i was unsure if i should get a smaller cup, after seeing the size chart here i thought i should have gotten the small ladycup instead. but i wanted to give my diva a second chance and now after having used it for my second cycle i'm really getting the hang of how everything works, and i don't feel like i need a smaller cup.

i know there are pictures of the folds already in this community but i took my own ones showing how i fold my cup to insert and remove, here they are:





as you see i fold down the rim and push it down into the cup so that the upper side forms like flower petals, i think it's called the "punchdown" fold?
the last pic is how i hold it to insert. it helps alot to use your muscles to pull it in also, makes it even easier!
once it is half in i let it go and at the same time "suck" it inwards with my muscles, by that it folds open. to check if it's open i kind of wiggle it around and push a finger up along several sides (that's a little tight because i have quite tight ladyparts, but it just works).
i put mine right behind my pelvic bone so that the stem is next to the bone, that feels most comfortable for me and seems the natural place for it because in the beginning i used to have it lower but it slided up behind the bone, so that is where it is.



the first 3-4 times when i removed it it stretched me a little and made me sore, because following the instructions i just grabbed the stem and pulled it out =suction and also stretching, ugh. it felt like it was way too big for me.
but then i found out a better way to remove it:



first i use my muscles to push the cup down so i can reach the lower part, and i pinch it and grab it. then while still bearing down i kind of fold it slightly with thumb and index and middle finger, by that the "seal" is broken and i can wiggle/pull it out.
it sounds a little complicated but after trying this some times it's now working like a charm for me and removal is now very easy.

i am so glad that i found out about cups and now never have to buy a tampon ever again :D
they just made me dry and boring anyway so they can all stay in the store until they turn black, lol!
oh and no stupid threads hanging out of me anymore, going to the toilet is so much easier, i forget i even have my period.

♥
~annina