Unable To Believe I've Survived This Long...

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09 August 2008 @ 12:11 pm

Al those wasted years! Buying tampons and pads, blowing what little money I had each month, believing it was a necessity. If only I had known sooner!

I am the proud owner of a Diva cup, and I couldn't be happier. Before getting my period, I did a dry run, and I won't lie- it was a terrible, terrible day. Put it down to my tampon use and how I was angling it wrong, on how not relaxed I was, it felt like I was impaling myself with something massive, and taking it out was worse; like gouging out my insides.

I put the cup away and resolved to attempt again when I was on my period.

Lo and Behold, my problems vanished when the time came- inserting it was easy, getting the cup to form a seal was easier, and I had absolutely no leaks! Even better, my cramps went away from some reason, and my period seems... not as severe as before!

My only problem is... removal. No matter what I do, pinch the bottom of the cup, remove slowly at an angle, wiggling it, everything, I find the pain (although I wouldn't know) comparable to childbirth; the rim of the cup is wide open and it hurts like hell. It's a hell I can definitely live with; no more of the nails-clawing-at-my-insides feeling with the tampons, no more pads bunching up and smelling, no more late night dashes to the store.

But it would be nice if could take out my Diva Cup with minimal pain.

Any suggestions, anyone?

Tags: removal, removal - painful or problems

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10 comments —

( 10 comments — Leave a comment )

spartagus on August 9th, 2008 04:35 pm (UTC)

once you pinch the bottom, move your finger up the cup and break the seal. It can be done by simply pushing the cup in, or you might have to go all the way up to the rim and break the seal there, that way the cup isn't suctioning.

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mismatched_sock on August 9th, 2008 04:44 pm (UTC)

can you reach up and over the lip of the cup to let some air in? That can help, expecially if you can pull out while your other finger is still up aroundthe lip so it can;t re suction

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beatgirl on August 9th, 2008 04:47 pm (UTC)

i like to pinch the bottom of my cup and the kinda push it forward. i find it doesn't hurt that way. it still feels weird, but it doesn't hurt.

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neurotic_orchid on August 9th, 2008 05:00 pm (UTC)

I'm so glad insertion is easy and that the cup is working for you. For removal, it's soooo important to make sure that seal is broken before you pull it out! I take some deep breaths, bear down, and then put one finger at the top so I an fold the side in a bit. Once I feel (and often hear) the squishy release of suction, I pull it out slowly without the least bit of discomfort. It sounds like you haven't been breaking the suction first, and those cups can really suck!

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countess_tana on August 9th, 2008 05:15 pm (UTC)
Lol

Imagine like a vacuum in there or kicking open the door of a space ship in open space.

Yeah, like that. Ow!

No way am I give up on this, so I'm going to try these suggestions next time I have to empty the cup (several long, awesome hours from now! ^_^)

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bad_pixie_000 on August 9th, 2008 05:22 pm (UTC)

Fold the cup similar to insertion when you take it out. It doesn't matter if you get little spills (might well not anyway) because you're sitting on the loo anyway.

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buddy_friend on August 9th, 2008 05:33 pm (UTC)

what i usually do is gently tug at the cup and grip the bottom with two fingers. then squeeze and start gently pulling down, then once the rim is close to the opening i slide 1 finger all the way up the cup and press(or fold if you will) so that it is small and then pull out gently. hope that helps!

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gipsy_queen on August 9th, 2008 07:36 pm (UTC)

If it's anything like the Mooncup (and it looks as though it is), it won't sit quite as high up as tampons, so when you're on the loo and want to empty it, bear down a bit as though you want to empty your bowel. Hopefully this will make it pop out just enough at the bottom for you to be able to get to it with your finger and thumb tips. When you can, squeeze it. If you do it hard enough it should break the seal and enable you to take it out.

Hope this helps!

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luvmybirds on September 28th, 2008 01:43 am (UTC)

Please tell, did you ever figure out how to get it out without hurting? I've been using mine for 2 days and it's been really easy to insert/remove, but the last two times have felt exactly like what you describe. I haven't had the guts to put it back in yet... :/ Still kinda hurts down there.

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countess_tana on September 28th, 2008 02:17 pm (UTC)

Yes, I did manage to get it out without pain.

You have to be careful with method of removal- make sure you do it over a toilet. When you think it's about time to empty the cup (during the first few days, if i start to feel like I might be getting cramps, then that's usually my indicator that the cup is full or near-full- don't ask me why) go into the bathroom and find the position most comfortable to you to remove it, and relax.

Then, insert your finger as high inside of you as you can (if you've used the diva cup at the right time there shouldn't be any blood) until you can touch the rim of the cup. Push in the rim, pressing it to the other side and then a little bit down, kinda as if it's the first step before folding it over itself (if you use the c-fold, that is.)

This way, this keeps the cup from staying open mid removal (OUCH!) and if done correctly decreases the overall size of the cup while removing it and thus, less pain.

Hopefully this helps, as it did for me. I'm sure there must be some other suggestions in this forum as well so if mine doesn't work, check out a few others. Just don't give up!

Gambatte!

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