I browsed the forums a couple months ago when I found out about divacups, and for some reason decided that Saturday would be THE day I would buy mine. I've since been pouring over the forums. :) As luck would have it, Tuesday my period came a-callin' and I literally dashed upstairs to pull out my new toy. I have NEVER been that excited about my period.
As for the first day, I didn't have any major issues with insertion or removal, just one that didn't quite seal. I emptied it four times because I don't have a good gauge yet on how much it will hold, plus my first day is kind of miserable anyways. Always has been. You know, the whole cramps-that-make-you-shaky bit that makes me wonder if you can actually DIE from cramps? Yeah. That's me. The one and only time I visited the school nurse in high school was because I couldn't stand up any longer in bio class (My mother says her periods are a breeze...no fair.) And that's not even factoring in the fun migraines that let me know it's on its way.
Anyways. Back to the divacup. Y'all are so right. It's terribly liberating. I'm something of an extreme sportswoman (rock climbing, skydiving, traveling, camping, cycling, kayaking, generally being on the move all the time) and I hate being slowed down by my period. Tampons and pads feed the stigma that being on your period has to suck. I despise having to carry with me a handful of tampons when I leave the house during that week of the month, and having to figure out where and when to go to the bathroom between all my three-hour classes (I'm a grad student). I'm also something of a hippie, or so my mother says, so the whole green thing totally appeals.
We'll see how the rest of this week goes, but so far, I'm sold. My period arsenal has likely been permanently reduced to my new divacup and a few aleve tablets. Too bad I didn't know about this nine years ago!