Day 1 of my period: Tried C-Fold, S-fold and double-7 fold for insertion. None went in - all attempts very painful. Did some exploration with 2 fingers and discovered they happily went in stacked one front, one back but wouldn't go in side by side (left and right). Using that info decided 7-fold in the front to back direction might work. Went in pretty easily.
Removal - attempt 1 - ball stem was sitting in line with pubic bone so easy to locate and get a grip on but wouldn't budge because of seal. Tried pinching the grip rings but couldn't break the seal. After a very long time decided to give up, relax a bit, try again later.
Removal - attempt 2 - managed to get a finger up to the rim and break the seal. Could also drag it down just a little with finger hooked over rim. Tried to fold it down but couldn't get enough fingers in deeply enough. Finally got a finger hooked at the front of the cup and it seemed to fold a bit and start coming out. Then got stuck half-way out - very, very painful. Skin at vaginal opening couldn't stretch around rim. Finally managed to get a fairly open C-fold that I forced out painfully. Left out overnight and wore pad instead.
Day 2 of my period. Insertion: Tried 7-fold in same orientation as previous day. Really painful, wouldn't go in. Did some exploration with fingers. This time found two fingers could go in side by side but not front to back (opposite to previous day - odd!). Got the 7-fold in using left to right orientation - more difficult than previous day.
Removal - Reached a finger up to the rim - thought I broke the seal. Tried tugging on grip rings to pull down but suction seemed to have re-established. Had to break seal twice more before I could start tugging it down. Tried reaching in far enough to do C-fold. Vaginal skin was really dry and thin like tissue - kept pinching it between fingers and cup and it was really painful. Finally managed to get a partial C-fold established and pull out a bit more. Kept trying to fold it a bit more and pull it out a bit further. Got really difficult the more I got it out. The rim just wouldn't fold and the vaginal opening wouldn't stretch around it. Finally forced it out painfully.
Day 3 of period. Vagina is sore and tender. Not sure whether to have another attempt. Feeling a bit traumatized.
So, its got me thinking:
Questions:
1. Does anyone use lubricant to remove their cup? The dryness of the vagina on the second day seemed to be a big part of the problem...
2. What should I do? Persevere? Try different brands or a smaller meluna?
The things I liked about using my meluna:
1. Felt dry and comfortable whilst using it.
2. The seal was really good - would have confidence using it whilst playing sport.
3. Lasted 5 hours on my heaviest day (think this size or bigger is necessary for my heavy days)
4. Not sure if its related or just coincidence but I've had a complete absence of menstrual cramps this cycle when I usually get them on the first couple of heavy days.