I got my Diva Cup Size 2 (I'm 36, got it when I was 35, sexually active, never was pregnant) back in May of this year, and it was pretty much love at first insertion. Seriously, I don't even want to use pads anymore, and I've never been big on tampons because they exacerbate my already pretty bad cramps.
When I first got the cup, I had absolutely no problems getting it to pop open, it was stiff enough, and I could practically do it in my sleep, but in recent months, it's been getting increasingly harder to get it to open. My method/fold of choice since the beginning has been the punch-down fold, as the S or C folds just leave the cup folded closed when I insert. But now, the punched-down side just pops back in place, and the cup often doesn't open, but stays stuck in the closed-fold as if I had put it in using a C fold. The cup does feel softer than it did in the beginning, too, and at first I was thinking it was just me being used to it, but now I really am starting to think it's becoming softer and that is becoming an issue.
So my questions are: Is it possible that my Diva got softer in about 6 months to the point where it is no longer suitable? And what would be a good replacement, in case I need a stiffer cup? Also, and this may be the key, I seem to have less issues on days where my flow gets a bit heavier, I feel looser and it slides in easier, maybe I just need to lube things up?
For the record, I don't necessarily need the capacity, I've always had a light-ish flow (could have easily gone 12+ hours with a regular medium-flow pad most days if it hadn't been un-hygienic to do so), but I do need the length, as I have a ridiculously high cervix, even during my period, and even the Diva Size 2 is sometimes hard to grasp for me (I'm short with relatively short fingers and arms and have a hard time reaching in all sorts of positions, lol).
So if I need to change cups because the Diva is too soft, I need something that is about the same length.
Not sure which tags to use, Mods, feel free to add them or give pointers. ;)