Me and my Mooncup

Note: this is a girly-TMI entry. Please do not read if you are weak of heart or a squeamish boy type. Thanks.

I’d originally heard of the mooncup a few years ago. I liked the sound of not having to pay out regularly for tampons, but given that my periods were rarely around anyway (‘thanks’ to the depo contraceptive jab, miscarriage etc) I saw little point in investing. I told myself I’d get one “in the future”.

I remember reading a couple of posts on mooncups/reusable menstrual solutions on Hanna’s blog, amongst others, some time between having Izz and my periods returning, and told myself that as they had returned I would invest.

Lo, 10 months to the day after I had Isabel, the bastards returned. As promised, I bought myself a mooncup (in time for period number 2).

I must admit when it arrived I was a little confused as to how I’d get the great big thing up there. I mean, without wishing to be crude or anything, it all went back to normal shape and size swiftly after having giving birth! Turns out there are a couple of methods to ‘fold’ this cup, and as you insert it you let go and it resumes normal shape.

The biggest benefit, aside from cost obviously, has been the fact that my previously agonising cramps have completely disappeared. I’ve been plagued my monstrous period pains forever, and was a little concerned that they appear to have been triggered by tampons. Some people accredit this to having given birth, but I’ve used tampons on a couple of occasions since and the cramps make a return. I can only begin to guess why (and would probably be wrong).

The other particularly nice thing about the mooncup is that because it’s quite a soft latexy material (rather than hard moisture-absorbing cottony stuff) is that it slides in and out (sorry) quite easily.

I do find that I tend to put the cup in and forget about it. This could be seen as a blessing or a pain in the arse, depending on how heavily you bleed I guess. This brings me to one weakness: removing a full cup is a little err… shall we say… tricky ;)

I’m definitely a big convert. Never did I think I’d be raving about periods and menstrual products though :P

(You can buy mooncups online or in most Boots stores in the UK.)

11 comments so far

  1. Katherine said:
    On 23 Apr at 5:43 pm

    Hrm. That certainly does sound interesting. I may actually give that one a try in the near future.

    Where did you get your mooncup specifically? Do they all appear to be fairly the same from vendor to vendor or are their variances in style/size?

  2. Stephanie said:
    On 23 Apr at 7:06 pm

    I have never heard of mooncups, or anything that wasn’t disposable. I might just try these, just because I think that disposable of sanitary pads and tampons is just a huge waste.

  3. Tanya said:
    On 23 Apr at 8:15 pm

    I tried using the mooncup but it was a no go – but then again I’ve always found tampons rather uncomfortable too. Perhaps I’m a weird shape or something. ANYWAY, instead I switched to cloth menstrual products and haven’t looked back. They’re obviously far more expensive than a mooncup, but they’re still much cheaper, comfortable and ‘green’ than disposables.

    So if any of Jem’s readers are looking for an alternative to disposables but the mooncup doesn’t sound like your thing, please do give cloth pads a google. Your wallet, planet AND lady bits will thank you for it. :)

  4. Cori said:
    On 23 Apr at 10:13 pm

    I’ve heard of the mooncup, but never thought to give it a try. Like you said, I saw how large it was and was a bit intimidated. I’ll have to give them a try, though, because I keep hearing good things about them.

  5. Anne said:
    On 24 Apr at 4:21 am

    I’ve got a Lunette (BLUE!) which I LOVE. The company that makes them is out of Finland.

    There are a few different shapes, so the shape that works for me may not work for someone else.

  6. Katy said:
    On 24 Apr at 11:36 am

    you appear to have forgotten to illustrate this post with a photo of your not-quite-perfectly-clean cup ;)

    I like the idea of being able to inspect the contents, as it were. But then I am a bit disgusting really… One day I will probably invest

  7. Meggan said:
    On 24 Apr at 6:44 pm

    I think in the US, you can find these under the names “Instead” or “Divacup.” I don’t have one myself but I’ve heard loads of good things about them!

  8. Erin said:
    On 25 Apr at 3:34 am

    I use the Divacup and love it. I recommend every lady try one. They make handling all of it so much neater. No dead animal smell! =D Seriously though, I’ve converted all the ladies in my family. If you are thinking about getting one, do. It’ll pay for itself in two months and keep your undies pretty forever.

  9. jassi said:
    On 25 Apr at 3:05 pm

    I also want to konw,Where did you get your mooncup specifically? I use the Divacup,you know,my mum told me to try Divacup when i was a little girl

  10. Diane said:
    On 28 Apr at 7:09 am

    This sounds a bit scary for me T_T
    I don’t think I can find such product where I live.
    And yes, I can’t imagine removing the full cup.
    But thanks for sharing…I just know another alternative.

  11. Lauren said:
    On 28 Apr at 3:29 pm

    This post has been really useful for me. I’ve been on some form of birth control since I was 15 thanks to the horrid cramps I get, but with the exception of depo they all had side effects that just weren’t worth it. I’ve heard of cups but never bothered looking into them since I’m on depo. Now I’m near the end of the two years you’re allowed on that though, so this might be something to look into. Thanks!