As veteran cup users know, there are some things that are said by the cup companies that just aren't true. Maybe they're saying them to cover their butts. Maybe they're saying them to sell more product. Maybe they're just... saying them, and we don't really know why. Whatever the situation is, these myths can be off-putting for some potential users and can even make people think they're using their cups incorrectly when they're working just fine.

Here are some of the myths that I've seen.

Myth: You must replace your cup every year/every five years/every X years.

( Reality: You probably don't. )

Myth: You must use our branded wash/tablets to clean your cup.

( Reality: There are many ways to safely clean your cup. )

Myth: Your cup must sit at the bottom of your vagina, way below your cervix.

( Reality: Your vagina may vary. )

Myth: There are only one or two ways you can fold your cup when you are inserting it.

( Reality: There are at least eight different folds you can use. )

Myth: You have to rotate your cup to make it seal correctly.

( Reality: Rotating your cup is only one way to make sure it's sealed. )

Myth: You can't use any lubricant with your cup.

( Reality: Water-based lubes are fine, but they must be water based. )

Myth: The size guidelines are hard and fast.

( Reality: Not really. )

Myth: Menstrual cups can only be used when you're on your period.

( Reality: As long as you remove and clean every 12 hours or so, you'll probably be fine. )

This is by far not an exhaustive list, so if you can think of any other myths, please mention them in the comments!

About Cups
As the name implies, Menstrual Cups are cups that when inserted into a vagina, collect rather than absorb monthly flow. They are removed, emptied and re-inserted. And then sanitized until next month. With proper care, a cup can last many years and take the place of thousands of disposable menstrual products.

"GREAT! I want one!"
Don't rush right out and buy the first cup you find. They are NOT "one size fits all."

There are 14 different brands (more, if you count the colors) by 13 different manufacturers -- and they are all different sizes.
BOYCOTT?
1 Feb 2009: Due to US copyright laws, the UK Mooncup may no longer be shipped to US addresses. This is as a result of a law suit against UK Mooncup by the Keeper company that makes the US Moon Cup. Even though UK Mooncup had the name first, Keeper trademarked the "Moon Cup" name and then used the conflict as a legal weapon to bar the UK Mooncup from the US market. So potential customers should consider the unsportsmanlike business ethics of The Keeper, Inc before choosing either a Keeper or a US Moon Cup. http://community.livejournal.com/menstrual_cups/1539637.html

How do I know which "Moon" cup is which?
Two different spellings, two different colors, two different lengths and from two different countries. UK Mooncups (usually one word) are yellowish and only 50mm long. The US Moon Cups (usually two words) are made by The Keeper company. They are clear or milky and longer cups at 54mm.

Restrictions:
Fleurcups are limited to European distribution.
Green Donna cups are only for Brazilian customers. (Or are they out of business?)
The UK Mooncups cannot be shipped to Israel, Italy or the USA.

This question comes up often:
The only cups that are available in US stores are the Divas, Lunettes, Keepers, US Moon Cups and (completely different) Insteads.  All other cups must be ordered internationally.

=====

I have brown hair, a degree in Nuclear Physics, my dog's name is Sparky and my favorite food is lasagna. What size cup should I buy?

HOW TO PICK THE RIGHT SIZED CUP:

Menstrual Cups are not "one size fits all."
They are all different sizes -- and those few mm make a surprisingly big difference. But figuring out which cup is the right combination of length, width and shape is as much of an art as it is a science. Use a combination of the dimensions and pictures to make that decision. Explore your body, then use the dimensions to pick ones that you think will fit YOU. Then use shape to narrow your choices down to your final selection. Don't pick one because it's popular or because it fits others because we are all different. A cup that doesn't fit well could leak and/or be uncomfortable.

How can you pick the right size?
Easy. Next period, sit on the toilet and insert a finger into your vagina. Feel around for your cervix. It's a coin-sized nub that feels vaguely like the tip of your nose. It should be kinda toward the top, kinda toward the back. It's not unusual for it to be a little off-center. If you have to reach really deep or still can't reach it, then you have a long vagina. Start by looking at the long cups. If you can reach it very easily, then you have a short vagina. Select from the short end of the chart. Logic says that a short cup might fit into a long vagina but a long cup might not fit into a short vagina. Check for your cervix several times during your cycle. It is not unusual for it to change heights from light to heavy days. Length -- whether it's short, long or in between -- is probably the most important measurement. Cups range from 40mm to 57mm.

Once you have picked a range of lengths, pick a width:
In simple terms, there are three widths to choose from:
40-41mm are considered "teen size" by many,
43-44mm are "small" (no kids) and
45-46mm are "large" (kids or over 30.)
The width of the cup refers to the outer dimension of the rim, not the body of the cup. The shape of the cup influences how big or small a cup feels so those width categories are not carved in stone. And my size categories do not necessarily match the size that the manufacturers call their cups.

Capacity:
Also consider your flow -- light or heavy? 15ml is 1 Tablespoon, which is the equivalent of a super plus tampon in capacity. Cups range from 9ml to 29ml.

Shape:
Once you have narrowed down your choices by length, width and capacity, look at pictures of those cups to select a shape that appeals to you. They are all variations of two basic shapes. Some cups are bulbous, others are narrow with a wide flange. A narrow bodied cup might not feel as large as one with what I call a "hoop skirt" shape. Look at my icon. All three cups have a 46mm rim width, but look how different their body widths are. There are pictures of cups at:
http://afriska-engl.de.tl/Different-brands-and-sizes.htm and
http://menstrualcups.wordpress.com/2008/07/10/cup-images/ and
http://menstrualcups.wordpress.com/2009/07/23/more-cup-photos/


Material:
Most cups are made of medical grade silicone. The Keeper is the only cup that is made of latex rubber. And the MeLuna is made of TPE thermoplastic elastomers.

So I've been interested in menstrual cups for a while. A week ago I ultimately decided I was going to get one. However, I had one problem. I am virgin, and one week ago I had never had anything in my vagina before. I couldn't even find the entrance to it in the first place! How pathetic is that? But, I made up my mind, and when I want to do something, I do it. So I did a little research and decided the best cup to buy would be the Lady Cup, because it's so small. But then my period started today, and I still hadn't bothered to order one, so I got in the car and drove to the nearest Whole Foods to buy a Diva cup.

Anyways, I believe that the best way to learn how to do things is in baby steps. I play the clarinet, and I know that you can't just look at a difficult piece of music and play it perfectly right from the start. You have to develop some muscle memory in your fingers first, starting slow and gradually up until the piece of music is now so easy you wonder why you ever thought it was hard in the first place. Using a cup is the same way. Since you've never had anything in your vagina before, it naturally is going to be awkward the first time.

So I thought up a set of baby steps to introduce myself to the cup, and I'm going to share them here. These steps are going to seem small and insignificant, but hey, that's why they're called baby steps :) If you can do more then one step at a time, then do so, if you are ready. But if you feel any discomfort, wait until later to try again. You will be able to get the same step you were at before, because the muscles will remember how, and then you will be ready to go on to the next step.

Before your period starts

1. Find the entrance to your vagina. This sounds stupid, but I honestly thought it was higher than it really is.

2. Relax, and try to stick a finger in. Just a little bit. Enough just so you get used to having something in and out of your vagina.

3. With one finger, try to reach as high as you can inside of you. If it hurts, then stop and try again later.

4. Once you get good at all that, explore your anatomy. Feel where your hymen is, and stuff like that.

5. Stretch your hymen a bit. Put some pressure on it with a finger, but not so much it hurts. You can also try putting more fingers in, but I never got to that point.

When you're on your period

1. Explore your anatomy more! When I'm on my period, I'm a lot looser and my hymen is more flexible.

2. Now get your cup out. Decide which fold you want to use. I like the 7 fold best, because it's small and easy to hold onto.

3. Now, separate your labia, and put the tip of the folded cup at the top. Move it downward towards your vagina until you feel the opening. I found it was tricky to find it without actually touching it with my hand, but it gets easier with practice.

4. Try pushing the cup in. Make sure you are aiming for your tailbone! At first I wasn't, and it hurt! Put the cup in a little at a time. If you have discomfort, stop and try again later.

5. Eventually you will be able to put most of the cup in, but don't put it in all the way yet. Practice putting it in most of the way a couple times.

6. At this point you should be able to put it in all the way. It's a little tricky to tell if it's open. Running a finger around the edges helps. The first time I put it in, it didn't hurt at all. In fact, I could hardly feel it.

7. Okay, now that you've got it in all comfy, just get it over with and take it out. This is the hardest part. Make sure you're relaxed. The first thing want to do is stick in a finger, and break the suction by pushing in on the cup rim. Then bear down, and twist it out. OK, I'm not gonna lie, it hurt because my stupid hymen was in the way. I'm not sure if I tore it or not, because I can still feel it there, but it's less in the way now.

Whatever you do, don't panic about getting it out. If your hymen is in the way, just remember that it's temporary and won't keep the cup in forever :)

UPDATE: More removing tips!

So, apparently my cervix is quite high, even on my period. So when I tried to take my cup out after my first full day, I had quite a shock! I could hardly reach it, and it was slippery because the cup had started leaking. So the natural thing to do was, of course, panic. But I did manage to get it out! First thing I had to do was squat and bear down, really hard! It does move down when you do that, even though I was freaking out! Anyways, eventually I was able to get in a finger to push in on the side of the cup and break the suction. Then, I pretty much just grabbed it and pulled it out, while bearing down.

It didn't hurt that time, but I highly recommend doing it in the bathtub or shower, because I got blood everywhere, but thankfully I could just turn on the tap and wash it out.
---

Here are some tips if the cup leaks. At first mine didn't leak, but once I got adept at inserting it, it starting leaking. However, it would only leak for about half an hour then it would stop. Turns out I wasn't putting it high enough up. It would eventually move up on its own and stop leaking, but it's much better, at least for me, to put it up higher in the first place. It also pokes me if it is positioned wrong. So, if you have leaks, experiment with where you are putting your cup. You might even want to try different folds, as that might help position it properly.
-----

Anyways, I think the most important thing about using a cup is not to force it in. Make sure you are ready. It's unacceptable for a guy to force something in you, so you shouldn't force anything in you either!

Also, remember that you will be able to get the cup in eventually! It WILL fit. The vagina stretches beautifully! Anyways, I hope I was helpful and didn't bore you to death!

Hello everyone!

I noticed recently that the awesome post with folding pictures is dead.  All the photos don't work.  So I took it upon myself to take some pics for everyone.  I know I missed the labial fold, but I can never get it to fold right, and there are already pics of that, and one more recent one.  Maybe we should tag those posts?

Anyway, in case someone who is not a current cup user stumbles accross this post, here are a couple pics to give you an idea of how big the cup is.  It is a smaller size DivaCup, as I am 15 and a complete virgin.  Excuse the zany bedsheets.  Haha!  My room's colourful. :)



There you go!  If I've forgotten some vastly important fold, comment me, and I'll edit this entry and add it. :)  

EDIT:  I've added pics on how to do all but the C-fold, as that is self-explanatory.  If you think I should add text to the how-to, comment. :)

Hope that helps some.  :D

God bless,
Sheila

As an update to the FAQ we were talking about a few days ago, I've sorted out a comparison table of the different cups. Unfortunately I'm missing quite a bit of information which I couldn't easily find from the various company websites, so input is very much desired! (Especially anyone who knows anything about Instead cups, but I'm missing info from all brands.)

( The Table. )

Any other columns you feel would be helpful? I figure that we'll post one of the comparison line-ups with this table for visual questions, such as number of ridges on the outside. Preferences as to the layout/order of rows etc?

I'm open to any and all input on this, though obviously the mods get final say. :)

( Early version of FAQ, very much open to suggestions )

I took a bunch of pictures of the different folds as I understand them, for future reference!  Trying to figure out the "7" fold in particular was really difficult until I found some pictures.  I thought it would be good to have step by step pictures of all the folds in one place.

I also am planning on taking comparison pictures of ALL the different menstrual cups (Lunette included).  I wrote to the companies asing for samples.  I plan to put all these photos, as well as the folds, on a webpage for easy access, for beginner cup users!  Hopefully I can make the process of getting used to a cup easier than it was for me!  And maybe some other information too, who knows.

WARNING!  For those on dial-up, there are a TON of pictures behind the cut.  It will take awhile to load.  Pictures approximately 100 kb each, and there are 18 of them behind the cut.


My Keeper.  Approximately 2 1/2 years old, Size "B" (smaller size).  Yeah I know I need a manicure. :P  The Keeper was dry too, much harder to hold the folds!  Oh and it's not that easy taking pictures of your own hand, but way better than sucking up my pride and asking my sister to photograph my menstrual cup!

( "C" Fold )

( Punch-Down Fold )

( "7" Fold )

( Origami Fold )

( Comparison photos of all folds from the top. )