Tried Mooncup, Lena Sensitive, Lily cup, still failed.. HELP!
Hello,
- I’m 44,
- only 1 C-section,
- I have ‘very narrow opening’ can barely put my mid finger in it and that’s it! this was the main reason I’ve been grossly using pads for years.
- Heavy with clumps on 1st,2nd day, light 3-6 days.
- Bad cramp esp. the night before, 1st and 2nd day.
- not very active but at work tend to get lot of brisk walking.
- avg to high cervix (I think)
- severely tilted cervix
- My Menstrual cup search/experience as following:
- Mooncup small (tried 2 yrs ago and gave up)
spent over an 1 hr, finally inserted with great pain, once it was in, I didn’t feel at all BUT removing was hell with great pain, still leaked little (not much, had to use liner everytime for little leaks) after spending at least 1 hr to remove for few times scratching my vulva like crazy, I gave up.
2. Lena sensitive large (decided to try again for my cruise vacation)
spent 40 min. figured out a decent way to get it in still with some pain (better than mooncup). once it was in, I didn’t feel at all even without cutting the stem. BUT! Could NOT get it out! my finger was just too short to break the seal, when I pulled the stem w/o breaking the seal, it was sooo painful. Then after pushing, poking, It turned completely 90 degrees and hurt so much. spent 2+ hrs to remove it (almost went to ER.) The removal was a nightmare so didn’t have any courage to try more so just after 1st try, I gave up.
3. Lily cup small
Soft!! Easiest to insert as it can roll very small!! was soo happy. felt relieved no matter how much I push it up, it’s still in my finger’s reach. had slightly difficult to open it but wasn’t too terrible after few dif. folds, BUT…. it was the most Uncomfortable cup when it’s in. With Moon/Lena I didn’t feel a thing once it’s in (until I try to take it out). This cup, I tried so hard to ignore the sensation but felt it constantly. what’s worse, even when I cut off all the stem, that hard bottom poked my vulva whenever I sat down. slight difficult to urinate, impossible for bm unless I take it out completely. But I was still going to try more as I can remove it without killing myself (it still hurts but bearable). however this one LEAKS little bit (and yes I make sure it opens all around) not too bad but enough to wet the 1/3 of liner every few hrs. AND when I walk around, it comes down very little by little, poking me more and more, must push it up every couple hours.
Any suggestion? should I give up on my cup forever?? I’m going on my very first cruise and I don’t want to wear the horrible pads throughout my 1 wk long vacation.. I thought about taking the meds to stop the period but due to my health condition, it wasn’t an option. Please Help!!
Hi There!
I’m sorry that you’re having troubles finding a cup that works for you as well feels comfortable and is easy to use. Those are some key things that I think about when finding a cup and if one is lacking, I find myself searching for another cup.
- MoonCup – Although this cup is narrow, it is quite short and has a pretty firm rim. Since the rim also has an “edge” to it instead of a smooth transition from the body to the secondary and top rim, it can add some unnecessary “speed bumps” making it uncomfortable to remove. The holes (at least on the original which probably includes the one that you had) were placed below the secondary rim that caused leaking for many people, sooner than they expected.
- Lena Sensitive – Bell shaped cups with flared rims such as the Lena, seem to work great for those with a medium to a low cervix. Cups like this tend to ride up and sit higher around the cervix in the vaginal fornix making it hard to reach for those with a high cervix. This can also cause leaking sooner since the cervix will sit further down into the cup.
- Lily Cup – The small and the large are the same length. The diameter is what makes the difference by 2mm. It’s great to hear that inserting this cup was easier and that you could still reach it. I found this cup uncomfortable to use as well. I felt the same way when sitting, but didn’t have any urination issues. My other issue with this cup is that without air holes, it sealed so tightly that I almost asked my hubby for help to remove it 🙁
I have two cups in mind that might work a little better for you.
I chose softer “V” shaped cups for the length so that they’re easier to reach and manipulate during removal, and cups with a decent to higher capacity.
Lily Cup (for reference)
Total Length: 78mm
w/o Stem: 66mm
Diameter: 40mm
Capacity to the rim: 25ml
Casco Cup Small or Large – Small and large are the same length. The difference is the diameter of 2mm. The small cup is narrow and is on the softer side but has a secondary rim that helps get this cup to open. The secondary rim transitions smoothly from the body.
The large is a little wider but has a higher capacity of 40ml to the rim.
Total Length: 70mm
w/o Stem: 56mm
Diameter: 42mm
Capacity to the rim: 30ml
Mermaid Cup Small or Large – “Soft” version – These cups are on the softer side, but they do have a secondary rim but that too is not terribly firm. It does still have a good “pop” to it.
The small is more narrow than the large, but the large will have a slightly higher capacity.
I feel the large might be fine for you since the diameter is about the same as the large Lena. Although the actual body length on this cup is not extra long, the stem adds length for an easy reach (or trim) and allows you to rock the cup back and forth until you are able to reach the base of the cup.
Small:
Total Length: 75mm
w/o Stem: 51mm
Diameter: 42mm
Capacity to the rim: 27ml
Large:
Total Length: 77mm
w/o Stem: 55mm
Diameter: 45mm
Capacity to the rim: 35ml
People with a severely tilted cervix find that wider cups are easier to position, but if you are uncomfortable with wide cups, that’s not really going to work 🙁
As for the leaking, since you mentioned it’s just a little bit, I’m thinking it might just be residual blood (blood coating your vaginal walls even after inserting your cup). To help minimize spotting, squat and bear down after inserting your cup and then use a wet wipe or cloth to wipe the grip rings and/or stem as best as you can. This will get rid of some of the excess blood and hopefully eliminate spotting.
Check out these two cups and see if they are something that you’d be interested in.
Good Luck! 🙂
