How to Switch to a Menstrual Cup

The Menstrual Cup…. No longer an alien object to shy away from, or make a gross face at. Their on our supermarket selves and I can grantee you’ve got a friend that has been using one for years.

You’ve probably heard someone shout, “The moon cup changed my life”.

Pin me for later……

A pinnable image for female hands holding a menstrual cup. Captioned “Be Empowered by your Period. How to Switch to a Menstrual Cup.”

And yet your still scared to give it a go. No doubt that’s why your here. I am that friend that shouts “it changed my life” and I’m here to hold your hand in taking the dive and switching to reusable period care.

Why Switch to a Menstrual Cup?

Turns out tampons are pretty gross. I never thought about it pre going zero waste, I guess because they were a necessity. Their mainly made of cotton, which we know is one of the most heavily sprayed crops and terrible for this little planet of ours. The cotton is then bleached. All these chemicals, residue and additives from pesticides can contain endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) which can disrupt hormonal balance. Add in the fact that tampons are made to adsorb, adsorbing everything including moisture from your vaginal wall. This can effect the delicate PH of your vagina. Pretty worrying ay? I’ve dug further into these statistics in my post A Zero Waste Period if you want to read more.

We’ve all had that scare too. The “don’t leave your tampon in too long” as there is a risk of Toxic Shock Syndrome. Well none of this is a worry with the menstrual cup. Their made from medical grade silicone and will last you up to 10 years.

The menstrual cup is going to save you a ton of money.

Like most reusable products there is an initial out lay. My Fleur Cup cost £15. Considering every month I would spend around £5 on tampons and sanitary towels I made my money back in no time at all. Now consider my Fleur Cup may well last me 10 years. That’s a possible saving of £585!!! Okay, your not going to notice £5 a month but I would much rather that money in my pocket.

You will stop so much waste going to landfill.

In her lifetime the average women sends 11,000 sanitary products to landfill. Products she paid for, was taxed upon, could well have disturbed her hormones and now it will sit somewhere well after we have all left this Earth.

This is not to make anyone that NEEDS to use these products feel guilty, if you need them then you must of course use them. However the facts above make me feel rather empowered when choosing to use a menstrual cup. No women should be taxed on something that is a monthly necessity, no one wants to think of their gross bin sitting in a landfill for centuries to come and facts on period poverty are beyond disturbing. Reusable period products could help end all of this. That to me is empowering.

Before you buy your menstrual cup.

Do the quiz.

Put a Cup in it have created a quiz for you to answer to reveal the perfect cup for you. This is how I ended up buying the Fleur Cup which has worked perfectly for me.

Give yourself time to become friends with your cup.

To quote a dear friend of mine, “your gonna get up close and personal with your period.” Glad she gave me the heads up because this is pretty spot on.

Don’t be scared, what she meant by this is that your suddenly comforted with how much you bleed. Guess what? It’s not that much. Tampons and sanitary towels make it look like we loose pints of the stuff but it could not be further from the truth. Day one of my period is the heaviest. I change my cups a couple of times a day and wear a pad or period pants in case of any leakage (which can happen slightly on the first day). After that I only change my cup every 12 hours, usually in the shower first thing in the morning and before I go to bed and there really is minimal to empty for the duration of my period.

Truth is I can’t feel my cup at all once it’s in and after that first day I NEVER get any leaks, meaning the only downside is I have to remind myself I’m on my period. There’s been more than one occasion I’ve had to get myself back out of bed once I remember.

Are there any downsides?

Like she said “up close and personal with your period.” Again this is nothing to be scared of but it can take a little getting used to. For me putting the cup in was always easy but the first few times taking it out were a little uncomfortable. Once I’d done it a few times it was a walk in the park.

Top Tips.

If its uncomfortable you’ve got the wrong size. You shouldn’t be able to feel it once it’s in.

Although you may get the hang of it after using a few times, still give it time. I takes an average of 3 periods of get used to it properly.

Be careful when taking it out… no one wants a spillage.

When inserting leave it as low as possible. Much lower than a tampon.

If your struggling to get it out go for a wee first. This is help you relax and then take it out easily.

If you need to empty it in a public toilet without a sink for rinsing in the cubicle, pop some loo roll in the toilet before hand. Otherwise there can be blood stains and it takes a few flushes to rid it. No one wants that if there’s someone waiting outside.

Now take back control of your period and enjoy.

Switching to a menstrual cup has been such a game changer for me. I used to dread my period and feel yukky for the duration. Having extra showers throughout the day and wanting to hibernate. Although I still enjoy a bit of hibernation it’s through choice now. I get less period pains, I never dread it, I don’t fear taking out the bathroom bin AND you never get that yukky period smell. Know what I mean girls?

I hope the switch goes well for you.

Remember any questions, just head over to Instagram for a chat!

Hannah x x x