The Money Mustache Community
Learning, Sharing, and Teaching => Ask a Mustachian => Topic started by: JoJo on December 08, 2014, 06:15:28 PM
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Since we’re already in the toilet today on the non-flushing thread, it might be a good time for this. Guys, if your squeamish about menstruation leave this thread now….you’ve been warned.
Do any of you women use “alternative” products for that time of the month? I used to use tampons but always worried about them a little. I know that toxic shock syndrome is basically in the past but I did notice when I wore darker underwear there would be a spot and finally realized the tampons & moisture were BLEACHING my underwear. Not only was it ruining underwear but how good could it really be to have bleach in there 24 hours a day? I hated pads because nearly every time I wore them, I had an accident (not necessarily one visible to other people but enough to stain the underwear) especially at night. So, a few years ago I wondered what would happen if I used a washcloth. So a package of a dozen washcloths for $5 has been my supply ever since.
The key to this is going to the bathroom every couple hours as to not saturate the washcloth. If I will be traveling or in a long meeting I’ll still use tampons instead. Since I’ve started doing this, I haven’t had a single “accident”. This is sort of akin to washable diapers and they always used to say “on the rag” :)
What say MMM? Is this disgusting? Anyone else do this or want to try?
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This isn't what you're talking about, but in terms of discussion of alternatives: behold, the menstrual cup thread:
http://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/reader-recommendations/menstrual-cups/
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Menstrual cup all the way!
While I was learning that, and for past partum, I sewed some basic, very ugly pads from flannel.
I now cannot stand the commercial products and will never let my dd get sucked into that!
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I just use tampons. I use dark underwear during my period and have never had any sort of bleaching like you described. I'm not concerned enough about TSS to avoid them, and the cost is honestly so minimal it's just not a concern for me - $20-$30 per year.
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I use the menstrual cup. Environmentally friendly (at least, more so than pads or tampons). If you like the "rag" method, there are reusable menstrual clothes/pads available on Amazon, some of which are probably less "pad-y" than others.
But if washcloths work for you, you do you girl!
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Ooh, lots of menstrual cup fans. I've been thinking of trying that. You make some very valid tampon points.
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I keep meaning to get a menstrual cup and forgetting! Thanks for the reminder!
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Inspiring!
I'm more concerned about the chemicals from these products than the cost so I enjoy reading about the creative and more health friendly solutions you're all providing.
Thanks for starting this thread to help with our Flow-Stache!
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I use a menstrual cup for my day to day and when I want to have sex with my partner I use sea sponges. Works like a charm! :)
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I've been using reusable cloth pads since 2006. Cost a little to start up, but they're all running strong. Bought a Diva cup, but couldn't really get the hang of it.
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I've had a Diva Cup for 2 years. I was leery of them before I just took the plunge and gave them a chance.
In my very specific case, I'm so crampy, have bowel issues, and super heavy (I've over filled the cup if I don't empy every 4-6 hours) during the first 36 hours, that I get a nice thick rag for those two days, and then Diva the rest of my cycle (mine lasts 6 days.)
I don't even change the rag, really. I just fold it in different ways so the collection section of cloth hasn't been used. Toss in laundry end of day two, and move on to Diva Cup.
For sex, I just put a towel down, have my partner wear a condom for "easy clean up", and consider it an optimal way to "hurry" my period along. I've noticed I shave a day off of bleeding cycle length from a couple bouts of intercourse.
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Menopause, I tell you. Best thing ever, just wait; you'll see.
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I learned about the Diva cup here - very pleased with it. Great product.
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(I've over filled the cup if I don't empy every 4-6 hours)
Bless you, Mesmoiselle! This is me, too! I've never met anyone else with this. My whole body and my period are entirely comfortable all month long -including during my period- no health issues, etc, but the vast amount of blood that falls out of me 1-2 days a month, oh my! The funny thing with the cup is that it has measurement lines. That's what confirmed for me that I was indeed bleeding way more than typical, 'cuz I was dumping like I was saving myself from a leaky boat.
The DivaCup conveniently holds one full ounce of menstrual flow (30 ml). As the average woman only flows approximately 1 to 2 ounces (30-60 ml) per cycle, The DivaCup is the ideal menstrual solution...
In a randomly selected group of premenopausal women, the most common amount of menstrual flow (measured in a laboratory from all collected tampons and pads) was about two tablespoons (30 ml) in a whole period (1;2). However the amount of flow was highly variable—it ranged from a spot to over two cups (540 ml) in one period!
So, days transitioning to and from the big P I use one of four cloth pads that I bought decades ago. The cloth pad works fine if I bleed in slow motion, as I do on those transition days, but with Great Gushes, the blood pools on top of the cloth then spills over. So for two days a month I use the DivaCup, with a disposable pad (because those are the only things that will soak up as much blood as I gush) 24/7 as back up.
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(I've over filled the cup if I don't empy every 4-6 hours)
Bless you, Mesmoiselle! This is me, too! I've never met anyone else with this. My whole body and my period are entirely comfortable all month long -including during my period- no health issues, etc, but the vast amount of blood that falls out of me 1-2 days a month, oh my! The funny thing with the cup is that it has measurement lines. That's what confirmed for me that I was indeed bleeding way more than typical, 'cuz I was dumping like I was saving myself from a leaky boat.
My period has changed over the 15 years I've had it. Last 2-3 years I've had it, it's hardcore 2 days, normal on the 3rd day, stops entirely the 4th day, comes back the 6th, and spots all 6th with occasional 7ths. But the cramping is way better than it used to be when I was younger. It used to be heating pads and nausea all the way. Now that only happens to me maybe twice a year instead of every time.
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My "alternative" is a Mirena IUD. With the ACA it was free. No periods, just get it replaced every five years.
I know, this won't work for anyone who doesn't want to be on (1) hormonal (2) birth control. I fucking love it, though. That's even though the insertion is possibly the worst pain I have ever experienced. (note: never been pregnant)
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Menstrual cup all the way. I'll honestly never go back. I got it when I was going through a "trash reduction" phase, but it's seriously increased my happiness on my period tenfold. I love it. It's like a little pope hat for my lady bits.
My "alternative" is a Mirena IUD. With the ACA it was free. No periods, just get it replaced every five years.
I know, this won't work for anyone who doesn't want to be on (1) hormonal (2) birth control. I fucking love it, though. That's even though the insertion is possibly the worst pain I have ever experienced. (note: never been pregnant)
I was too afraid of the insertion and the possibility of it ripping through my uterine wall to go for an IUD. I got the arm implant that often has the same effect on reducing periods entirely, but I just end up spotting all the damn time. A menstrual cup is awesome for this uncertainty because I can leave it in all day and only bother with it when I wake up and when I get home from work. It's perfectly comfortable on days I don't end up bleeding, which is a huge bonus.
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Menstrual cup...It's like a little pope hat for my lady bits.
rotflmao! do you write jingles for a living!? oh, I am so going to enjoy my next period all that much more!
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Menstrual cup...It's like a little pope hat for my lady bits.
rotflmao! do you write jingles for a living!? oh, I am so going to enjoy my next period all that much more!
Have a papal period. Lunette
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+1 for Lunette cup.
Took a couple of cycles to get the hang of it, but now it's great.
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Since we’re already in the toilet today on the non-flushing thread, it might be a good time for this. Guys, if your squeamish about menstruation leave this thread now….you’ve been warned.
I think we've had so many of these threads over the years that if we're not desensitised to it now then we never will be!
There's enough guys here with wives, daughters, nieces that we've heard it all before anyway LOL.
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+1 for the Mirena - I never noticed when I hit menopause, we had to test hormone levels to confirm. But I had had a baby so insertion/removal was not a problem.
I got it because I was having super heavy flow (gushers) and this was newish. Turns out I had adenomyosis - the smooth muscles were not clamping properly on the blood vessels, so of course I was bleeding more. Really it was not a "period" in the true sense of sloughing off the uterine lining, I was actually bleeding from vessels that should not have been bleeding. I was at the point of the Mirena or a hysterectomy, and I do try to avoid major surgery. What a blessing.
So others, if you are having heavy flow and that is new, you could have endometriosis or adenomyosis - have you told your ob/gyn?
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I call my periods "crimson tsunamis" so a Diva cup is out. This month, however, hasn't been too bad. I'm 48, so menopause can't come soon enough for me!
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I use pads, always brand, from Aldi. Never liked tampons.
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So others, if you are having heavy flow and that is new, you could have endometriosis or adenomyosis - have you told your ob/gyn?
I don't think I have anything, only because I have no symptoms besides heavy flow for 1-2 days. No cramps, no discomfort, no pain, no bloating, nothing.
An interesting shift was with my diet. I used to have all sorts of INSANE symptoms -way beyond discomfort, other weird physical changes- and then I completely changed my nutrition, and ::bingo:: every symptom was gone. Just the day of gush remained.
I actually LOVE my period, and already feel sad about it going away with menopause :( I definitely don't want it gone sooner. I [heart] menstruation.
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I still use tampons and sanitary napkins and buy them in bulk, on sale, and with coupons (I have enough to last most of 2015). However I think I'm going to look into the menstrual cup because it sounds much more efficient.
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I started with a Diva cup but found it impossible so switched to the LadyCup (smaller and somewhat squishier). I had a fairly long learning curve but now I love it and once I got the hang of it, the Diva cup was no longer a problem either.
I have fairly low flow so the thing I like best is that, when I am travelling or in an inconvenient situation, I can just leave it. I, very occasionally, have gone 36 hours with no mishap or discomfort (or odor). Also, pap tests were much less uncomfortable after I began using a menstrual cup.
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Another diva cupper here! Or as DH calls it, the vagina bucket.
I had fit issues until I turned it inside out. Now its practically a custom fit.
I also have some pretty cloth pads from Pink Lemonade Pads on etsy. I've had them for 4 years now and they are great for light days and back up.
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When I started using the cup (first a Keeper, later the Diva), I could NOT make it happen, not before kid, not after kid. I was all pushing and prodding and rooting around, lol. One day, a friend of mine who also used one said she needed to dump her cup (because we're open about such things), went into the bathroom, and came out like 30 seconds later, done. I was stunned. What the?!? She was confused as to why I was stunned, and asked what the heck happens to me in the same process.
Once in a while it pops in beautifully; most of the time I'm still poking, prodding, twisting, rooting for up to two minutes to get it placed properly and completely unfolded. It's a whole event for me. I did read a couple of helpful tips on the DivaCup webpage -fold the cup, squat, go in at a particular angle, turn it a couple of times. Those helped a lot, but it's still silly. Wetting the cup in warm water also helps me.
The other aspect to the cup I don't love -besides it not holding more than a couple of hours of my profuse bleeding at a time and being difficult for me to place- is public washrooms, or any washroom in which the sink is far from the toilet. When I use the cup, my hand gets very bloody. I don't mind that at all, but I totally mind being stuck in a cubicle with a bloody hand, and also not being able to wet the cup for easier insertion... Or in NZ, when some washrooms had the sink in a room separate from the toilet room. Tricky, potentially embarrassing.
And I still use it, go figure! I do like it infinitely better than pads. I prefer tampons, but I choose the cup for environmental reasons and to preserve plumbing systems.
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Diva Cup is seriously amazing! They used to recommend that you could keep it for up to 7 years or so, but then changed the packaging to a year at a time. It's medical grade silicone, clean it well and you can use it for years. Mine is going on 5 years.
Although now I'm pregnant so I understand I'll be selecting a new size after the baby is born.
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I love my diva cup. I use a cloth liner as backup, just because it makes me more confident. I have some regular fem products left from before I made the switch, so I decided to use some of them up last month. The smell almost made me gag. I never realized how bad pads smell until I stopped using them.
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I tried the Diva cup this year, I really like it, but I have a hard time emptying my bladder with it-maybe I need to try to adjust it higher. I am allergic to the super absorbent commercial pads. The thicker pads are ok. I also had a Mirena IUD and I loved it! I am nearing peri-menopause (weird bleeding patterns) and I think maybe I will go get another.
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I'm planning on switching to the Diva Cup...I haven't made the plunge yet because I discovered the Diva Cup RIGHT after there was a big sale on my favorite brand of tampons, so I bought about half-a-year's supply!
So for now I use tampons. I actually am very picky about my tampons - I use OBs, because they are most agreeable with my vagina. However, to save money, I wrap my used tampons in phone book pages rather than TP to save money. Quite possibly one of the most ridiculous things ever, but I feel like it puts something useless (a phonebook) to use, so it's not so bad! :)
Also, I love the response about menopause. Hey guys, menopause is SUPER mustachian! :)
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Another DivaCup fan here! I've been using mine for... 7? 8? years and it's still going strong. I'm not sure why they would tell you to replace it every year, except to boost their sales.
The only issue I have is that I can't use it overnight without leaking, at least when my period is heavy. So I use an o.b. tampon each night for sleeping, then put the DivaCup back in when I get up.
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I've tried a cup several times and I could never get it to work for me. Either there's so much suction it hurts, or not enough suction. The one month I really tried, over and over again, and it actually made my cramps worse than they have been since I was a teenager.
Plus I had a procedure done a few years ago, and eve since then my flow has been bananas (not literally bananas, but so heavy for a few days). I got checked out, doc says there's nothing wrong, so I just deal with it.
I used to use OBs exclusively, but the last few years, I just can't stand the feeling of tampons anymore. Plus they fill up so fast, it's like what's the point. So I am on disposable pads now, because I don't have any good alternatives at the moment (don't have my own washing machine for reusables). I guess on heavy days I go through 4-6 overnight pads. Good times.
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An aside: For everyone with super heavy flow while otherwise being entirely healthy, my favourite tip has been to take one ibuprofen at the start of the heavy flow. It reduces it amazingly!
Whenever flow is heavy, start taking ibuprofen, the over-the-counter anti-prostaglandin, in a dose of one 200mg tablet every 4-6 hours while you are awake. This therapy decreases flow by 25-30% and will also help with menstrual cycle-like cramps (7). - See more at: http://www.cemcor.ubc.ca/resources/very-heavy-menstrual-flow#sthash.BiAOp1g5.dpuf
That and more tips re: fluids, salts, etc, here: http://www.cemcor.ubc.ca/resources/very-heavy-menstrual-flow
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+1 for the Mirena - I never noticed when I hit menopause, we had to test hormone levels to confirm. But I had had a baby so insertion/removal was not a problem.
I got it because I was having super heavy flow (gushers) and this was newish. Turns out I had adenomyosis - the smooth muscles were not clamping properly on the blood vessels, so of course I was bleeding more. Really it was not a "period" in the true sense of sloughing off the uterine lining, I was actually bleeding from vessels that should not have been bleeding. I was at the point of the Mirena or a hysterectomy, and I do try to avoid major surgery. What a blessing.
So others, if you are having heavy flow and that is new, you could have endometriosis or adenomyosis - have you told your ob/gyn?
I have had prolonged bleeding and heavy bleeding for about a year now. Paps came back normal, blood work fine (except iron levels, obviously), pelvic exam shows nothing, ultrasound clear. I had a hysterosonogram a week ago and am waiting on the results of that.
My options are likely going to be birth control (pill or nuva ring), IUD, endometrial ablasion, and hysterectomy - in that order. Hopefully just the birth control or IUD will resolve things, as I also want to avoid any surgery. If I end up on BC, I am going to start using it without the weekly break to skip my period altogether. I had a tubal ligation two years ago and my period is totally useless to me.
In the meantime, I use a Diva Cup. Because I bleed heavily, I do also use a pad as back up for the first couple of days. I will never go back to tampons. As much as I hate the messy feeling of using pads, I hate the thought of using tampons more.
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Sidebar:
I have no experience with cups (I have a Mirena), but I think they sound awesome. I'd like to encourage my 11-year-old daughter to give them a try when the time comes. Any suggestions? I thought maybe could get one for myself so that I could figure it out first and give her better information. I imagine the initial cost for two would be worth it if she can avoid a lifetime of disposables.
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I bought reusable pads, called "Mama Cloth" on Etsy. They just got in last month so I haven't tried them yet, but I plan to wash them like I do my son's cloth diapers.
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I have no experience with cups (I have a Mirena), but I think they sound awesome. I'd like to encourage my 11-year-old daughter to give them a try when the time comes. Any suggestions? I thought maybe could get one for myself so that I could figure it out first and give her better information.
Oh, great idea!
I could see they might be an overwhelming contraption to an 11 year old girl. But, a few ideas:
1. They come in at least two sizes: "before vaginal childbirth", "after vaginal childbirth", so make sure you get the right one.
2. If I were doing this for a daughter, I would get one of each of at least three kinds. Not Mustachian, but I would be more concerned with letting her try out various ones for comfort than in saving the difference and risking putting her off altogether by inadvertently selecting one that happens to be less comfy for her.
3. I would Google this, and also ask the companies themselves, for more tips for girls.
4. Ya, I would get one for you, too and try it out before starting her on it so you have some first-hand info for her. Some might be horrified by this thought, but personally, I'd be entirely comfortable even letting her try various kinds and then, after a wash, mom taking on one she didn't like.
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Plus I had a procedure done a few years ago, and eve since then my flow has been bananas (not literally bananas
HA HA HA
What a mustachian procedure that would be though. Free bananas!
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Plus I had a procedure done a few years ago, and eve since then my flow has been bananas (not literally bananas
HA HA HA
What a mustachian procedure that would be though. Free bananas!
i know right?!
get on a webcam and FIRE is right around the corner!
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Ok, maybe I'm the only one with this problem... but my flow is all over the place. One month it will be just light spotting, I won't even need to use a pad and have no cramping then other months I'll go through 10 to 12 heavy flow pads and cramping so bad I can't move. I've actually been so bad a few times I've had to call in sick to work.
I've never had any successes with tampons - either not enough flow to bother or so much I have to change the tampons every hour (if they'll even stay in, usually they just fall out).
Anyway, the crazy fluctuation mean I'm leery to try anything but pads. Can't do reusable cause I currently don't have a washer/dryer.
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Anyway, the crazy fluctuation mean I'm leery to try anything but pads. Can't do reusable cause I currently don't have a washer/dryer.
A cup is excellent for crazy fluctuation! Heavy flow (with a back-up pad, disposable in your case), light flow, no flow. Works great. You just empty it more or less often as needed.
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Sidebar:
...I'd like to encourage my 11-year-old daughter to give them a try when the time comes. Any suggestions?
Well, just letting her know the option exists is a great start! They never even mentioned cups in my sex ed classes. I didn't know how long they'd been around until I bought mine a year ago and did a bunch of research online. I'm sure if you use one yourself, that will really help her out.
I believe the smallest cups in the US are made by Lunette ($35-45), and that would probably be a good one to start with (I am not a medical professional). I am petite at 5'3"/115 lb and that is what I use. However, if she is only a preteen when she starts, she might have trouble figuring out the insertion and feeling comfortable really getting her hands in there. I suspect she may even struggle figuring out her internal size if her pelvic bones are still moving during puberty. Everyone's bits are different :)
I would check out the sizing charts here: http://menstrual-cups.livejournal.com to get an idea of what different brands exist and how large they are for both of you.
Anyway, the crazy fluctuation mean I'm leery to try anything but pads. Can't do reusable cause I currently don't have a washer/dryer.
A cup is excellent for crazy fluctuation! Heavy flow (with a back-up pad, disposable in your case), light flow, no flow. Works great. You just empty it more or less often as needed.
That's exactly why I love my cup, too. It doesn't matter if you bleed or not, it's very comfortable to wear 12 hours straight. There's no chaffing like tampons can have when your flow is too light. The only unpredictable thing with the cup is that it can touch your cervix if you insert it high and your cervix drops low when you are on your period. This has only happened to me twice, and it caused back aches and intense nausea after about 15 minutes of inserting my cup. I just take it out and re-insert it, or use another method for the day if I'm having trouble placing it. It's easy to forget that your cervix and vaginal canal are moving around and punching yourself in the cervix is not a fun idea.
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I'll have to check out the cup then! Thanks!
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I opened and commented on this thread it because it said "for Women only" -- and I'm. That. Guy.
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Just wanted to mention cloth pantiliners for every day use.
I bought some from Etsy (the brand was MamaBear) and they're very comfortable. Or you can sew your own if you're handy. I bought a 10-pack for about $25 + shipping. Luckily I had an Etsy gift card so my own investment was just to cover the shipping. I think are a good deal. They'll last for years and I won't have to purchase store-made disposable pantiliners again.
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Another vote here for the DivaCup...one of the side benefits that I like, is that after 2 kids; well, I can be a little leaky.
With the cup inserted, my bladder gets better support and the leaks are non-existent. Awesome side effect!
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I use the instead soft cup. It's disposable. Packaging says 12 hours between changing, but I have to do it more often my first couple of days. I clean it and reuse it during the week, and when my period is up, I chuck it. I get a box of 16, I think, for about five bucks. Lasts more than a year. I love them.
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I would check out the sizing charts here: http://menstrual-cups.livejournal.com to get an idea of what different brands exist and how large they are for both of you.
Here's a link to a super useful size comparison chart: http://sizecharts.livejournal.com/
The Meluna Shorty Small is the shortest available in length and diameter.
I'm a huge menstrual cup fan! The Diva cup is the one most widely available in stores, so many people start with that and write off all menstural cups because they had a bad experience. I tell all my girlfriends to try a few different cups before deciding they aren't going to work out. Also, learn your anatomy :) What parts of the cup do you like so you can iterate on the next one you purchase? Small differences in size, width, softness, stems, hole placement, and shape will make or break it.
I have been using my Sckoon large for a year. It fit everything I was looking for in softness, shape, hole placement, capacity, and size. My previous two tries were a Lunette and a Meluna Mini Medium. It may not seem Mustashian to purchase three cups, but believe it or not, there's a market for used menstrual cups: http://mc-sales.livejournal.com/
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Can't do reusable cause I currently don't have a washer/dryer.
p.s. I use disposable as back-up to the cup on heavy days only because my cloth ones pool vs absorb that phase, but I do use cloth on light/transition days. So, I use disposable for flow reasons, but in terms of washing cloth pads, hand wash is just fine. They're small, too, so take up little space in hang-drying. On a sunny day, I put mine in a sunbeam -the sunlight bleaches any stain out of the light-coloured pads. Using my flow-based combo, overall I end up using 2-4 cloth "liners" (thin, shorter pads) in a month, so not much work/space to clean by hand.
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Ever since I got on the pill I have just skipped the sugar pills and not had a "period" (i.e. withdrawal bleeding). That has been such an enormous improvement in quality of life! The one big bummer about trying to get pregnant was going off the pill and getting a period again.
With Obamacare now my pills are free so that is about as Mustachian as you can get. :)
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Ever since I got on the pill I have just skipped the sugar pills and not had a "period" (i.e. withdrawal bleeding). That has been such an enormous improvement in quality of life! The one big bummer about trying to get pregnant was going off the pill and getting a period again.
With Obamacare now my pills are free so that is about as Mustachian as you can get. :)
That's the way to go for sure! I was on the depo needle for five years while searching for a doctor to do my tubal, and that was a nice side effect :)
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I have a Mirena IUD (hormonal), and I am one of very fortunate women that has no periods at all on it - so I spend $0 on menstrual products and have for 12 years. Most women report lighter periods, so this would still save money.
If I had periods, I would try the menstrual cup for sure.
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I use a combo of Diva Cup plus cloth pads. I bought the first pack of pads, then decided that was silly and made the rest from scrap flannel. I still have one small pack of disposable pads that I bought last year at some point. I just keep one or 2 in my purse and locker and work, just in case. The cloth ones are so much more comfortable. I usually handwash them in the shower and hang them to dry so they take very little energy.
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Tampons. Never noticed any bleaching or other strange effect.
Question to the cup users: Do you only use it at home or also while at work or travelling? If the latter is the case, how do you find opportunity to clean it?
On a related note, this:
http://www.mea.gov.in/bilateral-documents.htm?dtl/23081/One+mans+mission+to+improve+to+womens+lives
http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2012/jan/22/sanitary-towels-india-cheap-manufacture
is an awesome story. And it certainly makes you appreaciate the wide range of products in developed countries.
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Question to the cup users: Do you only use it at home or also while at work or travelling? If the latter is the case, how do you find opportunity to clean it?
Everywhere. I spoke to my tricky/non-ideal experiences upthread but I still use it everywhere. Trickiest: outhouses at Scouts camps, a stall in a market in Mexico with no sink anywhere in sight, and countries with sink in a room separate from a toilet. If I have a sink in the same room as the toilet, I'm all set. Short of that, argh. But part of that is because of the level of flow I have: far more than average. Thus, I'm at risk of exiting a stall looking like I've just killed someone.
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Tampons. Never noticed any bleaching or other strange effect.
Question to the cup users: Do you only use it at home or also while at work or travelling? If the latter is the case, how do you find opportunity to clean it?
It's actually really easy! I can leave it in for 12 hours or so, and that means I most likely won't need to clean it while I'm out and about. If needed I can empty it and wipe it out with toilet paper and then give it a good clean once I'm at home or in my hotel room.
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Ever since I got on the pill I have just skipped the sugar pills and not had a "period" (i.e. withdrawal bleeding). That has been such an enormous improvement in quality of life! The one big bummer about trying to get pregnant was going off the pill and getting a period again.
With Obamacare now my pills are free so that is about as Mustachian as you can get. :)
Same here. I actually started doing this for mood-stabilization, but the no-periods part is sweet! And now with the ACA, it's free!
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I'm another disposable SoftCup fan and I wear them longer than indicated as suggested above. I'm also on the birth control that only gives you a period once every three months.
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Question to the cup users: Do you only use it at home or also while at work or travelling? If the latter is the case, how do you find opportunity to clean it?
It's absolutely fantastic while traveling (I was on the camino and did not want to carry anything I didn't absolutely have to) . One trick I use to is cleaning it while I am showering.
At work I will often use the disabled toilet (only one person on our floor has mobility issues at the moment but I still aim to be as quick as possible, just in case) as it has a sink for quick washing and warm water.
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Ever since I got on the pill I have just skipped the sugar pills and not had a "period" (i.e. withdrawal bleeding). That has been such an enormous improvement in quality of life! The one big bummer about trying to get pregnant was going off the pill and getting a period again.
With Obamacare now my pills are free so that is about as Mustachian as you can get. :)
Same here. I actually started doing this for mood-stabilization, but the no-periods part is sweet! And now with the ACA, it's free!
I don't do this regularly, but I did this month because Mexico road trip was that week. I'm pretty sure my mood swings got worse, and my breasts have been so tender since I skipped that week. :(
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I have been using and reusing Cloth Pads since 2004, I like them. If I had a heavier flow I would try the cup, but not worth it for me.
I sew and I used to make and sell them, pretty easy and lots of free tutorials online for anyone interested in it, You kind of need to make a few diff. ones to see which ones you really like, but if you can get away with a washcloth, that is awesome and cheap!!
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I have a Keeper cup and sometimes use tampons, but my favorites are the Instead Softcups. An Instead Softcup fits like a diapraghm (higher up than the Keeper) and can be worn during sex. It's more comfortable, easier to empty, and easier to insert than the Keeper cup. The only drawback is that they're disposable (you can use one cup per period), and somewhat pricey. I wish there was a permanently reusable version of the Insteads available. But even with this drawback, I consistently use the Insteads over the Keeper. For me, using them is almost like not having my period.