WARNING! GRAPHIC DETAILS TO FOLLOW. If you aren't interested about hearing the intricacies of my period then this is your cue to continue browsing the internet elsewhere. In this post I would like to expand the reproductive topic of the last post and explain how the Paragard has ruined my periods but the Diva Cup has saved my life.
I knew that getting the Paragard put in was going to hurt. I haven't had any kids so they had to do some stretching to get it in position. Luckily, I was heavily sedated so all I remember of that day is some quick sharp pain and some sporadic cramps. The next day was a different story. I must have lost half of my tooth enamel from clenching my teeth all day. The medicine was not helping and I actually thought that punching the demon they left in my uterus might be an improvement over the "cramps". The pain slowly died down over the next few weeks and I got to enjoy a week of peace before my period came. *insert horror flick music here* It was a nightmare. There was blood everywhere. I had no idea how to handle it and I ended up using a super tampon and a heavy flow pad in combination which I still managed to leak through. I remembered reading somewhere that the Paragard needed time to settle and that the pain and bleeding were supposed to improve over time. That was when the Demon-gard got his 6 month notice. If things didn't dramatically change I was going to cut it out myself.
Until that deadline I had to come up with a way to cope with the bleeding so I could actually function as a human during the now 8 full days of my period. I knew that I would have to bite the bullet and buy a menstrual cup which is basically a little egg shaped cup that you leave in you vagina for a few hours before emptying it and putting it in again. I was going to order this cup but I procrastinated and it wouldn't make it in time for my next period so I went to the Health Food Center and bought the Diva Cup because I had seen them there before. I had always swore to myself I would never use a cup because it would be gross and honestly it kind of is. You have to be very comfortable with your vagina because if you don't get it around your cervix it will leak. This is easy for me because I can reach mine with a finger but not all people can. They make different sizes for this exact reason. Another aspect of the cup that took some getting used to was the empty/reinsert situation. Feminine travel wipes are my new best friend because you have to make sure the rim is clean before you put it back in (it affects the suction if it's not clean).
That being said, I will still never ever use a tampon or pad again. This thing is great! My periods have improved steadily, I'm back to 5 days only one of which is super heavy, but the first month I used it I was emptying the cup every 2 hours which means I passed the "normal" amount of blood loss for an entire period in a single day. The cup can be left in for 10 hours and carries no risk of toxic shock syndrome which means that someone with a normal flow would have to empty the cup about twice a day. I have literally forgotten that I was even on my period a couple of times. It's a great choice for the environmentally conscious as the cup can last for years without replacing so there is only a tiny amount of waste involved. Also, there are no harsh chemicals going into your body (side note: most tampons and pads are bleached...not so good for sensitive areas). If you want more information just drop me a comment I'll be happy to answer any questions.
"If men
could menstruate ... clearly, menstruation would become an enviable,
boast-worthy, masculine event: Men would brag about how long and how
much...." - Gloria Steinem
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