Medium Me Luna Sport in Pretty Purple! [UPDATE]

Hello Me Luna!!

Meet my new friend, Me Luna. I shall call her Luna for short. :)

I got her today in the mail and I quickly realized that she is way to small to use for my entire cycle. She will be a great last-day-of-my-cycle cup. I also usually wear my cup an additional day after my period to be safe. 

I took Luna on a dry run this afternoon and she was so comfortable! I even went to the gym while wearing her!! This has been an issue for me. I've been scared to wear a cup to my gym because I was terrified it'd pop out!! Well, to my disbelief, I literally forgot I had Luna in! I was surprised. Squats & lunges and no issues at all. Woohoo!! 

So, specifically about Luna... Lets start with the packaging. It's very simple. A thick plastic bag with the above photographed items. Very simple instructions, photos of all the different colors Me Luna offers, Luna, and the pouch. I must say that the pouch is my favorite. In fact, My Diva and Luna now live in the pouch. 

I got the Sport variety which is the label which identifies the stiffness. I believe it is stiffer than the Classic. It is so different than my soft Diva... Along with the small size (compared to my size 2 Diva) and the stiffness I was worried it'd be hard to fold but it wasn't! I only have had my Diva this whole time so I feel like I have had my eyes opened to a whole other world!

Let's talk ring grip... I am still unsure about the ring grip. This isn't a complaint about the product, I am simply not used to it. Since the cup is a smaller size, it sits up higher than my long Diva, and the ring grip isn't the easiest for me to fetch. I found myself bearing down to get it as low as possible so I could coax it out with the ring. Please remember, this was during a dry run... things tend to be a lot more pliable during "the big show".

I have to say that my favorite option Me Luna offers is the pretty colors. I know, it seems trivial, but it's important to me! I like pretty things. Especially things that make not-so-pretty-things a little more pretty. We are women. This will be my favorite cup simply because it's purple. LOL!!

Overall, I'd give this cup 6 out of 10 stars. It is not the ideal size for me but that's my fault, not Luna's. 

I am expecting more little gifts to be coming in the mail in the next couple of weeks. I will let y'all know what I think once I open them. I also plan on doing a 6 month review once I get a good feel for the products.

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Coming soon: Facebook page

[UPDATE]

After using the cup for a couple days I realize that I prefer silicone cups to TPE. I just prefer the overall feel to silicone.

After further use, I would give the MeLuna Sport (M) 5 out of 10 stars. The thing that lowered the score for me was the TPE (material it's made from. I don't really care for it and much prefer silicone and especially latex.

Thanks for reading!

xo S

Pros and Cons: Diva Cup

I'm going to lay it out, plain and simple.

PROS:

• No more tampons...
• That means: no more cotton up your vaj, drying you out. 
• I realized, after using my Diva, that tampons were actually what was causing my cramps. Any menstrual cup would alleviate my cramps because the evil tampons were causing them. 
• No more leaks! Seriously. No leaks!
• You know that big "gluuuggg" you feel when you know your tampon is about to gush out? No more of that. I mean, you can have leaks if you don't pay attention to your cycle but that is only if you let your cup overflow or you don't attain a proper seal. 
• No more re-stocking. Which translates to: never being without. No more going to the cabinet and having that "oh shit" moment and having to run to the store to get more disposables. 
• I know I have done that a ton of times. Even having to go straight to the bathroom in the store to use tampons I've just purchased. Now I keep my cup in my purse and it is, literally, always with me. I am never caught unprepared. 
• New found knowledge & passion for my period! I don't know about you, but I have been diving into research since my first successful cycle using my cup. I have gained so much knowledge and now I look forward to my period, and pulling out my little friend who has been waiting in my purse for weeks. :) It sounds stupid, and "looking forward to" might be stretching it a little... but you know what I'm trying to say. 
• Comfort! It may look large but the Diva Cup is made of a soft silicone and once inserted, you can't even feel it. When silicone warms with your body, and the seal is in tact, it forms and moves with your body. 
• Part of the club! I feel like I've been let in on a secret. 
• You are eliminating a lot of trash/waste. 'Nuff said.
• You are not pumping unnatural chemicals into your most precious, sensitive parts. :) Do me a favor... just look it up. Look at what those popular disposable menstrual products have in them. It kills me that I never did my research before. 
• It's clean! Contrary to popular (uneducated) opinion, it is very much cleaner than tampons and especially pads. 

Honest truth: All of my pros are not necessarily directly pros for the Diva Cup as a brand. They are menstrual cup specific. I have not tried any other brands so I can't really gauge what is positive exactly about the Diva Cup. Once I try out other brands, hopefully soon, I will do a more brand specific blog.

CONS:

• Their marketing angle. This is Diva Cup specific. I think their packaging, website, and pouch is geared towards little girls. It is so frilly. I don't like that. I mean, I keep my cup in it's pouch and I find it useful but I do not like the design. This is not something that would keep me from buying the product. Just a minor gripe.
• This goddamn pin. Again, am I 12? I will never stop hating the pin. I think it's stupid. Please, someone, give me a useful suggestion as to what the eff to do with this pin. Right now, it sits in a drawer and when I come across it I shake my head. I guess another question is... why haven't I thrown it away or given it away? I don't tend to throw non-garbage things away. I try to find a use for them... Again, this is Diva Cup specific. I don't see any other brands giving a stupid, childish pin as a cracker jack prize.
• It has a major learning curve. This is not brand specific. This is with all cups. It is similar to but very different than inserting a tampon.

Overall, I'd give The Diva Cup 6 out of 10 stars. This might change after trying other brands. 

Thanks for reading! 

xo - S

Every relationship has a downside.

As we all know... every relationship has a downside. You know. The first time you see your lover without makeup. They haven't brushed their teeth. The first time they get angry at you...

Well, I am having that moment with Diva. I am seeing a side to her that I don't really appreciate. Most of it goes back to this stupid pin they give you with your purchase. I don't know why it bugs me so much. A stupid flower pin that says Diva. Who are they marketing to? I know all different types of women use a menstrual cup but why does their marketing have to be so fru fru? <--- not sure that's a word/phrase but it seems fitting. Now that I'm diving into research I feel like Diva Cup is the McDonald's of menstrual cups. That bugs me. I don't regret buying a Diva Cup, I think it's a fabulous product but I am bothered by their corporate approach on marketing.

Another thing... Why are you telling your consumers that the product only lasts one year? The business of menstrual cups isn't highly profitable, I get that, but where is your customer loyalty? Where is your loyalty to the environment? I'm no scientist, but I have a feeling that replacing your cup every year is harmful to the environment. I'm pretty sure that silicone isn't biodegradable. I have no plans of replacing my cup in a year. I think their sole purpose is to have returning customers and I think it stinks. I do not like huge monster corporations. I think those monsters kill the small little companies with great values and customer loyalty.

Let me get this clear.... I'm not breaking up with Diva. I just am past the honeymoon phase and am seeing a side to her that I don't like so much. I wish I had dated more before diving into this serious relationship.

So that's what's coming... I am going to start seeing other people to see if this is the relationship for me. I hope Diva understands. :)

Thanks for reading! 

xo - S

Why I fell in love with my menstrual cup

Seems strange, right? Love for an inanimate object? Well, it's true...

I love my Diva Cup because...

1. No leaks!!! Seriously! No leaks. I have had at least one leak a day while using tampons because I have a heavy flow. Often times I have to use super plus tampons AND pads! Ugh! No leaks with my magic cup!
2. Comfort! Once it's in, you can't really feel it. Since the product is made of silicone, once it warms up it molds itself to the shape of your body. It's pretty amazing.
3. Always prepared! I keep my Diva Cup in it's cute little pouch, in my purse. It is, literally, always with me. If my period surprises me I am never unprepared. 
4. No re-stocking! No more going to the store to purchase the Super Plus tampons for my "super big vagina". Or at least that's what I think people think when I buy the Super Plus tampons. :) 
5. No more cramps! No joke. I used to be bed-ridden because of my painful cramps. At least one day during my period I used to be quite literally in bed. Cannot lift anything, cannot vacuum, cannot work. All because I would bleed so heavily and have painful cramps! Not a great way to live. So, no cramps should be listed more than once.
6. I'm in on the secret! This highly protected secret... a menstrual cup! How did they keep it a secret for all these years? Did the tampon and pad companies pay to have it buried? I feel so sad that I've had 14 years of periods without a menstrual cup!

Here's the thing. I am in love with my Diva Cup. I hope everyone at least gives a menstrual cup a shot <-- no pun intended. Ew! LOL But, really. Give it a try because aside from my reasons I love my menstrual cup there are significant health benefits to using a cup instead of tampons or pads. I wish I had daughters to share the info with!

Thanks for reading! 

xo - S

Hi Diva Cup. Be kind.

My first entry left you with a cliff hanger. I went to the store and purchased my Diva Cup (& Wash).... Let's start from there.

I was in my small town grocery store. Completely confused and unsure. It seemed like a pretty steep purchase ($29.99 + $9.99 for the Wash) with a zero return policy. I live on a very tight budget and just felt like I was about to take a major plunge... and plunge, I did!

With my Diva Cup in my brown paper bag, I smuggle it upstairs so my husband doesn't see it. Why? Because he would NEVER get it! I didn't want to have that conversation when I didn't even know the happs. 
I opened the package. What am I getting myself into?! Can I do this?
I read the instructions. Ummm okay. I think I can do this...
I looked at the pin. Really? A freakin' pin? This is lame.
I looked at the cute little pouch. I love the pouch!
I picked up the cup. Squishy! The circumference is a little daunting. Thankfully it's so bendy. I can't wait to give this a go. I mean, it better work since I paid $40.00 for this experiment! 

I had to give it a go, even though it wasn't that time of the month. So, in the bathroom I go... what was that fold again? Oh! The "C Fold" that one was easy to remember! Here's the thing. It is quite tricky to get the thing to pop open once it's in. It took some adjusting and readjusting to get it right. Once it was in correctly I felt like dancing. I felt like I had accomplished something. I left it in an hour and had a little discomfort. 

I was so excited to start my period!!! I want to try my new toy for real. I'm cracked.

Thanks for reading! 

xo - S

Secret Cult Society. Should We Have a Secret Handshake?

You period. My period. Every woman's period. We all go through it and we've been going through it for hundreds of years. It shouldn't be considered gross. We shouldn't be so hushed about it!

When you're a young girl and you start your period, your mother gives you two choices. Pads. Tampons. Which, actually for me, tampons were not an offered choice... 
for all the reasons that are untrue: it is an immodest choice, you will no longer be a virgin, etc. Tampons were not even something found in my house. I should mention that when I started my period I was completely alone. My mother and grandmother were not the greatest communicators. It was most definitely a hushed subject. Shameful and gross.

I am hoping to make this blog an open line of conversation... I am so hopeful to see the amount of young women opening up these lines of communication. It seems so different than when I was young(er).

Thanks for reading! 

xo - S

Hello. Get to know me and my mission for this blog...

Hello Internet World...

I am new to this. Opening up to "the world". 
I have something I want to discuss... my, your, our PERIOD! My journey.

Well, I started my period later than most. I was 16 and a half! I distinctly remember feeling left out of the woman club. It was odd. Anyway, I digress. 

I (and my sister, mother, grandmother etc.) have always had a very painful period. A very heavy flow, terrible cramps, and nasty headaches. I started using pads in the very beginning because when I tried tampons for the first time it hurt like HELL. Eventually, I switched to tampons when I was 17 or 18 and that's what I have been using since then. Of course I had brief hiatuses when I had my babies... whatta relief! 

My whole mission for this blog is to share the newest revelation I had in June. I was watching Mtv (I'm not too old, trust me!) and on Girl Code they mentioned a Diva Cup. I was all, WTF is a Diva Cup??? Google! I was disgusted and intrigued at the same time and started researching... I was elbow deep in several websites and became more intrigued than disgusted. I watched YouTube videos, read blogs, reviews... you get the picture. 

While on the Diva Cup website I found out that the grocery store five seconds from my house sold it. Bonus for me because I'm still not sold on purchasing things off the internet. Don't judge! Well, I drove that day and bought it and that's when the obsession started...

Thanks for reading! 

xo - S