I had to explain to my elderly male GP what a mensural cup was

[Nosig]

With hand gestures.

His reply?

“Well personally I would advise against putting anything like that inside yourself for any length of time it doesn’t sound very comfortable”

Wtf fella?

How elderly is this GP?

@NewModelArmyMayhem18

I was surprised when I had to explain to my midwife what a nuchal scan was. That is beyond worrying!

Depends. They’re relatively new, as in didn’t exist when I did my training. If the midwife doesn’t work in clinic or community or the a/n ward then it’s not imperative that she knows much about them. I certainly didn’t when I worked on labour ward.

Reminds me of my GP at 18 when I went to him with unbearable periods, he said 'Don't worry, it gets better after having kids'

SO much faux naivety on this thread. You guys know it's not cute, right?

I would fully expect a GP to know about sanitary products. I mean, we put tampons inside ourselves for hours at a time, is he aware of that?

He really ought to know what one is but I guess they are far more unusual here than they are on the continent.

Mind you I approached a pharmacist year before last as my period (heavy at the time) was going to coincide with my single weeks holiday. I did some research (including getting useful info from here) and went in to ask about norethisterone. The (male) pharmacist claimed that there was nothing that could reduce/hold off bleeding like I was suggesting and looked at me rather pityingly and told me that it was best to let nature take its course and just deal with it!! Fucking twat - I’d like to see him deal with blood gushing his nethers when all he wants to do is swim in the sea with nary a loo in sight and generally not be worried about all that stuff.

The level of knowledge amongst medical professionals can sometimes be sadly lacking in this area.

I had to tell my GP that getting pregnant on the pill increases your chance of an ectopic pregnancy. I only knew because it’s on the information leaflet. He checked as he didn’t believe me and then declared I was right and that he’d never known that. 😁

It does sound as though he’d imagined this sort of scenario ☕️. The saucer is for any overflow .

Yes, I’ve had to tell a medic what they are too. I was asked the usual question about menstrual flow (how many pads/tampons etc) and when I explained, they looked blank. I always found mine comfortable enough.

I would expect a GP to know what a menstrual cup is and also not to offer up opinions on something he didn't even know existed until a minute earlier.

It's really poor to me considering so many women visit GPs with period related problems. I would expect him to know what they are.

They aren't uncomfortable at all for me, I like them a lot. It's great never having to buy tampons anymore.

While I find getting them out can be a little uncomfy, if they're in and not feeling comfortable then you haven't got it in right, just like with tampons.

Well, since I had to explain the basics of how an insulin pump works to my GP, this does not surprise me. To be fair, he was very interested and enthusiastic, but still.

Would you expect a Gp to be knowledgeable about period pants or washable pads?

Mooncups were being advertised on the doors of my university loos 20 years ago.

I would absolutely expect a GP to know what a menstrual cup is.

I'm amazed at the number of women on here who are so accepting of this level of ignorance from their GPs. Do doctors not have to do CPD courses? Should they not be aware of different options that may or may not benefit their patients?

Why is women's health considered to be of such limited importance?

I'd never heard of a menstrual cup until I read about it on here.

It's sad they aren't more widely known about. So much easier, nothing to dispose of, easy to keep track of how much blood you are losing. Everyone should use them or at least try to.

People who are saying they are either uncomfortable, or not good for you...I don't get it? There is no reason at all that they would be harmful, and I used one for many years and never felt it once it was inside.

The GP not knowing about it, though, That does not really surprise me. I am a doctor (OK not a GP, but I went to medical school) and I only know about them because of my own use of them, was never told about them in any training or teaching

Would you expect a Gp to be knowledgeable about period pants or washable pads?

I would hope so. I mean if a patient showed up with an allergic reaction to pads id think they should he able to suggest alternatives

I mean I wouldn't expect them to know about individual makers but their existence definitely they should know about.

@DramaAlpaca

I'd never heard of a menstrual cup until I read about it on here.

Me also.

I’m kind of with him on the last comment he made too.

I had to explain it to a youngish (late 20s) female nurse and to my 39yo sister. I hardly find it surprising. And they do sound uncomfortable when you describe them! Since having kids I also find anything internal uncomfortable.

I’d never heard of them until a few years ago. I’m 53 and they weren’t an option when I was having periods.

I would expect a GP of that age to be familiar with he dutch cap contraceptive option and a menstrual cup isn't that different in regard to inserting and removing and the potential of scratching yourself doing it.

@warmandtoasty2day in believe it was the calling out of a typo/spelling mistake that was being objected to. To be fair it is dickish to quote back a spelling mistake and pretend you don’t know what the word is.

it’s not imperative that she knows much about them
I wasn't expecting expert knowledge but she didn't know what they were at all. Even if she hadn't studied them during training, surely medical staff have to have ongoing training?

There were prototypes of the menstrual cup in the 1870’s, and the first modern latex one was patented in 1937, so they are hardly newfangled!
I think it a great shame that they aren’t more enthusiastically marketed and better known. They work out much cheaper over a lifetime of use, and are much more environmentally friendly than disposable sanpro.
Both DDs switched to them years ago, and are v happy with them.

I think it a great shame that they aren’t more enthusiastically marketed and better known

The disposable industry must be worth millions. You could create a huge dent very quickly should they become too well known...

Although I think tampax have brought out a cup now