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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To ask about your opinion on moon cups?

109 replies

Arachnophobic · 14/10/2011 16:36

this honestly isn't a thread about a thread....so no flaming please.

But as part of a thread earlier moon cups were mentioned.

Now, I am all for being Eco-friendly where possible, and we do recycle. I am no Arthur Fowler but we did grow a few tomatoes and courgettes this year.

But moon cups - REALLY? I just cannot go so far.

So MN panel......what am I missing here? What are your views?

OP posts:
AblativeAbsolute · 14/10/2011 22:10

They're so great that I actually feel slightly cheated that I didn't know about them years ago. They're just brilliant. (And I second the advice about tipping the blood away to avoid 'pooling' in the loo - just put a sheet of loo roll in the loo first, and empty the blood onto that.) I use mine even though I have a Mirena coil, and I've never had any problems. In fact, the Mooncup came into its own when I got the Mirena - I bled solidly for the first 12 weeks, and I dread to think how many tampons or towels I would have got through in that time.

Spuddybean · 14/10/2011 22:22

carabos cheers. i have had the coil for years but no difference (not at the mo as ttc). My first day of my period i often have to book a days hol as i need to change tampons every 45 mins. (2 hour commute)

I faint often and have also become very unwell. The amount of blood often seems unreal.

gushofbloodtothefloor · 14/10/2011 22:28

I LOVE mine - and that is despite the fact that I sometimes have such ridiculously heavy periods that I have to empty it hourly AND still wear (washable) pads.

Took me a bit of time to get used to it, but honestly the thought of using tampons now seems such a backward step.

And my cramps are almost non existent now - whereas I used to have at least a day of crippling pain. That in itself makes them worth their weight!

gushofbloodtothefloor · 14/10/2011 22:29
frankie3 · 14/10/2011 22:41

Mine has been sitting in my bathroom cabinet unused for months as I am too chicken to try it as I am worried about how hard it will be to get it back out again. I don't want to have to ask my dh to help me !

MeconiumHappens · 14/10/2011 22:46

Love my mooncup. Initially i wonder wtf i would want to be messing about with that, then i heard lots of ositive stories so took the plunge and got one. So easy, clean and hassle free. Really comfy, much more so than tampons which i find bloody uncomfortable. Eco friendly. Really cheap, it lasts for ?? ages and saves lots of £/waste. I have quite heavy periods, usually 6 days full red, but even i can keep it in for 8 hours at a time. So handy if you work in busy environment where getting out for a pee cant be guaranteed! Definately not 'icky', nothing goes anywhere but in the cup and down the loss, no more icky that a tampon.

Quodlibet · 14/10/2011 22:49

I like mine but I have heard there is a more bendy/flexible version by another brand - like Cwm I'd like to hear about it if anyone knows?

(It's only a bit ick if you lose control of it at a crucial point and it pops back into shape and richochets across the bathroom creating an instant murder scene)

Cwm · 14/10/2011 22:53

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

purpleknittingmum · 14/10/2011 22:56

Love mine, wish I had know about it years ago!

How long are you supposed to use them for? I think I have used it for 4 years now

fruitpastille · 14/10/2011 22:59

Maybe my periods are too light for me to be a convert?? Or maybe I need the smaller size (35 but 2 c-sections). Anyway, I find insertion a little tricky but manageable with a few minutes to myself in the loo (not always possible). It seems comfy when in (have trimmed stem a bit). Taking it out is very hard work though! I have read all the tips - bear down gently etc, squeeze to release suction... But I find it really hard to reach it, let alone get hold of it to squeeze. Yes, if I have time to relax then I can get it out but it is definitely more icky than a tampon where you just give a quick tug and it's all done. I don't see why I can't find my own bodily fluids a bit icky - I think snot can be a bit gross too. Even though flow is light you still get a bit of blood on fingers and ime it's kind of mucousy and therefore a bit eww. And I say this as someone who picked up DDs poo from the living room carpet earlier today.

Depsite this I will give it one more try this month to get moneys worth!

Quodlibet · 14/10/2011 23:02

Yeah I bought a big one because, as advised on the box, despite no kids yet, I'm over 30 (but only a bit). In retrospect can't understand why one's foof would suddenly expand on one's 30th birthday and wish I'd gone for the smaller one now. (I'm sure I'll grow into my current one at some stage so it's unlikely to go to waste!)

Ooh the Meluna ones look like little Christmas bells!

Ilanthe · 14/10/2011 23:03

I love mine, although like Quod I have had mine richochet across a bathroom necessitating a pissed, contact lense less clean up operation. Blush

It is so much easier than tampons. No faffing about with wrapping up bits of cotton wool, no squeak.

DH does now sing 'mooncup dot com' to the moonpig tune every time he hears it though. He thinks its hilarious.

ChickenLickn · 14/10/2011 23:06

I LOOoooooooooove my mooncup!

try using a stick to break the seal - like the handle of a spare toothbrush. I find this so much easier.

purpleknittingmum · 14/10/2011 23:07

I once started a mooncup poem on another forum! :o

Tianc · 14/10/2011 23:07

Love love love my mooncup. Occasionally I can't use it due to cystitis ? and going back to pads makes me even more appreciative of my mooncup!

gushofbloodtothefloor · 14/10/2011 23:08

Spill purplemum (so to say)

purpleknittingmum · 14/10/2011 23:14

Ok, here you go!!

Ladies ladies everywhere
I've found a secret I just have to share

It's for when your time of the month comes
It'll save you money - you do the sums!

You fold her up and pop her in
No more smelly san-pro going in the bin!

She will sit there wherever you go
Her purpose is to collect your flow

this is what I did, and then others added bits with other members names!

Spuddybean · 14/10/2011 23:20

am i being weird but what's the 'squeak' you get with tampons or 'wrapping with cotton wool'?

i just put mine in and take them out.

kerala · 14/10/2011 23:27

Op you are totally missing out. Its tampons and towels that are really gross. Blood stained stuff sitting in bins yuck. Mooncups the way forward and I am not a lentil weaver x

Quodlibet · 14/10/2011 23:30

Thought some of you might enjoy Yuuki Cup.

Though the site does free P+P and all the different bells and whistles.

AlbertoFrog · 14/10/2011 23:38

I decided to boil mine in a pot one day (ran out of sterilising tablets). Forgot about it didn't I? Oooh - the smell of melting rubber. Got a new one of course, although I would advise waiting a while after giving birth. Mine seemed to get stuck just above my episiotomy scar. Bit of advice - remove and rinse during your morning shower. Easy [hgrin]

Ilanthe · 14/10/2011 23:41

Spuddy - if you have light periods, which I do, even the lightest tampons aren't saturated when they come out after a max of 8 hours to avoid TSS. So if the vaginal wall is dry, it will cause friction as it comes out and it makes a squeaky noise, which is horrible.

Wrapping cotton wool is because you're not supposed to flush tampons down the loo so you have to wrap them in something (toilet roll) and put them in the bin.

CointreauVersial · 14/10/2011 23:44

I'm so-so about mine.

The problem is my periods are so heavy at the moment I'm having to empty the mooncup at least hourly. With tampons you get a warning it needs changing (little leaks), but with the mooncup it is a sudden....GUSSSHH! Arghh! Waddle to the nearest loo!

As a result, I now avoid using it for the first three days of my period because I just got so sick of having to change my undies several times a day (and yes, I was using liners). I literally couldn't leave the house.

Also, I regularly found the damned thing had slipped completely sideways, with the stem lodged somewhere near my hip-joint, and it was the devil's own job to shift it back to the vertical and get it out.

BUT, with a regular/light bleed, or at the start/end of a period - it's perfect!

sheeesh · 14/10/2011 23:47

Cleaner, easier, more comfortable. Love it

tigercametotea · 14/10/2011 23:51

I already use washable panty liners and love them, so wanted to do some of my own research on mooncups to see if they would suit me. There is a good support website/blog on here and I did ask a question there before asking for recommendations for myself. The thing is though, that with mooncups there is no try-before-you-buy and I was advised to measure how "deep" you are so as to choose the right size Mooncup because too big/too small can be either more trouble (having to change frequently) or very uncomfortable. Also they come in different materials, some softer and more squishy and some firmer and the pliability of the mooncup does make a difference apparently in how well it would work on you and can influence the comfort level of the user whilst wearing it. I haven't purchased one after doing my research. Not willing to go through the trial and error, also I suffer from bad cramping during periods and inserting anything in there during periods makes it worse so I have always been a pad user (but not willing to try washable pads because of ick factor). I have used the occasional tampon (to my discomfort) if I am on holiday and want to go for a swim during my period, that's it. I also can't get over the hygiene factor of mooncups - sooo not keen on boiling them in a saucepan over my hob... Sorry... I'm sure its just me.