to be the best mother in the world. i have bought my daughter a............

[AtYourCervix]

Mooncup.

She will thank me for it.

Eventually.

I am excellent am i not?

I would definitely have tried it if my Mum had shown me one when I was 17...it was a very good year! sorry couldn't resist, has brightened my unearthly hour feeding.
Anyway, back on subject. A moon cup, once I'd sussed it out would have stopped me leaking onto my clothes (oh the 13 year old horror of getting up in class unsure if you had a patch showing).

Good for you OP,I love my moon cup and if I had a dd I would get her one too.
My friend has just bought her 16 yr old one and she gets on fine with it.

Not sure why a moon cup is 'ewww' but bleached, wadded cotton wool that can give you toxic shock syndrome is ok

Can somebody explain why mooncups are better than tampons to me?

I had no idea such a thing existed until I joined MN age 24. I am still 24.

What is wrong with tampons? I totally see the problem with pads mind.

Having read this thread, I can honestly say that I will never look at Spongebob the same way ever again.

Tampons are bleached, can cause toxic shock and create land fill.

It was reading that each woman creates 1 tonne of waste that made me want to try out a moon cup plus the fact they are cheaper and more comfy than tampons.

I have a Fleurcup

It is a vair pretty lilac colour
And is easier the clean than a Mooncup - it doesn't have the "mooncup" lettering which I found was difficult to get completely clean.

I bought the pink one for my DD but she looked at me in horror (she was only 14, so I will keep it for when she is a bit older...)

I love my Fleurcup - it was a revolution!

I do use a pad for the first couple of days (I am peri menopausal) and empty it once during the day (just wipe it out with loo paper in the toilet at work) and then after that, only empty it once a day

Alis Apart from the above ^^, tampons are very, ahem, drying... Basically they leach all the moisture out of you, and disrupt the Ph balance etc too.
Some women find they bleed less with a Mooncup, with shorter and lighter periods.
There are quite a few Mooncup alternatives out there, Meluna etc, with different softnesses and capacity, and different base styles depending on what you find easiest for removal (stem, ball, ring).

I've just had my first Mooncup cycle, not a 100% success, but next month will def be easier, and I am definitely looking forward to a summer without pads - yeuch at the memory! So much cleaner. :)

I reckon a lot of what puts people off (once they've got over the initial "what??!") is that it's a learning curve - and who the hell wants mishaps during a period? It is worth it tho.
I only heard about Mooncups six months ago, can't believe I've been using sanpro for twenty years without knowing there were alternatives.

I used the implanon contraceptive thing for ages so for about 6 years had no periods and prior to that had been on the pill fr about 6 years so had very light periods. They came back with a vengeance recently and I got a mooncup. I actually found tampons messier, as a newly not used to periods but having relatively heavy periods person. They came out all covered in blood so it got everywhere and when putting a new one in there was still blood everywhere so it got on my fingers. A mooncup comes to with the blood all contained in it and because its not wiped itself on your insides on its way out your fingers are cleaner after putting it back in than with a tampon. T put it in you really scrunch it up, like fold it into thirds really, it's no bigger than a super tampon when you put it in.

If you have to "release the suction" to get it out and it's full of blood, how do you get it out of your fanjo without spilling the blood?

This is a genuine question, btw.

Practise I believe.... Haven't quite mastered the art yet, but as i remove it while on the loo, spillage isn't really a problem.
Also, unless you have a very heavy flow, it's unlikely to be full - most I've had is half full on my heaviest day. I guess you get used to emptying it in time.

Mooncups can also help with period pain
It's done wonders for me and I've heard similar for other people. I can actually exist happily during my period now. So basically it's given me back 23% of my life that I was losing

Tampons cost more, are drying, are more leaky and are less comfortable than mooncups. I have very heavy periods and only discovered mooncups about six months ago. I can't get over how brilliant they are.

I have no problem with leaking. You can feel if it gets over full. This happens to me if I wear it overnight on the fist night of my period.

I am still a bit over the contents. I have to change mine every few hours at the beginning of my period. . I think it's because I am coming up to menopause.

I managed to use it with o problems whilst travelling in a third world country with very dodgey toilets.

Despite my love of mooncups I can't see how mooncups help with period pain or make your period lighter

AtYouCervix well done, I hope my dd will eventually try one when she is ready. I want her to be aware that mooncups and their like exist, as well as washable sanpro.

I do think squeamish attitudes towards menstrual blood is strange, and something to do with women being encouraged to think that periods are disgusting and embarrassing, instead of just part of life. The mooncup makes my period almost interesting, to see how much blood is produced is quite reassuring - I know my body better. I know mooncups are not for everyone, but the positives outweigh the negatives for me. I persevered with mine and sometimes I have leaks at the start of my period, but I would probably leak more with disposable sanpro.

A good article here with some good comments below it. I wish all women were made more aware of the alternatives - I know toxic shock is rare but with a mooncup it is non-existent.