11 Jul 2009
Reusable menstrual products – The Diva Cup review
The Diva Cup - Tampon alternatives
WARNING – Men read no further
Reusable menstrual products
Part 1 – The Diva Cup So I’ll be honest on this one. A few years ago, My friend Marie-France told me about the Diva cup and how she swore away tampons and pads because of it. Curious, I spent the $30 bucks and bought it from a health food store. When the time came, i tried folding it like the instructions suggested and yah, it hurt like a bitch. Needless to say, it spent the next 3 years in my bathroom cupboards.
The Diva Cup
Fast forward 3 years, I start a blog and really get into the “green movement”. Girls around me, colleagues and such, are all raving about the Diva Cup so i figure, I should give it another shot.
Folding the Diva Cup
I’ve spent the last few months, trying, praying, squeezing, re-squeezing, folding and I think I’ve just about got it now.
All the reasons to do it are there, it’s just a question about getting this diaphragm like cup up me in a comfortable position so i don’t feel like i constantly have to pee.
I still like tampons, i never had comfort issues with them, but wasting less I like even more. Now that I can comfortably get them up there, I have switched. Yah, technically I’ll save money by not buying tampons but honestly, saving$4 a month isn’t much of a motivator for me. Sparing the landfills on the other hand, is.
Diva Cups are usually available in health food stores and some pharmacies or you can go on their website to find a diva cup retailer near you.
Tampon safety -
If being green isn’t a reason for you to try this, what about the fact that it’s much safer than tampons? Tampons are made out of rayon, a synthetic material, not like cotton like I had thought. If you don’t believe me, read the list of tampon ingredients (yes there’s a list) on your tampon box. Apparently, it’s the rayon that is responsible for toxic shock syndrome, a potentially fatal illness from tampon use. Rayon was added in the 70’s to help increase absorbency.
The other debate surrounding tampon use is the absorption of dioxin into the body. Dioxin is used in the bleaching process of tampons, but there are claims about this carcinogen causing endometriosis, cancer and hormone disruption in women.
There’s definitely a learning curve to the diva cup. It took me a good 3 months to be truley comfortable with it, but I haven’t looked back, I’ve had mine for over 4 years now. I don’t know if you’ve tried this but cutting the little tip back a bit helped me.
Andrea Idika
July 31st, 2009 at 12:32 pmpermalink
[...] My gender prevents me from giving a personal anecdote here. Instead, I’ll rely on the testimonial of a coworker. [...]
Using a reusable menstrual product: the Diva Cup | GoFrugal.ca
August 9th, 2009 at 12:42 pmpermalink