How To Put On A Menstrual Cup

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A menstrual cup collects menstrual fluid instead of absorbing it. You make clean and reuse it, which means you don't demand to supervene upon it for a long fourth dimension. Near people find they leak less than tampons and are more than comfortable to wear. To use one, yous'll insert it into your vaginal opening and twist it to make sure it sits correct. Then, you tin go out information technology in for as long as 12 hours before taking it out and emptying it. It may have time and practice to get used to using 1, merely menstrual cups are a highly sanitary and eco-friendly ways of dealing with your catamenia.

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Purchase a menstrual cup online or in a drug shop. Menstrual cups are becoming more than popular, so you should be able to find them in most drug stores and big box stores. Some are a bit smaller or larger, and so it's always good to read reviews before deciding on one.^[1]
- For instance, you tin can try the Diva Cup, the Softcup, or the Lunette.
- Menstrual cups run $xxx-$twoscore USD, but proceed in mind that you can use them over and over.^[2] Nonetheless, yous can get them cheaper, usually in the $7-$10 USD range on the depression end, so expect around if you just want to endeavor one out.^[iii]
- Menstrual cups are typically fabricated of silicone or rubber. If you take latex allergies, make sure the cup you choose is made completely with silicone.^[4]
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Read the instructions accompanying your menstrual cup. Instructions can differ from cup to cup, then information technology'due south always a skillful thought to read what comes with your cup! That way, you know just what you lot should practise with yours.

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Wash your hands thoroughly before touching the cup. Yous should wash your hands whatsoever time y'all're using products effectually your vaginal area, as you don't want to innovate bacteria. Utilize warm h2o and soap, making sure you scrub for at least 20 seconds before rinsing.^[five]
- Yous can sing the "Happy Altogether" vocal slowly to yourself to guess 20 seconds.
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Wash your cup with a balmy soap earlier using information technology the first time. Most companies volition ask yous to wash information technology before you put it in. Pick a fragrance-free soap labeled for sensitive skin. Thoroughly rub the loving cup inside and out with the soap and warm h2o, and so rinse the soap off completely.
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Go into a position that feels comfy to you. Some people prefer to squat, while others observe balancing one leg up higher works well. You can even just sit on the toilet, spreading your legs autonomously.^[six]
- Fix bated a lilliputian time to insert your cup the first time y'all practise it. Information technology may accept some trial and mistake. You can even do information technology in a warm shower to help relax yous.^[vii]
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Fold the cup to make it easier to insert. You lot can endeavor the c-fold, where you squeeze the opening together then fold the opening in one-half. You tin try the 7-fold, which is like, simply y'all bring one edge upwards higher, making the cup a bit narrower. Another option is the punch-downward fold. Hold the loving cup between your thumb and middle finger, so printing one edge down with your index finger, pushing it in toward the center of the cup.^[8]
- You tin't put information technology in without folding it, every bit the suction will work against you. Try out unlike folds and see which one works best for y'all.
- You tin also wet the cup slightly to arrive easier to slide in.
- Make sure the stem is facing downward and the bowl is facing upward.
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Relax your muscles as much every bit y'all can. Take a few deep breaths. If you're nervous, you'll tense up, and that volition make it harder to insert. Endeavour tensing your vaginal muscles for a moment and then releasing them.^[ix]
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Push the cup dorsum toward your tailbone. With your other hand, spread your labia (lips) autonomously. Gently press the folded cup into your vaginal opening, moving more front to back than upward. Release the fold and let the loving cup movement into place.^[10]
- Typically, the loving cup won't go as loftier as a tampon, though you tin can push it college if you'd like. Some cups are made to go higher, so always read the directions for yours.
- If information technology doesn't feel right, try inserting it again to see if information technology feels more comfortable.^[11]
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Twist the loving cup to make sure it seals. Grab the base of the cup by the sides (not the stalk) and turn it at least 1 total rotation. This will help ensure that the sides pop out completely to create the seal.^[12]
- You lot may hear or feel a "pop," which is a sign that the cup has opened. If you lot're not sure, reach upwardly and experience around the base of the cup. Information technology should be round or oval, depending on your body shape.
- If it hasn't opened, pull lightly downwards on the stem without really pulling the cup out.

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Check the loving cup every 12 hours. Most of the fourth dimension, you can go abroad with leaving the cup in for 12 hours. That means you simply have to empty it in the morning and at night, which you tin can practice in the comfort of your home.^[13]
- If you have a peculiarly heavy menstruum, you may need to empty it more often.
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Sit over a toilet to take the cup out. While some women need to take it out continuing up, you should try information technology over a toilet. It tin can exist messy if you don't take the technique down still. Don't worry, though. In one case yous effigy out the best fashion for yous to remove it, information technology tends to make very little mess at all!^[14]
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Pull the loving cup out by breaking the seal first. You tin't just yank the cup out, as suction volition exist working against you! Instead, take hold of the base of the cup just above the stem and pinch the sides together. That should break the seal plenty for you to pull it out. Make certain to continue it upright every bit you lot pull information technology out.^[15]
- If that doesn't interruption the seal, effort moving one finger over the rim of the cup.^[sixteen]
- Don't worry if you lot tin can't go it out on your beginning attempt! It can't go "lost" in your vagina; your vagina doesn't work that way. Accept a moment, relax, and then try once more.
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Empty the cup into the toilet. Continue to keep information technology upright equally you move it toward the toilet, and then turn it over to dump out the contents. If y'all can't wash it out right then, you can simply wipe it off with toilet newspaper and re-insert it.^[17]
- Be careful non to driblet it in the toilet! If you lot practice, make sure to wash information technology thoroughly before putting it dorsum in.^[18]
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Launder your loving cup with soap and water. If possible, rinse the cup out in the sink. And then, rub it down with lather and warm h2o, making sure to use running h2o to become all the soap off. Then, you tin put the cup back in.^[19]
- It'south all-time to employ a mild, unscented soap.
- If yous have a disposable loving cup, toss it out and put in a new ane.

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Sterilize the loving cup between periods by boiling it. Wash the cup out with soap and water. Then, bring h2o to a boil in a pocket-size pan. Place it in the pan, and eddy information technology for five-7 minutes to sanitize it. Yous'll probable want to go along a dissever pan just for this purpose.^[20]
- If the loving cup is stained, use lxx% rubbing booze on it.
- You tin can likewise clean it with a sterilizing solution, like what you would use for infant bottles. Y'all tin find these solutions with the baby canteen supplies in big box stores.^[21]
- E'er read the directions for your loving cup about sterilization, every bit the process can differ from cup to cup.
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Cut role of the stem off it bothers y'all. For some people, the stalk on the cup is likewise long and causes irritation. If that's true for you, y'all can merely snip part of information technology off with almost cups, making the fit more comfy.^[22]
- You lot tin can besides merely purchase one with a shorter stem.
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Endeavor out unlike cups if your beginning i doesn't feel right. Not every cup is going to fit every person! That'southward why there are different ones out there. If yous discover yours to exist uncomfortable, consider trying some other i to come across if that's a better fit.^[23]
- For instance, yous can get a smaller cup, one with a shorter stem, or ane made for people who are more than sensitive.
- Some fifty-fifty come in unlike shapes! For instance, some cups are more angled than others.
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Become a cup designed for a heavy flow if you're leaking. While accidents practice happen, y'all shouldn't leak in a cup virtually of the time, equally long as you lot make certain to become the seal right. However, if you're consistently overflowing your cup and you can't or don't want to bank check it more than often, endeavour out one made for a heavier flow. It will concord more than liquid, making it less likely to overflow.^[24]
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Stretch your hymen and vaginal opening if you discover the surface area is likewise tight. If you haven't had sexual activity or used a tampon, you may find that your vaginal opening and the hymen do not easily stretch to adapt a loving cup. If this is the example, try stretching the expanse over the course of a month or and then using your fingers. Start with 1-two fingers and increment to iii as your body volition allow. You could besides use a small dildo. Don't practise too much too fast. If it's painful, cease and ease back to a point where it wasn't painful.^[25]
- Keep in mind, the hymen doesn't completely comprehend your vaginal opening, except in very rare cases, which should be corrected with surgery. Rather, it's a membrane that goes partially around your vaginal opening that should stretch some if information technology'south besides tight. Your hymen isn't an indicator of whether you lot're a virgin or not. Though information technology can stretch over time, it's not something y'all break through to get to your vagina, and it can be different shapes or sizes depending on the person.^[26]

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Menstrual cups work by holding the blood, rather than absorbing it like a tampon. That means you lot can put one in before your period starts.
Store your cup in a container that's breathable and piece of cake to clean.
If you're uncomfortable with the concept of tampons or cups but still want to employ reusable menstrual products, look into cloth pads.

On heavier days, a full loving cup can leak; wearing back-upward pads and elimination your cup more frequently on these days can assist.
Menstrual cups are not a course of contraceptive and most should be removed before sexual intercourse. However, disposable soft cups can be used during sex forth with a contraceptive.

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Article Summary X

A menstrual loving cup is a reusable alternative to sanitary products similar pads or tampons. To use your cup, clean your hands with warm water and soap to wash away germs and dirt. Yous should likewise wash the loving cup with mild soap and water and rinse it thoroughly. When you lot're set to insert the cup, squat, stand up with one leg propped up, or sit down on the toilet with your knees apart. Pinch the cup to fold the sides in, and so relax your muscles, spread your labia with your other hand, and slide the cup into your vagina, open stop up. If it doesn't feel comfortable, pull information technology out and endeavor again. Some cups are meant to sit higher upward in your vagina than others, so read the directions that come with your cup. Take hold of the cup by the base of operations and give it a twist to make sure information technology pops open and creates a seal. When yous're set to take the cup out, sit on the toilet, grab the base of the cup, and pinch the sides together to suspension the seal. After you slide it out, empty information technology into the toilet. For your safe, wash the loving cup with soap and water any fourth dimension you alter it, and disinfect information technology by boiling it in water for five-seven minutes between periods. To learn how to troubleshoot mutual bug with your menstrual cup, read on!

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