(no subject)

[babybloodheart.livejournal.com]

I ordered a Mooncup for my flatmate and it turned up today, she is really excited because at the moment she uses commercial pads that give her rashes all the time, the only issue is that she suffers from vaginismus.
She tried her new cup straight away and got it some of the way up, which she was very proud of, but it's still going to be a chore for her to get used to using a menstrual cup. She has had sex before, but was painful and other issues does cause the problem, she doesn't masturbate and usually cannot get her fingers into her vagina.
I have never had any problem getting something into my vagina so I really don’t know what to tell her other than the usual things of advising she relaxes and tries to use lubrication – is there any real practical advise I can give to her so that she can use her Mooncup?

I have used a Mooncup myself for about 1 ½ years now, but the past couple of cycles I've been getting a stabbing pain every now and then from my cup – could this be because I am getting lazy about putting it in so it's not in correctly, or could it have something to do with the fact that when I trimmed the stem off my old one it rolled all the way to the side (perhaps suggesting my vagina is lopsided somehow)? It's only rarely that this happens, but it's painful enough to make me reinsert, has anyone else experienced this with a menstrual cup?

Cross posted to anti_tampon, the_keeper, vaginapagina and menstrualhut - apologies to all the cuntlovin' women [and men] out there who have their friends pages full up with this post but I'm desperate for some help for my flatmate.

Comments

[plymouth.livejournal.com]

I have a Keeper and I have had varied success with it - I swear that different months the geometry of my vagina CHANGES and sometimes it works and sometimes it does not. If I can't get it to work for a day I tend to give up and switch to tampons for the month. I have found that their advice to rotate it to get it to seal really does help - it makes sure that the folds you get from inserting it are fully popped out. When I don't do that the cup tends to work its way downward in my vagina until the lip of it is poking painfully into me (usually it tilts forwards or backwards rather than side-to-side for me).

Don't really have any advice about a tight vagina though. I've never had that problem. I mean, back when I was a virgin I wasn't even all that tight - I remember being all scared that sex the first time would hurt and it just didn't.

[plymouth.livejournal.com]

Only vaguely relatedly... I admit that I am completely mystified by the idea that there are people who don't masturbate. To me it's just one of those things you do...

[babybloodheart.livejournal.com]

Yeah, well identifying with asexuals I sort of see why people would not, I guess she just does not get much from it.

[--heartattack.livejournal.com]

how about some sort of reverse kegel exercise?

[elettaria.livejournal.com]

Actually, apparently kegels help vaginismus, because they help you control your vaginal muscles.

[bikinikiller.livejournal.com]

i know you said she doesn't masturbate, but i've found that orgasm helps loosen things up...

[nymph-dreams.livejournal.com]

I know it is about moon cups, but I actually had the same problem, I wasn't a virgin, but had a lot of trouble inserting tampons. It hurt so much and on many occasions while trying to insert a tampon I would actually pass out. Very embarrasing.

I didn't start wearing tampons properly until I was 19. My periods started when I was 11. I have been masturbating since I was about 9, but I had never actually put my fingers in.When I did try to put them it,it just didn't work.

I know this sounds weird but I found the more sex I had the easier it got.

Some days I still have trouble though so it takes practise.