NCDR: Any ladies switch to "mama cloth" instead of disposable pads?

tosh24

I've been toying with this idea for a few years now. When I was originally interested, I had the same issue as not being able to CD DD (living with unsupportive family and sharing a washer).

Now that we're back in our own place, I'm interested again. Anyone have brands/materials that they like best? What's your care/wash routine for them?

Sorry for the TMI, but I have always had a really heavy flow and AF usually lasts up to 7 days. I pretty much spend the entire week in overnight pads because I need the absorbancy and length (I don't do tampons because the chemicals in them give me migraines, but would also be interested in experiences with the Diva Cup if anyone has anything to share). Any rec's for some good quality brands would be awesome

Thanks!

chuicafina

I've been using the Diva Cup for about 4 years now and LOVE it. It definitely has a learning curve and took several months to feel like I had the hang of it, but now it's awesome. I also have a MoonCup UK (not the same as the Moon Cup you can get in the US) and like that too, but it is smaller. I usually use the Diva and have the Moon Cup as back up in case I can't find the Diva for some reason. For PP, though, I couldn't use the Diva so I got some mama cloth pads. I got happy heiny's, pink daisy (by Swaddlebees) and Party in my Pants (PIMP). All of them were either "over night" or "post partum." My favorite was the PIMP and I also really liked the Pink Daisy one. I hated the Happy Heiny's. They're thick, shift around a lot and are a pain to dry without having any bunching of material. As far as washing, I just washed them with DS's CDs and either threw them in the dryer or line dried.

If you're interested in going the menstrual cup route, I found the live journal blog on menstrual cups to be a really good resource. Feel free to PM me if you have any more questions! Hope this helps 

Twirple

I've been using the Diva Cup for years and I love it!  I have been wearing it while kicking over my head in my martial arts class, while wearing a white uniform and it never leaks, even on my heaviest days.  I have also used mama cloth (Glad Rags, and made my own).  I liked the glad rags, but the ones I made were more absorbent.  I used two pieces of flanel and a piece of terry cloth, made a square with the flanel on the outside and terry in the middle.  I tri-fold it and snap it in place so you have 3 layers of terry and six layers of flanel.  Very soft and comfortable, if a little bulky.  I rinse them in the sink in cold water, then wash normally with the rest of my clothes.  I used dark flanel fabric, so it hides any stains they might acquire.  They only problem with mama cloth is, it usually doesn't have a water-proof barrier, so if you have a really heavy flow, I recommend the Diva Cup.

tosh24

Thanks for the info!

Tons of places around here sell the Diva Cup, so maybe once I get AF back after this LO, I'll try it out.

Thanks for the cloth rec's too. I'll have to google some of them.

Oh, one more question: do you use cloth or disposables at night, or can you keep the Diva Cup in overnight too?  

 

chuicafina

Definitely Diva Cup over night. I have a heavy flow too, but I haven't had any problems with having it in for a long time. At the beginning I had some leaks, so I'd recommend using back up until you have the hang of it. But I haven't had leaks in years. Even ran a half marathon with the Diva. It's great!

tokenhoser

I'm another Diva Cup lover. I don't have a very heavy flow (or I didn't, prebaby) and after 12 hours it would only be about half full for me. Most people find they can go about twice as long with the diva as the could with a super tampon. It's very freeing to not have to deal with your period as often - like, to not change a pad or tampon at work.

I actually bought a Lunette to try now. I used my original Diva Cup for 8 years, so ignore the "replace annually" directions. There is no need.

jesstellina

I've never tried cloth (I just don't like pads in general), but I, like PP's, LOVE the diva cup. It's definitely effective enough to use overnight. That's one of my favorite things about it, that you only need to remove & rinse it every 12 hours. On the first day or two of my period though, when my flow was really heavy, I would usually check it after the first 4-6 hrs just in case. I did have a leak once, but it was on an extremely heavy flow day on the first or second month I was using it, so I'm sure it was caused by user error.

kdello

Diva Cup, for sure. Just got a Party In My Pants (PIMP) liner to try as a backup.

heyitsme

I'm interested in the responses as well. My AF is a lot like yours and I always worried it would be too heavy for mama cloth.