Question about the Keeper

[dafadddu.livejournal.com]

I learned about it in this forum, and I looked up information about it on the internet.

It sounds.. weird..

I understand the theory, but just gotta do the practical (as my hubby said about sex when we first met ;P ) but there wasn't really a lot of anecdotal evidence about it.

I've got two main concerns.

I kinda sorta have body fluid issues. Like when I give my husband a handjob, the sticky cum kinda gives me the willies. (I was fine when we first met, but we were separated for 18 months- he lived in Birtain, me in the US, so I had to wait to immigrate- and during that time my body fluid ick factor kind of went up for some bizarre reason.) So I have a bit of an issue of putting my fingers around/inside my vagina when I bleed. Granted, I'm not bleeding now, as I have to wait for the Depo hormones to leave my poor hormonally abused body, but I'm looking into my options.

How do you get over having to mess around with blood/fluids to insert or remove the Keeper?

Also, I am terrified of it popping out while I'm sitting on the toilet, then having to reach into a feces/urine infected bowl to retrieve it. I read that it shouldn't. But still that would be dancing around in the back of my mind.

It looks soooo convenient. I always had really leaky periods. I'd always, always overflow my pads. I refused to use anything other than pads with wide wings because of that, but even heavy flow ones would be soaked within hours and weigh a frigging ton. At night, I would always drain down my rear and end up with blood stains on my underwear and sometimes my bedsheets, no matter what pad I was using. Sometimes even lying on my side I would get leakage. It's really annoying to wake up in the morning covered in blood, but I had no idea there were other options.

So I'm really considering this Keeper thing. Plus, I hated wearing underwear and a pad to bed. I've been sleeping nude since I was 19, so even underwear is extremely uncomfortable while trying to sleep, let alone a big bulky damned diaper!

So, what are your experiences with it? Can it just pop/fall out? Should I get one and practice with it at home for a while before wearing it to work or something? And what about getting over having to get a little messy? Help!

edit: For other women who want information, this website seems really informative about the Keeper

Comments

[katarokkar.livejournal.com]

I don't use the keeper, but I use the disposable equivalent (well, almost same...will explain later): Insteads

I kind of have the same problem about bodily fluids. I feel so disgusting if a guy ejaculates onto me or anything like that. Personally, when I use Insteads, I always make sure I have a water supply handy when changing them, so that I can instantly wash my hands afterwards.
Also, if you use lube to put it in (not sure if you can do it with the Keeper), it takes a lot less time and mess because it slides in much easier.

If you are really paranoid about the keeper falling out, I suggest you try Instead softcups (I think the website is softcup.com or maybe softcups.com). They are one time use only, unlike the keeper, so if you have environment issues, it's not for you. Otherwise, it's built like a diaphram, so there's no chance of it falling out unless you put it in really wrong.

Anecdotal experience-wise...I don't know how the keeper is, although I figure it has about the same retention capacity, but I can only use Instead on lighter/medium flow days because if I try to use it during heavy flow, I always seem to "overflow" it really fast. It doesn't exactly fill up, but it seems like maybe the blood is coming down so fast it just slips by it maybe?

Otherwise, it's great. Can't feel a thing when it's inside and it lasts much longer than a tampon, plus there's no embarassing strings hanging out.

Also, I was wondering while reading your post if you use tampons? That might solve the sleeping problem, if you generally sleep less than 8 hours. When I have really heavy days, I even double up and have a tampon and a pad in case the first fails.

Hope that helps!

[dafadddu.livejournal.com]

I only use tampons when desperate or when I go swimming.

Otherwise I find them rather painful or uncomfortable. Even when I am sure I've put it in far enough, it always seems to work itself back down to the opening, and then I feel this horrible pinching/burning feeling until I remove it and use another one.

I would never ever sleep with one in though, as I'm not too keen on TSS (which is one of the main reasons I don't use them).

I'll look into the insteads too (I was trying to find the website for it) just to look at my options.

[katarokkar.livejournal.com]

I forgot to add that the reason I looked into the Keeper but didn't use it was because I didn't like the idea of having to rinse it out every time. It would be really kind of awkward to have to change it in a public restroom, even if it only took a few seconds, and with my fluid anxiety thing, I don't think I could just wipe it off and be done.
With Insteads, it's still a bit messy changing it in a public restroom when I have to, but at least it's concealable, and all I have to do is wash my hands.

[dafadddu.livejournal.com]

Looks like that isn't available in the UK. Doing a search using a UK search engine came up with NADA. Google has millions of sites, though.

I think I'd rather use the keeper, like, as you said, it's more environmentally safe.

[tree]

i had similar problems using tampons. i love sea sponges, though.

[elusis.livejournal.com]

You can safely wear a tampon at night without being worried about TSS. The instance is extremely low - less than 40 cases a year (http://www.toxicshock.com/) in the UK, only half of which are from women using tampons - and the Centers for Disease Control in the US hasn't even tracked it since 1987. You can also get it via puncture wounds, burns, etc.

It was mainly associated with a particular brand of very very high absorbancy tampons called Rely (http://216.239.39.104/search?q=cache:vY3QYk_RVrEJ:www.epiet.org/course/CaseStudies/09%2520-%2520Toxic%2520shock%2520syndrome/TSS_E.doc+toxic+shock+syndrome+Rely&hl=en&ie=UTF-8) - obviously, the problem being that women were leaving them in for very long periods of time, and the outside of the tampon tended to abrade the vaginal walls because it was so absorbent, it would dry out. It was also made of materials not found in tampons today, in particular a type of cellulose that was very good at hosting the staph bacteria that causes TSS, and also somewhat abrasive to vaginal tissue which caused ulcers that were perfect entry points for staph.

If you choose a modern tampon that is the minimum size needed to control your flow, you'll likely be just fine. I've personally been menstruating for 19 years now, using tampons for at least 15 maybe more, and have slept with a tampon in almost every night of my periods. I put a clean one in before bed, and change it when I wake up.

If you're having trouble with the tampon slipping down, it's likely that you're not getting it in far enough. If it's far enough in, your vaginal muscles will hold it in place and it won't slip down. I don't know what brands you have available to you in the UK, but if there are any that are like OB in the US, which comes without an applicator, you may want to try them. Many women find the applicators don't put the tampon in deep enough or in the right spot. With a brand like OB, you use your finger to put the tampon in and you can tell once it's past the internal ring of muscles because you can feel the difference in pressure.

Obviously, you'd have to work on your issues with fluids, but that's a good opportunity to do so. You'll only get over it by touching your own fluids repeatedly. (And actually, putting in OB is usually pretty clean for me - you "flare" the base of the tampon with the string first, so it kind of cleans up as it slides in.)

[alitaorg.livejournal.com]

the other neat part about o.b. is that it soaks up blood as it goes, so when you insert it with your finger, you don't have a lot of blood on your finger when you remove it.

i think o.b.s are much more comfortable too, and less likely to leak. i'd be surprised if there wasn't a way to order them online and have 'em shipped out to you. =)

i'd recommend sea sponges too (which i haven't tried yet(\), but there's the same public-restroom problem as with the keeper.

[katlynel.livejournal.com]

The Keeper holds a LOT more than Insteads -- Insteads fill up really incredibly fast, but the Keeper holds up to a full ounce of fluid. It makes a significant difference, as someone who has used both.

I don't really see how the Insteads would be any better than the Keeper as far as having to deal with blood. With Insteads, you still have to look at the blood when you pull it out, and empty it into the toilet and wrap it in toilet paper, and get blood on your fingers. I actually prefer the Keeper for squeamishness value because I can pull it out and stick it straight under the sink to rinse. Plus the Keeper is less messy to remove because it stays upright when you remove it, and it's a deep narrow vertical cup instead of a shallow wide horizontal cup, so the Keeper is a lot less likely to spill.

[amiga500.livejournal.com]

I agree with all the comparisons. I've also had Insteads slip out of place just from changing positions, but never been able to push a Keeper out, even when I've tried. The design just seems to work a lot better with vaginas than tampons or Instead cups.

keeper

[lesirene.livejournal.com]

I've been using the keeper for over 2 years now, and I LOVE IT. By the way, there is a keeper community here on LJ which is VERY helpful.

http://www.livejournal.com/community/the_keeper/

I hope that link worked. I'm not that computer literate, so I apologize. You might have to copy and paste it into your browser.

Anyway, the keeper is great. Personally, I don't have the same body fluid issues as you do. I'm quite amazed/in awe of my own blood, and I never mind touching it.
When I insert the keeper, I might get a very small amount of blood on the tips of my fingers, but that's all. Sometimes they even come out clean.
Same thing when I remove it. The keeper has a little tab thing that hangs down for easier removal, which you might like. I found it to be very irritating, so I completely cut it off.
When you rinse it out, I suggest doing so while in the shower. This helps for many reasons. It's cleaner, and all the hot water and steam make the keeper more flexible, and easier to insert.
And I ASSURE YOU, the keeper is NOT going to fall out. This has never happened to me or anyone I know. Your vaginal muscles hold it in place. You have to give it a good tug to remove it. it wont come out on it's own.
The keeper holds ALOT of fluid... I have NEVER had to empty it at work, or any other place aside from my home. I wake up in the morning, take a shower, and insert it. Then, at night, I take another shower, empty it and reinsert it. You may find that you need to empty it more often. I suppose my flow is somewhat in "normal/light" range.
It might take you a bit of practice to get a good fit so that you don't leak. I find that I still leak a bit sometimes, but it's hardly noticeable. I usually just wear my "period" underwear during that week, and let myself leak onto that, b/c it's already stained beyond repair. With the keeper in, I usually only leak a few drops, if anything.
I hope this helped... sorry for the long post!

Re: keeper

[oddofferings.livejournal.com]

i'm glad to hear someone else who's in awe of their blood :)

yay for BVDs during bleeding!!
(i want just reading cunt again last night...joy of joys)

[lesirene.livejournal.com]

I agree, Cunt is an awesome book. I read it last year, and it's about time i re-read it!

Re: keeper

[dafadddu.livejournal.com]

Thanks, I'll look at that commuity.

Mainly I'm afraid of it falling out! But it helps being reassured that it won't.

Re: keeper

[ide-cyan.livejournal.com]

I've been using the Keeper for six months and going to the toilet with it and it's definitely not in danger of falling out. :-)

There are a lot of things keeping it up: muscles, the fact it has to be folded a little to be removed in the first place, and suction, which has to be broken before I try to remove it.

It might ride lower when I push, but it definitely can't fall out.

[oddofferings.livejournal.com]

i just got my keeper in may after considering it for a year. first off, let me say that you have to really want it to work. it takes a lot of practice and committment, but i think it is worth it in the end.

bodily fluids- maaaaajor factor. i know when i'm done removing/inserting it, especially on the first one or two days of my period, my hands are so gunkified it looks like i delivered a baby :) but all that shit fascinates me anyway, so i sit there and stare at my hands and the blood for awhile in awe. but you could do it in the shower so it's cleaner...i've heard some people who do that.
also, i love being able to see how much i bleed. i think that's the best thing about the cups, as opposed to tampons and pads that just soak everything up.

think about the economical benefits- one keeper lasts ten years, you just keep washing it and store it in the cute little bag it comes in. i have to spill mine out after 12 hours typically, and if you still need pads, there are reusable luna pads. no disgusting diaper to wrap up and put in the garbage!
i love the idea of not creating any more waste :)

good luck with your decision- there are plenty of options out there to choose from.

[sadisticclone.livejournal.com]

I use a mooncup which is the sister to the keeper. It's never popped out on me (thankfully), it's not very messy, when you pull it out.. the end is clean because all the blood is collected in the cup. I love mine, it doesn't hurt like tampons did, it's not hard to get it in the right spot, infact, mine puts itself there. Once I get my period, it stays in there for a matter of days except for when I'm cleaning it. It almost made body fluid more interesting, rather then gross.

[mangofandango.livejournal.com]

I use one, and I love it. It's so much more comfortable and convenient, and I can leave it in most of the day without worrying about it.

It does take some getting used to. It's guaranteed for 3 months after you get it, so you have time to mess around with it and make sure you like it and so on.

It won't pop out. I worried a little bit about that too, but the seal is really pretty tight - when I take it out, I bear down pretty hard with my pelvic mucles, but I still have to reach in and break the seal and pull it out. Even when I haven't had a good seal on it, taking it out is definently something that requires assistance from your hands. Bearing down really hard can make it move a little bit, but not pop right out.

I'm pretty comfortable with my own body fluids, but I think using things like the Keeper and Gladrags has really helped with that. You get exposed to it more, and it becomes less scary. However, my fingers sometimes come out clean when I use it, but even when they don't, it's just a couple fingers with some blood on them, and it rinses off really quickly.

I would try it, if I were you. If you really can't do it or don't like it, it is returnable. But yeah, I would plan on taking it out and putting it in at home the first few times or even the first couple of cycles, until you're more comfortable, and see how it goes from there. Good luck with it!

[dafadddu.livejournal.com]

I'm pretty sure now I'll get one.

I like the look of the Divacup. It's weird, but the white silicone appeals to me more than the brown gum rubber.. Maybe the white looks "cleaner"? Even though it's pretty much exactly the same thing?

I'm still working on getting used to and comfortable with my body. I think since using Depo I might have gotten out of touch with myself, because I was always "clean", no discharge, no blood, nothing. I know that the blood isn't dirty, and neither is the inside of the vagina, but after two years of not bleeding it's become rather foreign to me.

The responses here are just making it more easy for me to make up my mind about it. :>

keeper

[lesirene.livejournal.com]

I don't know how others feel about this, but I would reccomend buying the keeper (not divacup or mooncup) if this is your first menstrual cup. I've heard that the silicone cups are a little stiffer and a little more difficult to insert because the silicone is less flexible than the keeper's gum rubber. On the LJ keeper community, there are actually comparisons between all the different kinds of menstrual cups. Try looking there...

[appletrees.livejournal.com]

Seekerswrit, you sound a lot like I did when I was looking at menstrual cups, heh. Well, not to say that I have an anxiety about fluids, but I certainly wasn't as comfortable with it then as I am now. I use a Mooncup (http://www.mooncup.co.uk), which is like the Keeper, but made of silicone. I think that using the Mooncup has made me a LOT more comfortable with my body fluids and such than before. All the blood used to gross me out, but it doesn't anymore.

My periods are just as heavy as yours... *everything* would leak for me overnight, even if I used a tampon *and* a pad. Tampons are really uncomfortable for me, and the cup is so much better. It won't just "pop out." If you're worried, just take it out everytime you go to the bathroom. I usually do anyway, because I like to empty it fairly frequently. I don't find public bathrooms to be a problem... I just dump the contents into the toilet, rinse with a bottle of water (I always carry one anyway), then reinsert. Not a big deal.

Believe me, once you get the hang of it, it does NOT leak. It creates a kind of seal, which both prevents leaking (unless it's full, of course) and prevents the cup from falling out. Since you aren't that comfortable with your blood (but you seem willing to learn! good for you, lots of people are close minded about these things), you may want to "practice" with your cup before your actual period starts. That way, you can get the hang of it without having the extra issue of blood to deal with. If it ends up not working out for you, you can always get a refund.

[dafadddu.livejournal.com]

I just mentioned this in another response.

I used to be much more comfortable with myself. Hell, I ever tasted myself once while taking a shower (I used to always play in the shower because I had a nifty waterproof vibe.)

I am beginning to think that while being on Depo, because it stopped my cycle, I got out of touch with myself.

How bizarre is that?

But I'm really sure I'm going to get one. It'll especially be good when my shot runs out, as I have no idea what my period will be doing and I HATE wearing pads. They make me feel so unclean, no matter how many times I change them.

It's good to be reassured that it won't pop out, too. I'd be mortified to have to fish it out of the bowl or chase it across the bathroom!

But since it can be left in for so much longer than wearing a pad, I wouldn't have to worry about it. Just change it in the morning, then when I get home.

Yeah, it's starting to sound so much better now.

[jaclyn.livejournal.com]

yay for you for considering alternate menstrual products!

[newperspectives.livejournal.com]

the keeper really has become my new best buddy- i can't stop telling people how wonderful it is. you do have to be pretty body-friendly to use it, but the thing is- if you just make yourself do it a couple of times, you get much more comfortable with it...at least, i did. it's definately made me more aware of my body-- like, "oh wow, i can move it around if i flex these muscles- cool!", which is kind of nice.
i've never had any trouble with it popping out, by any means. i really don't think i could get it to if i tried, really.
and, a lot of people seem to be concerned with dealing with it in a public restroom-- and i can understand why, but the thing is, with as much as it holds, it's usually only a twice-a-day deal, at least for me. once when i get up, once in the evening. one time on my very heaviest flow i had to empty after about 6 hours- but that's still a long time, really.
to me it's been the perfect thing. i'm done ranting now.

[kazoogrrl.livejournal.com]

I got a Keeper about 4 months ago, and though I like it I don't think it's the best ever. I have been unable to get it to not leak - I empty it every 2 hours during my heavy days (and it's not full) and I can still feel it leaking even when I am not moving around too much. I keep a box of OB tampons on hand for trips (like camping) when I want to make sure there's no leaks, and I double up with a pad (kind of annoying, as I was hoping to be done with them). I think that for some people their vaginal shape does not work with the Keeper (yep, I made sure I had the correct size). I'd still recommend checking it out - you might like it better than you anticipate!