SAALT Menstrual Cup // A Doula's Review
We're all ladies here, right?
Just kidding, men... you are welcomed here too. If you're anything like my husband, you've had your fair share of menstrual product shopping. But I will give the warning that we're about to get pretty friendly. I'm a firm believer that men should be included in the menstrual conversation, but if you're still a little squeemish- feel free to dip out now or go straight to getting a gift for your lady friend. This could be your last period purchase for up to 10 years! Use code "worthy10" for 10% off until 6/30/18.
UPDATE:
I have now been using the SAALT cups for about 6 months now. The verdict? I LOVE them!! I haven’t had the need to buy pads/tampons since I ran out of my stash. It’s been so, so nice! I’ve been using the regular size for the first two days of my cycle and the smaller size for the remainder. I haven’t leaked even once.
Since I truly, truly love, use and recommend this product, the ladies at SAALT have been so kind as to set me up with an affiliate link. All the links on here should be changed over to it, so if you decide you’d like to try their products, please remember me and my page! For each cup you purchase through my link, I’ll get about $2- which directly pours into my “buy more books” fund. ;)
I really appreciate it and hope you love your cup as much as I do!
I have used a lot of menstrual products.
I've had my period for 15 or so years. In any other field of life, that would make you an expert at knowing what you're doing. But here I am, for the first time in my life, obsessed with feeling good while "on the rag". I don't often leave reviews. I read pages and pages of them on Amazon before committing to a purchase, but rarely leave them. But this Saalt cup 100% deserves a shout-out.
Here's the short and sweet of my story:
When I was a kid, I had bad, bad, bad menstrual cramps.
On the floor, shaking..sweating..throwing up. I would push the limits on my liver with a serious concoction of pain killers and even landed in the ER once. Blessfully, it's only happened once since I've been married. When I was about 15, I went on hormonal birth control to help the cramps and also help prevent a problem I was having with ovarian cysts. I did the routine of taking medications (aleve, tylenol and ibuprofen) in a mathematical way as to carefully not overdose...all starting a week before my period would even come. So at that point, I had hormones, painkillers and still bad cramps. And this was how my obgyn told me to handle things.
Obviously, looking back, I strongly disagree with the advice she gave me. She could have told me to ditch the pills along with sugar and dairy the week before my period and those cramps would calm down. Or that adding blackstrap molasses, calcium and magnesium would absolutely help me out. I probably would have rolled my eyes had she told me to drink some hot tea...but had she given me the right herbal formula, maybe I would have believed her? Who knows. But while I disagree with her, she did tell me something pretty profound....
“Quit using tampons.”
She told me that for a minority of women, tampons can make menstrual matters worse. She didn't give me a reason why...but left me with some small statistic. I took her advice for about 2 months. Pads sucked. Hot, sticky, smelly...just, yuck. Every 15 year old girl loves that, right?
Fast forward a few years and I quit birth control cold turkey. That's one way of handling things. My period went missing for a LONG time and then returned with a vengeance. I switched to cloth pads (bought off of etsy) which were fabulous and evened out my cycle in only 2 months. I could take a turmeric supplement and drink some hot tea and would be just fine. This was glorious, but a little bit of work with constantly washing my cloth stash to keep up. Laziness got the better of me aaaand back to tampons. I stuck with organic ones because at the time, I worked in a shop that sold them and I got a discount. Super convenient and didn't have all the nasty chemicals found in your typical tampon. I switched to using Instead Softcups not long after that simply because you could have sex with them in. Hormones, am I right?
This was great until I went through a miscarriage. I bled for what felt like forever, and then my cycle didn't return for months. Talk about a mind game. When it finally did return, it was out of this world crazy. Minimal cramps, but super heavy bleeding. This was something I had not ever, ever experienced. Softcups were now completely out of the question..they got so messy and started leaking each and every time. Conventional tampons would be full in 1/4 the time and I (working in childcare) didn't know when I'd be able to change them...so I was using tampons/pads at the same time. Expensive and a little awful.
This went on for a while until one day I accidentally bought cardboard tampons instead of plastic. Better for the earth but bleh on a dry day. (Funny little fact: sex on your period would be considered a "drier" cervical mucous day.) If you're looking at a cardboard applicator, you can see the top of the actual tampon. Now, I've used plenty of "tampon only"s....and this one didn't look right. YOU GUYS, this thing was flaking off sharp, bleached white, little shards. I showed my husband and then I inspected each one... yep. They were all coming apart. These tampons can easily leave little bits and pieces in your vagina, guys! Not only does that drastically increase your risk of infections and TSS, but what about all those hormone disrupting chemicals sitting in your coochie for hours at a time? It's no wonder infertility is on the rise. -Sigh- I ended up using cloth tampons (again, etsy) which worked really well! But then I started attending births. The hormones in the room would bring on my period each time...so I was menstruating about every 2 weeks. lol SO MUCH FUN. So instead of constantly having little crocheted tampons hanging everywhere to dry, I figured I'd finally buy a cup.
So let's recap:
Pads
Tampons
Softcups
Cloth Pads
Cloth Tampons
Pad/Tampon combo
For you to understand why I'm obsessed with this little cup, you have to understand everything I've tried before that hasn't worked.
Each month, I would tell myself, "Okay... I need to buy one for next time!" Well I finally did. And I am kicking myself for not trying one sooner!
I initially went with saalt because their packaging is absolutely gorgeous (I'm a sucker for good marketing), and
I liked the idea of supporting a smaller company. Also- the name felt like a better fit than "Diva Cup". But I later fell in love with the heart behind the company. Saalt is about better care for women and the empowerment of others.
The Saalt cup is made of medical-grade silicone and dyes that are chemical, latex and BPA free; and it will last you up to 10 years.
There are 2 sizes to choose from: small and regular.
Small - 3 tampons
Regular - 4 tampons
I went with the duo pack because I didn't know which size to order. I wanted to go with the larger one, because compared to my cycle before the baby, my bleeding felt pretty heavy. But I had read online different sizing reviews in relativity to your cervix and it was sounding like the smaller size might be better. I really, really wanted this to work out so I ordered both.
I was spotting when my shipment came, so I rolled it up like a misshapen taco and put the smaller one in. We went out of town for the day and I didn't think anything of it. When I got home, I took it out and to my surprise it was halfway full. You guys...I was on my period and didn't even realize it. I dumped, rinsed and reinserted. ... My hands stayed clean the entire time. This, so far, was a huge improvement from the softcups. I wore it to bed with a pad because, let's be real, I wasn't about to trust my new sheets with this thing. I woke up the next morning in a weird, rushed hustle that required me to head outside for a moment before I could use the restroom. Now, you ladies know the morning flow situation. By the time I could check the state of my panties, I was convinced they would be ruined. But lo and behold, not even a drop on my pad. Mind you- this was the smaller cup. I have yet to use the larger of the two.
Guys- this little thing has passed the sleep test, the sneeze/cough/laugh test, the "toddler won't let me transfer him to the crib" test and the "do-way-too-many-jumping-jacks-to-prove-its-failure" test.
Combined with diet, womb massage and vaginal steaming...my cycle has changed drastically and my body is truly healing.
You pretty much need this thing in your life. I'm not kidding when I say it has changed my life. I have since ditched all other products and now just carry one of these in my bags for yoga, births and any unexpected situation. This cup would be perfect for traveling, hiking or camping.
So how much do these bad boys cost?
Cost was a huge reason I stalled on purchasing a cup. The Divacup on the shelf at my local store was about $40. The Saalt cup not only has improved features.. it's way more affordable!
Cherie and Amber were gracious enough to hook me up with a 10% discount code for you guys: "worthy10" valid until 6/30/2018. They have also sent one of each of the sizes so, if you want to, you can fold them up the different ways and squish them between your fingers to get a feel for them before purchasing. Most women I ask about cups are fairly intimidated by them. I am with you, girl. But these are way easier and so much more comfortable than I had imagined!
Anyways...back to the cost.
The small and regular are $27 each ($24.30 with discount) and come with a carry bag for your cup.
They also sell a duo pack that comes with both of the sizes for $43 ($38.70 with discount). This also includes 2 carry bags.
Let's say you spend $8 a month. Pads, tampons.. maybe both? If you get your period every 28 days, that's 13 cycles a year. Multiply that by 10 years and you'll have spent, minimally, $1,040. In only 3 cycles, a Saalt cup pays for itself.
The women at SAALT understand that not every product is the perfect fit for every woman, so they offer a 2 cycle money back guarantee- If you don't love it, you get your money back. But I'm pretty sure you're going to be obsessed like I am!