Comments on: The Keeper

By: The Student

The Student — Thu, 16 Feb 2006 13:03:40 +0000

One addendum to the Keeper: I didn’t mention this in the main post, but for those of you thinking of switching to a menstrual cup, you might want to buy a few cloth pads as well to use at night. The Keeper is great, and you can leave it in for a long time, but I have found that it’s really nice to give your vagina a break for a little while, and not wear the Keeper 24 hours a day, for 3-5 days. The nice folks who make the Keeper recommend the same thing (I think because of concerns about retrograde flow, although don’t quote me on that). Anyway, my usual routine is to use cloth pads at night, and let my vagina breathe a bit, and then use the keeper all day/evening, until I go to bed.

By: The Student

The Student — Thu, 16 Feb 2006 13:00:37 +0000

Tinah: I seem to recall Inga Muscio talking about a similar phenomenon in her book Cunt (which is a very radical but very fun book, once you get into it). Once she switched from tampons to cloth products, her periods got much lighter, and her cramps all but disappeared. She blamed it on the toxic chemical bi-products that exist in tampons, and felt that the tampon/feminine hygiene industry was self-perpetuating: once you started using those products, which made you crampy and your flow heavier, you were bound to use MORE of those products because of the increased flow, as well as a ton of advil and other NSAIDs, which then made you even more reliant on medications during your period. She felt that the best way to break the cycle was to stop using commercial products for your period, period. Which you’ve apparently discovered, too.

Bebu: good luck to you too! Again, lemme know how it goes, if you do end up making the switch. I am most curious.

Becca: Hi!

By: becca

becca — Thu, 16 Feb 2006 03:29:48 +0000

Hooray for talking up The Keeper. I’ve been using it since 1994, I think, and I love it!!

By: Bebunu

Bebunu — Tue, 14 Feb 2006 20:08:17 +0000

Thank you for sharing this information. I have read about disposable diaper for children and I thought it was a pretty neat idea, I think I might go ahead and buy a Keeper…I never felt comfortable wearing a tampon for more than a couple of hours, but with a Keeper I think that I wouldn’t have that problem.

Thanks again,
Bebu

By: The Student

The Student — Mon, 13 Feb 2006 02:37:03 +0000

Kyra: Oh, excellent! I hope it works for you as well as it has worked for me. Please let me know what you think of it! Give it at least a month or two to get the hang of it before you make up your mind. Congrats on being open to such an awesome change in your life, and good luck!

By: kyra

kyra — Sat, 11 Feb 2006 02:40:28 +0000

Thanks for introducing the Keeper, I didn’t know about it before!! I’ll spread the word among my friends, too. It’s fascinating and makes so much sense. And it seems easy. I’m definitely going to look into it and probably order one… yay!

By: TinaH

TinaH — Fri, 10 Feb 2006 13:17:55 +0000

I started getting a lot fewer cramps when I started using my flannel pads…