Recycle your Tampons/pads?

This is not really the type of topic I usually openly talk about, but I thought it was important to share otherwise you may never come across this and I think information is power. Once you know it, you can decide if this is for you or not.

I have to be honest with you, it never crossed my mind the amount of waste/landfill tampons and pads add up to. I thought that by using organic cotton pads, I was protected and happy about it.

But one day a friend started the conversation and told me how wonderful her “menstrual” cup was as it was saving her heaps of money and as a teacher, she didn’t need to worry about carrying tampons/pads or having to go to the bathroom to check how everything was going. She also explained how good it was for the environment.

I had never come across this type of product so I was quite interested, but didn’t really think it was for me. I did some reading about it and just put the whole thing in the “too hard basket”.

Did you know that a version of the menstrual cup has been successfully catching and collecting  women’s monthly flow since the 1930s, but fell out of favour after the introduction of disposable sanitary napkins and tampons?

I came across another friend who told me about her sister using one of these cups and she was going to give it a go. See, the thing is, those friends are not really the “natural” type and they were the ones telling ME about it!!! So I thought I better check it out.

Well, today I have finally had the courage to buy one of these silicone cups. But what are they exactly, I hear your ask Well, they are a silicone type of cup that is inserted inside your vagina. The cup collects the blood, instead of absorbing it and when inserted correctly,  you won’t even be able to feel it at all. There are many benefits of wearing a menstrual cup, but the 2 that caught my attention are the fact that you don’t smell and you only need to change it every 12 hours. For me this was the best as I tend to wake up in the middle of the night to go to the toilet and it makes things a lot quicker if I don’t have to worry about pads as well.

I put it in the shower and cleaned it in the morning to only worry about it again at night time. Absolutely fantastic.
Australian women will use close to 10,000 disposable tampons and pads in their lifetime – which amounts to a heck of a lot of landfill, and a big impact on your back pocket.

​Here are some of the benefits of using one of these cups (extracted from Juju’s website):

• can be worn overnight.
• can be worn 2-3 times longer than a pad or tampon, or up to 12 hours.
• can be worn by women with a retroverted uterus and heavy menstrual flow.
• has no strings, no wings and no leaks, making it perfect for women with an active lifestyle who enjoy sports such as running, swimming and yoga.
• is great for women who travel as it is easy to pack and you don’t have to worry about buying or disposing of products.
• doesn’t make your vagina dry like tampons so it can be worn before you start your period .
• is odour-free.
• healthier for your purse.
• healthier for the planet.

It was super easy for me to switch to the cup (I thought I would not like it). It is not so easy for everyone and there are many brands on the market. I suggest you do your research to find one that works for you. Apparently it takes a few times to practice until you get it right, but I think it will be great. What do you think? Have you ever heard of these types of cups?
I chose the Juju because it is an Australian Registered Therapeutic Good, the stem on the Juju menstrual cup can be trimmed to customize the fit, contains no latex, bpa’s, or harmful dyes that can cause irritation.

There are plenty of website explaining all the different types, but this one was really helpful to me: www.menstrualcupsaustraliaonline.com.au

So please share your questions, opinions or feedback. You can send me an email if you prefer: contact or post your question below.

Erika