I have a very small, pointless confession- I have never myself used a menstrual cup.
When I first heard about these fascinating little devices quite some time ago I was intrigued. But, I was also horrified. How lovely would that be- pulling out a wee little cup of sloughed-off bloody uterine crud. Perfect for my clumsy self to spill all over myself, or on the floor, making it look like a murder had occurred in the bathroom. I’m a pretty limber one due to my hypermobility, but still, I still felt as though it would be awkward and potentially messy, trying to dig that little thing out.
But, today’s younger people have figured out the cost savings of using a menstrual cup, not to mention the environmental impact of keeping all those pads and tampons out of landfills. If I had the brain capacity to do some basic math and calculate the number of products a woman would use over her lifetime, I could predict the cost savings she would enjoy as a result. But I don’t, so I’m not going to even try.
From my understanding, menstrual cups require very little in terms of care and last a very long time. (Obviously they are discarded in case they become damaged). Between uses it is recommended that they are washed with a mild soap and water. However, at the end of your cycle it is recommended that you give the cup a good clean by boiling it.
Now, if say your family members or roommates don’t want to be using the same little pot to heat up their pasta sauce as you do to boil your “blood catcher” (as my daughter likes to call it), you may consider buying a dedicated pot. But unless you label it with something like “for my hoo-ha’s blood catcher ONLY”, it may get mixed in with the other pots, throwing your household into an inevitable crisis.
Some brilliant person invented a solution to cleaning your menstrual cup that does not involve your family’s pasta sauce pot.
In all reality, this is just a spin off from a baby bottle steamer, but I think it’s a great, perhaps unnecessary appliance, nonetheless. I also think it’s kind of adorable.
Introducing… the Blood Catcher Sterilizer:
