I Should Have Stuck With DivaCup!

If you're squeamish, stop reading this review NOW!

After 4-5 years of using my reliable, trusty, Canadian-made DivaCup, it was time to get a new menstrual cup (they degrade after a while, and smell funky after years of use, no matter how clean/sanitized). DivaCup sent me a coupon for $5 off my next purchase, and though I was waiting for the cups to go on sale at one of the local retailers, whilst reading up on different brands of cups available on the market, I learned that a company called INTIMINA had created a menstrual DISC—and ... it could be worn during sex (unlike DivaCup)!

https://www.intimina.com/products

Years ago, I occasionally used the disposable menstrual cups which were called "Instead" (I believe they were rebranded as "SoftCup"). I really liked and never, ever encountered difficulties when using them; however, they're pretty pricey to be throwing away daily, not to mention, add more waste to the landfill.

It appeared that INTIMINA's Ziggy Cup was a reusable, silicone cup, working in the same fashion as disposable cups on the market. BRILLIANT!

There isn't a London Drugs in my small town, so I had to order from an online source. INTIMINA had a sale in December, reducing the cost from $39.95 CDN to $29.95; Amazon Canada's was about $50. (I wish I'd gone through Amazon!) Therefore, I ordered directly from INTIMINA, to take advantage of the "savings".

Bad idea. I didn't know the company was based overseas, for one. A representative emailed me after ordering, to inform me that it was possible I'd have to pay for duties/taxes applied upon arrival to Canada. I've always been lucky to have dodged such, and therefore agreed to pay the possible additional charges, figuring it wouldn't likely be too bad *if* my package was slapped with duties/taxes. I figured it would still be less expensive than ordering from Amazon Canada or London Drugs (online).

I was wrong, and now WISH I'd ordered from Amazon, with their awesome return policy!

My parcel arrived within 5 days from eastern Europe (Bulgaria, I believe), shipped by DHL. However, there were $20 of tax/duties applied. Therefore, the device cost me as much as I'd have paid via Amazon Canada (where I have Prime shipping and could have sent the unsatisfactory item back for a full refund). Oops.

Still, I was eager to use my new cup! I immersed it in boiling water (to disinfect), and when the time came for me to put the Ziggy Cup to work, I knew there would be a learning curve for insertion and positioning—just as there had been with DivaCup (which I perfected in 2-3 uses).

TMI: I'm 44, never had children, a 28-day/like a clock woman, with light to medium flow—even with a standard copper/plastic IUD. No problems in that department. It is rare that I use anything but a super absorbency tampon (overnight); regular and light tampons for this woman. In other words: I'm not a gusher, and would only have to empty my Ziggy Cup every 12 or so hours, just as I had done with my awesome DivaCup.

No matter HOW many times I've tried to use the Ziggy Cup, positions I've used to insert (sitting on toilet, standing with a foot propped in the shower)—no matter HOW many times I've followed the directions to a "t" or tried a few variations ....

The damn thing LEAKS!🤬 Sure, it retains a bit of flow, but most of it leaks out. Every. Single. Time.

THANK GOD I sleep alone and no one but me has ever borne witness to the messes courtesy of INTIMINA's Ziggy Cup!❌ I will also add: it's a messy task to REMOVE as well; you have to hold it level while sliding it out, sitting on the toilet (not a good idea to do in a public bathroom). I never had a problem with messes using DivaCup, and beyond a couple of initial uses, I also never experienced leakage with that device.

There is nothing wrong with my anatomy. I know my body. My uterus isn't tilted, nor are there prolapse issues. Sure, my pelvic muscles aren't *as* toned as they were in my 20s (sorry girls, it'll happen to you in your 40s, too), but hardly to the degree where a menstrual cup should leak or ... begin to slide out with simple activity.

I went back to using o.b. tampons (less waste) in April.

I emailed INTIMINA about my dissatisfaction in March, receiving a response from Customer Care Representative, Ivana:

"Thank you for reaching out.

The first couple of cycles with Ziggy cup can be a little tricky - I know it took a couple of tries for me until the cup stopped popping out of place. It is normal if the cup is pushed out of place by your pelvic muscles when you for instance go to the toilet; the muscles contract and this activity can move the cup (depending on the strength your muscles of course). However, if you're not engaging in any activity that requires your pelvic muscles to contact, the cup should stay in place.

It happened to me in the beginning that I would place the cup correctly, tucking it behind the pubic bone, but after an hour or two, it would move out of place. Since then, I changed the way I insert the cup and it definitely did the trick for me. So, I would just follow the general guidelines - squeezing the cup in the middle, making an "8" shape, inserting back end first. What I would do next is push the cup in by the rim using my thumb - this allows me to push it further in initially, deeper than it is actually going to sit. As I pull back my thumb, the cup's rim expands into place - behind the pubic bone. At this point, I just try to wiggle the rim left and right, make sure it sits well in place and also run my finger over the thin silicone part to make sure everything is in place and my cervix is covered.

I really hope I managed to explain it and that this will help you as well. Feel free to experiment a bit and let me know if it will work."

So ... I tried repeatedly, again and again ... and again ... with the same results. The $50 device, a huge disappointment, waste of money, and now sits in a drawer, unused (since I tried it AGAIN, twice, 2.5 weeks ago; same result).

I wrote to INTIMINA again on June 6, receiving a response from Ivana again the following day:

"Dear Kate,

Thank you for letting us know.

I understand your frustration completely and I'm sorry the suggestions I gave you didn't work. This did the trick for me, but of course, not everybody has the same anatomy and the same methods may work differently on different people, which is why we always suggest to experiment with insertion and adjustment. This doesn't in any way mean there may be something wrong with your body.

If the cup is inserted correctly, but it still moves out of place and leaks, I would expect it to happen if it fills up - if this is the case, the only solution is to empty it more often, but this would depend entirely on your flow.

I'm sorry to tell you that we don't have a satisfaction guarantee for our menstrual cups. According to our policy, we are not able to accept INTIMINA returns unless the item was unopened and unused, due to the intimate nature of the products. Once the seal has been broken this voids the option for return even if the pleasure object has never been used.

I'm very sorry for the inconvenience and for any further questions, I remain at your disposal.

Kind regards,
Ivana"

Had I bought from Amazon Canada or even London Drugs (who have great return policies), I'd not be out $50, with a useless, disappointing silicone disc sitting in a drawer. The whole point of buying the Ziggy Cup was to eliminate the need to spend money monthly on tampons or add to environmental waste. Now, the Ziggy Cup will likely ... be going in the garbage, contributing to waste, never to degrade or decompose.

You'd think INTIMINA would do something as a gesture to improve the situation—offering a cup device from their collection or something. NOPE!

IF you should wish to try the INTIMINA Ziggy Cup, do not order it from their corporate website; get it from Amazon or London Drugs, because they will take back items (used or unused) within a certain period (no pun intended) of time. Refund or credit.

I am waiting for DivaCup to go on sale again, and will be sure to use the $5 coupon they'd sent to me last Fall; a new DivaCup will end up costing me about $26 (on sale w/coupon)—possibly less. I'll stick with buying Canadian, and what I KNOW is a trustworthy, reliable product, thanks!!🇨🇦