Whenever I try any type of insertable period product, I can’t just forget about it and go about my day. No, for some reason it’s as if my brain is fully aware every single second that the product is in me, so I can’t stop thinking about it.
I would be talking to someone, and mentally i’d be like “i have a tampon in, i have a tampon in, i have a tampon in”
It especially feels worse when I move around and feel it slightly. It’s pretty annoying because I just end up solely relying on pads, which are thick and leak often because I have a heavy period. I t ried talking to other women irl about it but none of them had a similar thing.
Edit: I don’t actually feel it most of the time, it’s my mind for some reason constantly reminding me and just being hyperaware.
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That’s how I was when I had my IUD! I couldn’t actually feel it but its existence was always lingering in my mind.
Are you also ADHD?
Yes but only when it’s not been in right. With tampons it was when I’d have too absorbent of a tampon for my flow or if I didn’t put it in deep enough, with the cup it was before I cut off enough of the stem or if I didn’t quite get it in right. Hopefully you figure something out that helps as it’s very distracting when it’s uncomfortable 🙂
Only when it’s not deep enough.
Definitely my experience with the cup, for YEARS. I never got used to it. I switched to a disc last year and I don’t feel it or think about it at all. I occasionally have moments of panic like, “did I forget to put it in??” Or “did I forget to take it out after my period??”
Which is still better than being hyper-aware of something all the time!
Are you getting it in far enough? If it’s not in past the muscle you’ll feel it all day.
Are you sure you’re inserting it fully? I used to have this issue, and then I realized that even though I thought my tampon was in correctly, it wasn’t nearly far enough inside. Once I started correctly inserting it, I could rarely feel it at all.
Yup, no matter what I do, I always, ALWAYS feel my tampon. I’m always extremely aware of it
Not when it is in correctly. Do you have ADD/ADHD or an anxiety disorder?
With heavy periods and a cup, I was always somewhat aware, watching out for the dreaded bubbles that would mean I was about to spring a leak.
Nah I don’t feel it and I don’t get cramps besides literally just when my period starts so it’s kind of easy to forget about the whole thing (I know I’m the exception and got lucky)
Yup, tampons just did not work for me. I could always feel them, and the made cramps worse. I will say, with the cup – I got to the ‘forgot I had it in“ stage. The cup was life-changing for me!
I feel like I’m going to faint when I do
Yes, they’re uncomfortable.
I have 2 different sizes of Saalt cup, and even though they are the softer style and less rigid, they aren’t comfortable on my heaviest days (when I really need them, of course), which is also the majority of my period.
I might be a little oversensitive about them as well, considering those days are also especially painful, considering the clots being passed, and the heaviness of the flow in general – so when it feels like they are making my cramping worse, its difficult for me to determine whether or not that’s truly the case.
My first cups were Diva Cups, and the Saalt have been a far better experience, despite the discomfort.
I’m thinking about trying their discs instead.
I digress, sorry – I get this is more about the general sensation. Even when not uncomfortable, yes, I’m aware, in an annoying way that is reminiscent of having a loose hair somewhere between my skin and clothing. Or, like.. feeling I have nail polish on.
Edit; wait, you meant being back of the mind aware. Ha! Sorry, I am totally all over the place right now (that’d be my own lived-in experience, live, this week!). Yep, that too. I know it’s there. For me, some of it might be a persistent nagging feeling that it might leak.
I think one of the biggest lies we were sold was that you can’t feel tampons at all. They may feel more comfortable to you in general or during certain activities, but that’s not necessarily a universal experience for everyone. I definitely feel them when they’re in and am aware of it constantly and how long it’s been in and when I can finally take it out. It’s a lot of mental energy dealing with them compared to pads. With pads I just put one on and I don’t think about it again until I can feel that I need to change it. I think where it comes from is my mom terrified the living daylights out of me about toxic shock syndrome lol. But once I finally tried them in college, I realized they didn’t feel like they magically disappeared up there like the TV ads implied and I kind of felt like they were way overhyped. Everyone has their own preferences for period management and that’s okay!
It’s sort of a mental thing for me because I don’t wanna forget I put one up there and get TSS! Heck, sometimes I’ll get some random ache after putting in a tampon and my anxiety is like “it’s TSS” 😂 (even though I know it’s not)
I’ve never even forgotten one up there so far in my 17 years of bleeding so hopefully it never happens
Are you on birth control may I ask? I skip every period using the pill for personal reasons and medical. I am so much happier not having one.
Only if positioned awkwardly or made of weird material personally. Mine are very heavy though so I don’t leave them in longer than a few hours at a time.
No, don’t think I’ve ever felt that. Once a tampon is in, I can forget about it.
It is in the back of my mind to check it / change it when I next go to the toilet, but that’s it.
yes; and people always said “It’s not in correctly.”
Cut to a few years ago when I was late diagnosed with ADHD+ SPD and learned that’s why I can feel it, not because I was using them incorrectly.
I felt that way about tampons, but not the cup or disc.
This sounds like OCD
Yes! No matter how skillfully or deeply I insert it, I can feel it against my pelvic bone. I’ve tried everything.
I have a working theory it’s because I have a tilted uterus, which means my cervix position is also different than the usual person. But who knows, I’m not a doctor. All I know is pads work best for me.
Way back when I needed such a support system to get through the day, I was only fully conscious if I didn’t get the tampon properly seated. Every time that happened, I would end up leaking badly between changes. When properly positioned, I would only check saturation when I needed to use the restroom.
Thankfully I had my uterus removed in 1994 because I had huge fibroids and was bleeding 24/7.
That’s why I use sea sponges 🥰
With a tampon, not really, but with a cup I am hyper aware it’s in. And it’s not necessarily that I can feel it but the sensation or pressure might be what’s triggering that.
I used to not feel tampons until I developed pelvic floor dysfunction and now I can only wear pads or period underwear. It’s like the tampons exerts this constant pressure and it makes me pee more. I’ve also expelled both my IUDs within a month of getting them. I feel like for some of us, tampons and cups aren’t meant to be. 😩