How many times have you been on the “feminine hygiene” aisle in your grocery store thinking “Pads or Tampons? UGH I really wish there was another option. Like a cup for my vagina!”

Well, you’re in luck because menstrual cups are the newest craze for that time of the month. You just insert the cup into your vagina and you’re covered for 12 hours (you can even have sex). One writer from Lovelyish actually tried them (and actually liked them). See what she has to say here.

What do you think? Would you try a cup?

The biggest reason I’m tired of my Ortho Lo is because whenever I miss two pills in a row, no matter what freaking color they are, I don’t just get spotting — I get my period for two whole weeks. It’s just about the opposite of fun, and it happens a lot. Oh yeah, and additionally? Sometimes even when I don’t miss a pill, I’ll get my period early. No warning. Just BAM, welcome to cramps and have a great day!!!

I haven’t had a long term relationship for a while and I’m really over my hook-up days, so the only reason I’m still on BC is to keep my periods regular and short, and if that isn’t really happening…why the crap am I even bothering?

After doing a little research online, it seems like getting off birth control can be a tricky thing. It can throw your body wayyy out of wack, give you headaches, and possibly cause your face to break out — something I am never ever going through again.

So here I am, stuck at work, pissed off that my period is almost 2.5 weeks early, but scared to actually do anything about it. This is where you come in, lovely readers. Are any of you going through this? Have you gone through this in the past? Do you recommend taking a break from birth control?

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to satisfy my second chocolate craving in three weeks.

Up = no babies.

Downs = weight gain, extreme emotions and severe migraine headaches.

For a while, the ups far outweighed the downs, but it soon got to a point where the headaches became debilitating (thus making me unable to have sex anyway), and I had to call it quits with the little pill. I tried other forms of birth control – the Nuva Ring, which was just too weird, and abstinence, which was just not realistic – and none of it worked.

I figured I was doomed to be sans BC forever, until my doctor told me about the IUD.

What is an IUD?

Basically, it’s a small object that is inserted through the cervix and placed in the uterus to prevent pregnancy. The doctor inserts the IUD onto your cervix where it stays for up to 10 years. If you want to get pregnant, you simply head back to the doctor and have it removed and your period and ovulation schedule return to normal. The IUD is 99.9% effective at preventing pregnancy and you never have to remember to take a pill again!

It sounded too good to be true, but my doctor assured me that it was safe, covered by insurance and the best option for someone like me. So I did it.

The strange thing about the IUD is that it has to be inserted when you are on your cycle. So, not only do you feel kinda gross and bloated, but you have to hop into the stirrups and lay spread eagle in front of the doc. Not your finest hour.

I got a little squeamish when I went into the room and saw the equivalent to a wee wee pad lying on the table. “It gets a little messy,” the nurse told me. Barf. I laid on the table, gripping my sweatshirt nervously, and the doctor went to work.

The procedure took all of 5 minutes, but they were probably the longest and strangest five minutes of my life. There was a speculum, some very long Q-Tips and the IUD itself. I felt extreme cramps (the kind that usually require a heating pad, my couch and Season 1 of Friends on DVD), and extreme embarrassment as I wondered how messy things were getting down there. And before I knew it, the whole thing was over.

No more pills, no babies, and, in about a year, no more periods at all!

The idea of having a strange plastic thing inside my body is a little weird, but it is far outweighed by the fact that I can enjoy my sexual freedom without the monthly fear that I may be a mom sooner rather than later.

If the pill works for you, then stick with it. But if you are like me and can’t handle the hormones in the birth control pill, an IUD is definitely worth looking into. And don’t worry; when the whole thing was done, my wee wee pad was perfectly clean.

After getting my period at the age of 10 (yes, feel sorry for me), I have had over ten + years to perfect dealing with this monthly nuisance. I am one of those chicks that gets her period BAD, like, cry on the bathroom floor bad. So, here’s how I’ve learned to deal (and some of my favorite, get-me-through-this-week, tips):

Pain Reliever. Any type of anti-inflammatory will work fine, but Pamprin is the best solution for those bad back and tummy pains. You’ll feel like new in no time!

Exercise. While it may be the last thing you want to do, any type of exercise will raise your endorphin levels and alleviate the tension in your lower area. My favorite is to jump on my treadmill and, while I feel like a mess on there, I feel much better when my workout is over.

Heat. Applying some heat to your pelvic area will break up the muscle cramping. If you can’t have a hot blanket wrapped around you at all times, the Heat Factory warmers or ThermaCare Heat Wraps are perfect to stick on the inside of your underwear for eight hours of warm, soothing comfort!

Tea. Herbal tea can give your body nutrients it needs to stay hydrated, so your muscles don’t cramp up (cramps are caused by dehydration ladies!).

Diet. No, I don’t mean starve yourself! I’m talking about eating the right foods, such as lean meats with lots of iron, as a way to replenish your body of its blood (and, therefore, iron) loss.

Potassium. Lots of b-a-n-a-n-a-s and potatoes will give you healthy doses of potassium, a nutrient that helps alleviate menstrual cramps.

Au Naturale. According to Prevention.com, aromatherapy methods, if you choose to believe, can help soothe and relieve lots of various types of ailments, including menstrual cramps. Fifteen minute aromatherapy massages (which you can do by yourself – all you need is some oils!) with an almond, lavender, rose and/or clary sage essential oils to soothe the muscles as you go.

So there you have it! I hope they work for ya. There’s nothing worse than being uncomfortable for five days every month. With these new remedies, you may not even know Aunt Flow stopped in for a visit (except for the whole lack-of-booty thing)!!!

[Photo courtesy of TeamSugar.com]

30-year-old, Dallas resident Brian Davidson made his debut on last night’s episode of So You Think You Can Dance. Though he was on camera for less than three minutes, he managed to offend, sully and for all intense and purposes ruin the following things for the viewing public:

- Dancing

- The state of Texas

- America in general

- Long-underwear inspired shirts

- Muhammad Ali

- People who sound freakishly similar to Thomas Haden Church

- and periods…because they didn’t have a bad enough rap already.

Watch Brian shake his moneymaker/ruin the art of dance forever in the clip below:

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