"I appreciate the sentiment of taking time to feel the weight of what pregnancy is like, but no pregnancy prosthetic is going to totally capture the physiological challenges of a pregnant woman.  It's increased empathy, yes, but no different than thinking you understand what a blind person feels just because you wore a blindfold for a while.  "

"How is this any different from Softcups (which Flex acquired)?  These even look like Softcups, which have been available in several grocery stores for years.  It's still a disposable, wasteful product.  However, being able to wear Flex/Softcups (because let's be real; they're the same damn product) during sex is a nice benefit over menstrual cups.As for cups, it's not that hard to use them without getting dirty (as the commenter before brought up) -- most have a sort of handle at the bottom that can be used to remove the device, with little mess, and removing it without spilling it is easy.  I could probably count on one hand the amount of times i've accidentally spilled a cup (and it was always into a toilet) since switching to them 5 years ago.  I haven't had too much difficulty with the excess residue left on the outside of the cup, but if someone did, using liners or something wouldn't be a big issue.  I wouldn't recommend using vaginal wipes and certainly wouldn't recommend actually shoving one into the vaginal canal.From what I've seen, most of the pushback on menstrual cups comes from misinformation about usage/cleanliness or (and this is a more legitimate reason) having to try out different brands, as different brands work better with different sizes/shapes.  It would be nice if OBGYNs could suggest menstrual cups to patients, based on that.  "