First Use of Freedom Cups During My Menstruation 月经期间的首次自由杯使用

It is not unusual for me to leave the comfort of my home for work when my menstruation is approaching. For this time around, I have a better way to deal with it than using a sanitary pad. I decided to put on my Freedom Cups. For the next three days, I repeated the same process and I did successfully avoid being so wasteful of throwing three clean but used sanitary pads.

身为职业女性，不管我们在月经来临之前或之时，离开我们家舒适家到外头去的工作是很平常的事。以前，我的解决方案是在接近月经来临前这段时间，每天用一个卫生巾以防万一。现在，我有一个更好的方法来处理这问题，而并不需要使用卫生巾。 我决定穿上我的自由杯。 在接下来的三天里，我重复了同样的过程，并且成功地避免了浪费三个清洁但使用过的卫生巾。

I did try out the menstruation cup before my period. However, I can only tell if the cup can seal and capture fluid when I am having menstruation. This was my experience:

我在来月经之前尝试过月经杯。 但是，我只能在我月经时告诉自己杯子是否可以封闭并储存液体。 以下记录了我的经验：

Day One

It was easier to slide in when I was having menstruation. Hmm, you know the reason. I wore it with a pad because I was too afraid of any leakage. I changed it after twelve hours when I can see some stain on the pad. It was just a few drops of blood. For this reason, I found Freedoms Cups was very reliable, it was almost leak-free. My fluid filled about half of the Grande-sized cup. I decided to shorten the wearing time to eight or ten hours followed by a change for a better leak control. I slept well without having to lay a piece of sanitary sheet on my bed or being mindful of my posture while sleeping. I hardly noticed its existence.

第一天

当我来月经时，它更容易滑入。 嗯，我想你是知道原因的。 因为我太害怕泄漏所造成的尴尬，我同时也穿上了卫生垫子。 当我看到垫上有污渍时，我到冲凉房去清洗杯子，而那也已经是12小时后的事情了。 那污迹也只不过是几滴血罢了。 出于这个原因，我发现自由杯非常可靠，几乎没有泄漏任何经血。 我的杯子是大号的，而液体充满了杯子的大约一半。 我决定将穿戴时间缩短到8或10个小时，以便可以更好的控制泄漏。 我睡得很好，无需在床上铺一张卫生棉垫，也不用在睡觉时留意自己的姿势。 我很难意识到自由杯的存在。

Day Two

I wore it without a pad. Hey, I have become more confident now! I changed it after ten hours, no leakage at all. My fluid filled slightly lesser than half of the cup. 

第二天

我只用杯子，没有用上卫生垫子。 嘿，我现在对自由杯更加有信心了！ 10小时后我清洗了它，完全没有泄漏。 流量稍微比第一天少。

Day Three to Day Six

I decided to wear it for twelve hours, as I knew my flow will be much lesser from day three and onwards. My fluid only filled one-third of the cup. Perfectly leak-proof. 

第三天至第六天

我决定穿上12个小时。 因为我知道从第三天起，我的流量会减少很多。 这次液体只填满了杯子的三分之一。 完全防漏。

By calculation, I saved twenty four pads and at least four panty liners in a month. In another word, two hundreds and eighty eight pads and forty eight panty liners for a year. I really do not want to count how much I have to use or spend on those sanitary products for the next ten or twenty years. And it is really bad to know all these things will go to landfill.
通过计算，我在一个月内减少使用24个卫生巾和至少4个内裤衬垫。 换句话说，一年省了288个卫生巾和48个内裤衬垫。 我真的不想算在接下来的10年或20年里，我会花多少钱在这些卫生用品上。 而且对环境来说也是一种无法负荷的破坏。

I told my mom about Freedom Cups. She asked have I purchased the cup from Guardian or Watson? How can the company make money by selling these cups, as a woman only need one cup which can last for up to ten years? I told her that I did not see it was being sold at any pharmacy or supermarket because I did not think the seller can make any profit out of this.
我告诉妈妈关于我使用自由杯的经过。 她问我是否从Guardian或Watson购买杯子？ 公司如何能通过销售这些杯子来赚钱，因为每个女人只需要一个杯子便可以使用长达10年之久？ 我告诉她，我没有看到它在任何药店或超市销售，因为我不认为卖家可以从中获得很高的利润。

After my first try of the cup during my menstruation, I found my fluid is not that scary or sting. In fact, our blood is odorless. The cause of period blood odor is bacteria which grows on our pad. By the excellent sealing ability of Freedom Cups, I can easily eliminate this problem. How I wish I meet Freedom Cups earlier.
在我月经期间第一次尝试杯子后，我发现经血并不是那么可怕或会发出难闻的腥味。 事实上，我们的血液是非常干净且无味的。 经血的气味是因为我们的垫子上长了很多的细菌。 凭借自由杯出色的密封能力，我可以在无需再使用卫生巾的情况下轻松解决了这个问题。 我多么希望能早些时候遇见自由杯。

Lastly, I would say I will never go back to using a sanitary pad, which controlled how should I sleep, how should I move and where I can go in the past decades. Of course, saving my wallet is another plus point!
最后，我会说我永远都不会再使用卫生巾，它在过去几十年内控制了我睡觉的姿势，以及我经期时的活动。 当然，它将帮我省下许多钱是另一个重点！