Period pain. Whether you get mild cramps or pain that sends you to bed cuddling a hot water bottle, it’s not the most pleasant of things to experience every month. Dysmenorrhea, which quite literally means ‘difficult menstruation’ can effect women of all ages, though many women find that after having a baby, they experience heavier periods and more intense period pain. When you’re on the go, the last thing you want to be experiencing is pain, which is reason why so many of us reach for a packet of paracetamol or ibuprofen when the cramps kick in.
There are however, a couple of natural ways to treat period pain which can actually help with the severity of the pain you’re experiencing as well as help treat the causation of the pain, and prevent it happening every month.
My Top 5 Tips
- Eat well – Research has found that painful periods hint at the body being in an inflammatory state. This means that increasing foods that have an anti-inflammatory effect can actually help minimize pain. Make sure you’re eating plenty of fresh fruit and veggies and sticking to whole grains.
- Take a multivitamin – While you may sometimes forget to take your daily multivitamin, making it a priority, especially around your time of the month can help decrease the severity of pain. This is due to the vitamin A and magnesium usually found in most supplements. Both of these elements help regulate hormones and relax muscle tissue. You can also try adding a fish oil or other essential fatty acid supplements.
- Sip a cup of tea – Keeping well hydrated is essential at all times, but especially during your period. Try leaving your coffee and black tea on the shelf and making a cup of soothing chamomile. Chamomile has both an anti-inflammatory and anti-spasmodic effect that can help relieve painful cramps.
- Apply heat – Just like during labour, heat can be an extremely beneficial when you’re experiencing painful cramping. Try a hot compress, heat pack or even a warm bath to help muscles relax.
- Exercise (if you can) – The endorphins released during exercise can actually help reduce the intensity and severity of cramps. While it may be the last thing you feel like doing, strapping on your sneakers of better yet, pulling on your swimmers, may be just the thing to help you feel better.
By Naomi Cotterill
Naomi is a sugar free eating, green smoothie scoffing mum to one toddler and two cats. When not wearing her mummy hat, she writes and blogs about all things parenting, lifestyle and wellness for a number of print and online publications including her own site (Not) Just A Mummy (www.notjustamummy.com) If she’s not blogging, making up songs about eating avocado sandwiches or getting covered with sand at the beach, you can usually find her on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram or Pinterest
