Period pain tips?

oh and it doesn’t matter how strange they are, just if it works for you, it’s worth a try! lol

Heating pad works wonders under the clothing, as long as the heating pad has a cloth cover on it. Also, crunching into the fetal position if possible. If no heating pad available, hot shower blasting directly on the tummy.

Normal menstrual pain is not so severe that if you could not have painkillers, you would really be in agony. She really needs a medial exam to make sure she is not dealing with something like endometriosis.

Here are some suggestions:
“Having a warm bath or lying down with a heating pad or hot-water bottle on your lower abdomen may also help. Exercise, believe it or not, can make you feel better; if you’re up to it, a walk around the block or a few sit-ups will stimulate your muscles to release feel-good endorphins.”

For prevention:
“Regular aerobic exercise (like walking or swimming for 20 minutes three times a week) has been shown to decrease menstrual pain in some women. Daily calcium supplements appear to lessen symptoms of PMS, including cramping. And, a 2005 study found that diets high in calcium and vitamin D may even reduce your risk of getting cramps in the first place.”

“Obstetrician/gynecologist Christian Northrup, author of Women’s Bodies, Women’s Wisdom, also reports that dietary changes have brought her patients relief from menstrual cramps. She recommends that women can decrease their intake of eggs, red meat, and dairy products or switch to organic dairy foods, on the theory that milk containing added hormones and antibiotics may stimulate female hormones in ways we don’t yet understand. Among her other recommendations:

•Get plenty of essential fatty acids, which are found in canned sardines, salmon, flaxseed oil, and ground flaxseed, among other things (according to Northrup, this seems to moderate cramps even if you don’t change your diets in other ways).
•Take extra magnesium and a multivitamin-and-mineral supplement.
•Take extra vitamin E during your menstrual cycles.”

Alternative:
“Although few scientific studies have been done in this area, many women have reported benefits from acupressure, acupuncture, and various herbal remedies, which are believed to help lessen menstrual cramps as well as the symptoms of PMS. In the herb department, cramp bark or black cohosh are thought to safely relieve menstrual cramps. Many women also swear by evening primrose oil, though no scientific evidence yet proves its effectiveness.”

When my cramps are really bad I usually take a few advil and then soak in a hot bath. The hot water will relax the muscles while the advil will reduce swelling. I feel for you girl! good luck!

Marina I disagree.

I’ve been in so much agony that I actually walked out of a really important timed test in high school because I couldn’t even think or see straight. I didn’t even tell the teacher or get a hallpass. I pretty much felt like I was going to die. I’ve had such bad cramps that I’ve cried, thrown up, and everything else. I’ve had such bad cramps that I missed out on parties, dates, and all kinds of other fun activities because I couldn’t even get out of bed.

I get regular “well woman” exams every year, and I don’t have any special medical condition in that area.

Cage, I’m sorry I don’t have anything for you. Honestly ibuprofen and hormone therapy have been the ONLY things that ever helped at all. I have to say if I had had a parent like that I would have probably resorted to stealing or anything at all to get relief.

Chocolate helps with cramps. Yes, it does. Also nuts like walnuts and almonds. Make her a mix of walnuts, almonds, and Hershey’s kisses – she’ll love you.

@La_chica_gomela I know that can be the case. I don’t consider your experience normal in the sense of the average pain level. I could not exceprt that entire source i provided the link for so I focused on the average pain level. Because there are women with you experience, that is why I suggested the doctor. You have probably gone and gotten the kind of help a physician can provide for extreme menstrual pain.

From the same source I provided above: ”. . .if your symptoms make it hard for you to work or even sit up straight, your doctor may prescribe a stronger drug or put you on birth control or estrogen pills, which decrease your body’s production of prostaglandin.

Depending on what disorder is causing it, secondary dysmenorrhea is treated with drugs and possibly surgery. ”

@Allie, well funnily enough she was showing me her chocolate collection lol, so she must subconsciously believe that too.
@La chica, sounds like she’s suffering from a similar thing to you, coz she throws up, and feels like she’s dying lol. and yeah I’d resort to buying my own medicine too, her mum is a bit weird, e.g. she doesn’t even tell her what’s in sausages, she just says it’s quorn because she thinks it will upset her. I work in a butchers and I was telling her about some beef, and she goes “what’s beef?” So yes, her mum is deffo a cock.

Raspberry leaf tea from Yogi Tea. A cup a day for a month, and little or no cramps. It was a suggestion from my acupuncturist. The tea also reduced clots and lightened my period. Sorry if that was a bit tmi.

Her mom needs to realize that her daughter is in serious physical distress and needs to get treatment for it; menstrual cramps should not be so bad that they make you vomit! She could have uterine fibroids, endometriosis, or something else. Pain is not something that you need to “just experience;” it can be successfully managed and even completely eliminated with the right treatment. Does she have another adult she can talk to about this? Can she go to the doctor by herself to get help? This is really ridiculous; she needs something more than a heating pad and good thoughts.

I totally agree with the whole hot bath thing the hot water really does help a lot what also helps me is a really hot cup of tea just normal tea. Also for me don’t know about any one else I useally when sitting down and just relaxing I put a pillow against my stomach and apply just a little bit of pressure it helps sometimes. A bit strange I know but hey i was always a bit of an odd one haha.

Can’t you just slip her some ibuprofen when her mom isn’t looking?

@pete, if I lived with her then yes, I definitely would. Either that or punch her mum in the face, then force her to accept pain killers aren’t bad.

Since period pain is cramping of muscles, exercise actually works quite well to reduce the pain. I know, I know, it sounds like a horrible prospect when you actually are experiencing period pains but it really does help. Maybe just a light jog if she can manage it, or some stretches if that’s too much. If she really can’t manage some exercise I would recommend curling up in bed with a hot water bottle on the tummy and a cup of tea and biscuits and chocolate followed by ice cream.

Ok, I used to REALLY SUFFER with this so I have a few tips. She should try using Evening Primrose Oil caplets before and during her period. I use it every day and the pain is usually less. For more immediate relief, she should try boiling ginger in water and drinking it throughout her period. She should make a strong tea with it. I usually add honey to it. She can also try Essential oil of Peppermint ( Young Living brand is expensive but good) in water, and she can rub Essential oil of Lavender on her abdomen to ease the pain. Finally, I highly recommend ThermaCare. They make heating pads for women during their menstrual cycles. The heating pad is placed in the underwear, against the abdominal area and I can tell you that it definitely works. It is one of the items that works best for me. Cold fluids can also worsen menstrual pain so she should keep that in mind. I can never drink anything cold during this time frame. I hope that I have been helpful.

A banana to help with the cramps

My mom loves that stuff during her period but she still takes some Tylenol with it.

Sucks that your friend has to go through without pain killers.

@cage Can’t this girl just go out and buy some pain reliever, and keep it on the dl?

@tiny, well yeah, but I guess she’s not smart enough for that lol :p

btw @ everyone! thank you for all the help, I’ll be forwarding all of your ideas on to her.

@cage: She’s probably about done with the cramps by now, right?

@poofandmonk
What? after less than 24 hours? um don’t think so!
I dunno, apparently she gets them for a while before and heavily during her period.

yeah, try more like 4–8 days for many of us

Geez… I should’ve looked at how long ago the question was posted. Seems like it’s been 3 days already. That’s what happens when you’re working a weekful of double shifts, I guess! Sorry… you’re right. lol

aw, poor poofandmook!

@chica: I won’t be poor come next Friday though ;) LOL

dont let her just lay around that just makes it worse but i guess im a little late on the question sorry

I too was a severe sufferer. I tried everything – pills, yoga, accupressure- standing on my head – I participated in a clinical study earlier this year for a new type of product called the Allay Patch. The study showed some really good results with up to a 73% reduction in menstrual and period pain and cramps. The study can be seen at: http://exploreplasticsurgery.com/2009/01/28/allay-patch-actipatch-for-menstrual-pain-pilot-study/ My GYN was one of the sponsors. (she has given me a year’s supply! i swear by this product. The product, which is specifically designed to treat menstrual pain and period pain is at www.allaypatch.com. It is really new, so you won’t find it in stores – although I understand it’s over the counter in Canada and Europe. Hope it call help you – Jane

@janeplain: Hmm, that’s really interesting. How does the patch stick to the skin. Is it adhesive, or is your underwear’s waistband just supposed to hold it there?

this is going to sound weird, but when I have my Period my entire butt aches, like the muscles are sore everything. so I was online trying to figure out how to make it better without going out and buying anything else (midol wasn’t working on this particular symptom) and found that (and this is the weird part) Vicks Vaporub relieves your butt! now don’t get it in the wrong sort of places you know, but just rub it on those cheeks and it’s almost INSTANT relief

Midol sucks butt for women who suffer from severe menstraul cramps.
@La_chica_gomela it’s funny because every word you said was MY EXACT SITUATION.
Exercise in my case always made me worse because I wasn’t getting enough oxygen flowing.
My god I feel like dying sometimes because of my period pain. I’ve been hospitalized three times before because I got so bad that my mom didn’t know what to do with me. Hell, she even thought I was near death.
This answer is EXTREMELY late, but I hope your friend has found some way of finding her niche on taking care of period cramps. I take 600 mg of ibuprofen and use thermacare heat patches. Also if your friend has chosen to finally go out of her way to find some kind of otc drug or ibuprofen, she should take it a few days before her period starts so it can already be in her blood system so when her period actually does start it won’t hurt as bad.