How to Ease Menstrual Symptoms- Naturally
Aunt Flo, how I dread her arrival.
My whole life since her big debut, brought on the "usual" PMS symptoms. Cramping, bloating, headaches, fatigue, mood shifts, food cravings, etc. As a teen, my way of managing these pesky symptoms was to take a Midol or Naproxen pill and hope for the best outcome. I shake my head at this now because of my aversion to pharmaceutical drug use for every pain or discomfort I now feel. My reason for this aversion is primarily to do with the side effects of such medications on our gut microbiome- and thus, our overall immune system function but that's a discussion for a later time. But, it was because of these findings, that I had to discover new ways of handling these symptoms naturally. As a result, I also began to learn more about the root causes of such discomforts and how my body changes during each monthly cycle. These understanding brought on a much more holistic approach to understanding myself, my body and femininity.
This deeper understanding of my womanly body, led me down the path to a fantastic book I would like to share with you today! I think every woman should read it. "Taking Charge of Your Fertility by Toni Weschler, is a wonderful guide book for women to help deepen their understanding of their monthly menstrual cycle.
The book covers everything from:
- What hormones govern your cycle & how it effects you
- What stages are found within each monthly cycle (menstruation, follicular phase, ovulation, and luteal phase)
- How to track your cycle so you know where you are within that cycle and can discern if there are any issues within your menstrual cycle that may need to be addressed (ex: PCOS, anovulation, miscarriage, ovarian cysts).
- What happens to your cycle during pregnancy, postpartum or pre/post/menopause.
The book covers a ton of other useful information as well which really helps women understand their bodies and take more responsibility and initiative over their feminine health.
So how does this help ease my menstrual pain now?
Although tracking your cycle won't immediately ease your menstrual pain, it will help you to understand if you have deeper underlining issues within your cycle which may be the route cause of your menstrual pain or discomfort. The system suggests tracking your cycle for a minimum of 4-6 months in order to see the general trends of your cycle. This information will also be incredibly useful for you and your primary health care provider when discerning issues like PCOS, anovulation, ovarian cysts etc as well as other issues such as infertility which may impact your likelihood of conceiving a child naturally down the line (if this is part of your life plan). Understanding your cycle can also give you a huge advantage when it comes to timing intercourse if you are trying to conceive. All in all, tracking your cycle will give you a health advantage and insights into your bodies natural rhythm which would have been difficult to determine had you not been tracking it. The methods outlined in this book also are much better than certain cycle tracking apps unless those apps also recommend you track both cervical mucus and your basal body temperature. Tracking your temperature is the key component to knowing when you ovulated/if you ovulated (after the fact) because of the sudden rise in your basal body temperature. If you are interested in learning how to track your cycle please consider signing up to my mailing list HERE. I do plan on sharing another blog post in the near future about how you can begin tracking your cycle as well as some of my tips & tricks.
Now that we're all on the same page and understand the value of tracking our menstrual cycle let's dive into today's tips & tricks on how to ease painful menstrual symptoms- naturally.
Take it easy. In my yoga teacher training program we learnt a ton about Ayurveda. This ancient Indian medical practice offered many guidelines for women on how to conduct themselves during their menstrual bleed time in order to help heal themselves and elevate their bodies energy back to it's premenstrual levels. Fatigue is one very common symptom when it comes to a women's period. It is often felt a week or so before your period arrives and peaks during the first 3-4 days of your bleed time. This is due to the sudden loss of blood and the drop in estrogen just before your period beings (about a week prior). In Ayurvedic practices, they strongly encourage limited activity from the start of your bleed time and until it is completed. This means, no heavy workouts and taking time to rest and relax during the days of your period. The emphasis is on not overdoing it and allowing enough rest time during the day in order to help the body bounce back to its pre menstrual energy faster. Listen to your bodies energy levels and don't over do it if you are feeling fatigued.
Iron + Vitamin C. Consuming iron rich foods is a really good idea before and after your menstrual period begins. This will drastically help elevate your iron levels and prevent iron deficiencies and anemia. Being low in iron will drastically decrease your energy levels making you feel fatigued. Vitamin C also helps in the absorption of Iron so it is important to consider taking them together (either in pill form or in your cooking by seasoning veggies like spinach with lemon juice!). Try making yourself a delicious steak dinner once a week leading up to and after your period to help your body rebuilt its red blood cells. Other high iron foods include liver, red meat, poultry, eggs, lamb, oysters, lentils, peas, beans, whole wheats breads/pastas, figs, dates, broccoli, leafy greens etc. Check out this amazing Organic Chicken Liver Pate recipe which is both delicious and will help increase your iron intake naturally. You can also read about the benefits of eating organ meats HERE.
Hydration. Proper hydration before and during your period can drastically help decrease the pain felt due to menstrual cramps at the beginning of your cycle as well as lessen the bloating associated with menstruation. Menstrual cramps can often be caused by the difficult passing of blood through the cervix if the blood is too thick. If you struggle with clotting during this time, try your best to stay well hydrated before and during your period in order to help the blood pass more easily. PCOS, endometriosis, polyps and fibroids are all common causes for thicker blood clots during your cycle and should be addressed by a doctor or gynaecologist. If you don't suffer from clotting and then suddenly find yourself experiencing a late period with heavier then normal bleeding or very painful cramps, it could be a sign that you are experiencing an early miscarriage caused by a chemical pregnancy. Chemical pregnancies are very common and often occur without diagnosis but it is important to keep track of if you do suspect this is happening to you. Women who do experience chemical pregnancies often go on having normal healthy pregnancies down the road. If you suspect reoccurring chemical pregnancies you will want to seek medical advice and perhaps consult a fertility specialist. Bloating is often linked to an increase in progesterone and is felt a week or so before your period begins. Diminishing salt intake and increasing water intake during this time will help decrease your PMS bloating.
Hot Water Bottle. This is my favourite tool for dealing with painful menstrual cramps. Filling a hot water bottle and placing it over the uterus or low back is a powerful tool in helping relieve painful cramps. The nice thing about hot water bottles which I prefer over heating pads or rice packs is that the heat is intense, it stays warm for a long time and you don't have to sit next to a power outlet (as is the case with electric heat pads). Just be sure to wrap your water bottle in a clean linen cloth in order to prevent burning your skin.
Warm Bath & Epson Salts. Similar to using a hot water bottle, a warm bath with epson salts will help ease tight muscles in the body which can help relieve headaches as well as tensions in the uterus which will lessen menstrual cramps. This can also be very relaxing for the whole body which in turn will help increase your energy levels making you feel less fatigued over time.
Meditation & Mindfulness. Fun fact, women are naturally very intuitive and "psychic" but it is said that a women's sensitivity increases during her period! Finding time to meditate during this time can also help you to ease menstrual cramps, headaches, fatigue, mental discomfort, help balance your mood, help you sleep, reduce food cravings, and relieve other tension in the body. A powerful meditation and visualization can be done to help open the cervix, and soften the pelvic floor muscles in order to ease tension in the uterus and lessen menstrual cramping pain.
Yoga. Restorative and yin yoga sequences can help ease a multitude of PMS symptoms leading up to and during your period. Yoga can be a powerful tool to help elevate and balance your energy & increase your mood and help you to feel calm and relaxed. Specific sequences can even help to alleviate painful menstrual cramps or headaches associated with your period. If this interested you, try Yoga On DEMAND where I offer special classes designed for PMS symptoms such as cramping! In this class here, I guide students through a very soothing slow flow class with a focus on the root chakra. Together we move our bodies and connect with our watery/intuitive energy to help elevate our mood and feel into the wisdom of our body. We also work on certain visualization techniques to help ease mental and physical tensions and also focus on softening the tissues of the pelvic floor. This is a soft and relaxing class which requires very little energetic effort and can be practiced during your period.
Herbal Medicines. Herbal medicines are my go to when I am in too much discomfort and really need assistance. The herbs I take are often in tea form but certain capsules can also be found in health food stores. If you struggle with your period, explore a variety of herbs such as: ginkgo & ginger to help reduce inflammation in the body leading up to and during your period. For all my Premium Yoga On DEMAND members, we will be going over specific herbs and tinctures I use to help ease specific PMS symptoms in our next Ritual. Stay tuned or join Yoga On DEMAND now and get full access to a whole archive of yoga classes, guided meditations & special health advice videos/blog posts designed to help you live a healthy and fruitful life! Join now!
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