Top 5 Natural Remedies To Deal With Period Cramp
It’s a very common condition. More than 50% of women who menstruate report some kind of period symptom. Period cramps are one of the most common symptoms among women. While period pain is not usually a sign of a serious health condition, it can be a strong deterrent to your regular life. Dysmenorrhea is an intense period pain and it can, at times, become uncontrollable. You can get rid of it to a large extent, and the most popular remedy is to immediately gulp ibuprofen.
It is normal for you to get frustrated and seek medication as a remedy. There is always a risk of side effects from medicines that may give you a damaged liver, bloating, etc. There are better and healthier ways to ease the cramps. Let us look into some natural remedies that you can implement yourself and control the pain.
1. Yoga & Exercise
A healthy lifestyle includes healthy eating and exercise. Exercise can include going to the gym, doing yoga, walking, jogging, and other activities that burn fat and increase blood circulation by releasing endorphins. An increase in blood flow relieves period cramps. While you may think it’s scary to exercise during menstruation, doctors and nutritionists recommend mild yoga and exercise at the time of menstruation. And it is not only not advised during menstruation, but it is also not recommended as a lifestyle. Stretching your muscles while doing yoga poses has a relaxing effect on your muscles. It also calms the mind when you are battling with mood swings during this time. Yoga can be practiced during or between your periods. In order to avoid interfering with natural blood flow, instructors usually advise against doing inverted poses like shoulder stands during menstruation. The recommended yoga poses are the cobbler’s pose, head-to-knee pose, seated straddle, seated forward bend, supported bridge, and goddess pose. For a more gentle practice, you should use bolsters or blankets while doing yoga during menses.
2. Nutrition
A wholesome diet and nutrition are the most important factors for your health. It is said that the important ratio of diet and exercise is 80% and 20%, respectively. And it is vital that you incorporate proper nutrients, especially to get rid of period cramps during menstruation. A diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids such as fish, calcium, and vitamin D and low in salt and caffeine will lessen the troublesome PMS symptoms. A lower intake of salt can help reduce fluid retention, abdominal bloating, breast inflammation, and aches. Increased caffeine intake can cause petulance, poor sleep, and menstrual cramps. A healthy diet comprises lots of vegetables (at least 3 servings per day), fruits (two servings per day), nuts, seeds, fish (up to three servings per week), and other omega-3 foods such as flax or chia seeds, low-fat dairy, proteins such as legumes and eggs, wholegrains such as rice (brown, basmati, doongara), traditional rolled oats, buckwheat flour, wholegrain bread, wheat pasta, couscous, millet or amaranth. You should substitute less healthy fats like the saturated fats found in animal products with healthier ones like the ones found in olive oil. Good fat is found in fish or nuts.
Vitamins B6 and B1, vitamins E and D, magnesium, calcium, zinc, and fish oil work wonders in relieving your period pain by decreasing inflammation caused by the uterus and naturally calming the mind and nerves. Your menstruation will definitely be less painful if your body has all the nutrition to combat the pain.
3. Heat application
Heat therapy is a common method to cope with dysmenorrhea. Giving heat to the abdomen reduces muscle tension and relaxes abdominal muscles to reduce spasms. Researchers have proved that topically applied heat is as effective as ibuprofen for period pain relief. You may use a heating pad, heating patch, warm bath towel, or hot water bag on your stomach to alleviate period cramps. A hot water bath can also relax your muscles and improve blood flow. Heat relaxes nerve compression to give a long-lasting respite. Due to this relaxing effect, it eases any period cramps and makes your day easy. However, you should take care of the following points while doing heat therapy:
- A hot water bag should not be used for more than 8 hours. It can cause mild burns or redness.
- The optimal temperature applied should be about 45–50 degrees Celsius only. It should not be hotter than a warm towel.
- The application should be to the areas with the most severe pain, such as the lower abdomen and back.
- For best results, heat application is most effective at the onset of period cramps.
4. Aromatherapy
A feel-good approach to getting rid of period pain is aromatherapy. Aromatic plant extracts and essential oils massaged into the uterus can tremendously reduce cramping and inflammation of the uterus. A gentle massage of essential oil can send signals to your brain to release hormones. That is the most natural form of healing. Based on the research and survey, it was found that half the women experienced half-period pain after massaging the abdomen with essential oil. Some oils with the best results include lavender essential oil, clary sage essential oil, and marjoram essential oil.
While buying essential oils, you need to check whether they are tested or not. If it is tested, it ensures good quality. The National Association for Holistic Aromatherapy suggests that pure essential oils should be diluted in an unscented cream, lotion, or carrier oil before applying them to your skin to avoid irritation.
5. Acupressure and acupuncture
Acupressure and acupuncture are ancient Asian healing methods to relax the nervous system, allowing more blood circulation and curing inflammation. These methods trigger points on the skin to ease pain in certain body parts. They have proved to be very effective during menstrual cramps. In acupuncture, a needle is pricked on the trigger points of the skin to lighten the pain. In acupressure, points on the skin are pressed, which in turn stimulates the body’s muscles. This relaxes the body parts that are hurting. The best part about this treatment is that it is natural and drug-free. These are self-help techniques that you can do yourself after learning the right points and their effects. You will see a major difference in the cramps. The relief should last for at least two hours. After that, you can repeat this and gradually bid adieu to menstrual cramps after a few months with regular acupressure and acupuncture.
Take Away
Every female has to go through menstruation every month. Each woman has a different experience of it. Sometimes it’s smooth, sometimes very bitter. It is best if you self-heal yourself through the above natural remedies and at the same time alleviate your health and well-being. It in turn affects your social status in society.
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