Lady Talk // Natural Remedies for Cramps While On Your Cycle
Hello Ladies of Steemit!
Time for a little lady talk. I try to be as holistic as possible in my life – ranging from everything to skin and beauty products, to cleaning supplies to food to medicine. One area that I have struggled with though… is pain management for cramps. Unless I’m popping some pills… I’m probably doubled on the ground in a heap. That being said, the last few years I have really experimented with a lot of different natural options, to see if anything would work for me.
I am not managing the symptoms 100% holistically yet, but I have been able to greatly reduce the amount of naproxen or ibuprofen I need to take. I thought I would offer up a few suggestions of things to try, based on my experience over the last few years. Everyone’s body is different – and what might work for one person, could be a total flop for someone else! This is where experimenting with your own health comes in.
Here is a high level overview of each natural remedy. Please be sure to watch the video to get the full content from this post.
Natural Remedy Ideas
Visit an Herbalist
Look for an herbal shop in your town that carries teas, tinctures and Chinese medicines. The people working at these stores are usually extremely helpful at recommending particular mixes and tinctures to try for different ailments – including cramps! If you cannot locate an herbal store in your area – reach out to a local acupuncturist! They are usually very connected with the herbal community and should be able to point you in the right direction.
Thyme Essential Oil
This particular remedy did not end up working for me, but I included it because I have quite a few close friends who RAVE about its effects! The oil can either be ingested (through a capsule or adding to water) or can literally be rubbed on your stomach and back. They literally say that their cramps disappear for a few hours, and then they just rub on a little more oil when their cramps return.
Warning… this one will make you smell like a piece of pizza
Heat
This tip is a pretty common one that I know a lot of people use. Either taking a warm bath or getting a hot pad to put on your stomach or back can go a long way to increasing your comfort – even if they aren’t technically relieving your symptoms.
Diet
This one REALLY surprised me! I always heard people say that if you are eating really clean – it can reduce your cramps… but I was highly skeptical. I thought it must just be for people that don’t have very bad cramps.
Over the years though, I have actually noticed a big difference when I get my period while I’m being really good about eating “clean”. I have noticed that my cramps are usually much less severe, and my period usually doesn’t last as long. Kind of crazy when you think about how much food impacts our overall health – and can even change how our body reacts to menstruation.
Acupuncture
This is one that I wish I could implement more regularly…but it would get a little expensive! It never occurred to me that acupuncture may be able to help cramps, but once I just happened to be going in for an appointment while I was on my period and was pretty surprised by the results. I chatted with the acupuncturist later and she that a lot of her female patients purposely come in while they are menstruating so they can also get the benefit of relieving their cramps. Pretty crazy!
Get Moving
Ok… I know that this is probably the last thing you want to do when you are curled up in a ball in the corner, but getting your blood moving can really help. Even just going for a short, brisk walk to help get the blood flowing has been shown to help reduce symptoms.
Wait it Out
This one may sound a little strange… but I have recently had a shift in my approach when it comes to pain management. I used to “pop a pill” the second I started feeling cramps, because I was worried it would get out of control. I recently realized though…that if I can hang on for about 10 – 15 minutes, sometimes the wave of pain goes away and doesn’t return for a few hours. By just waiting it out to see how bad the wave of cramps will be… I’ve saved taking a lot of medicine. If you are like me, and struggle to go completely natural – simply working towards reducing the medicine you take may be a good approach.
Society’s Role in All of This
Can I also just take a moment to say that I think our societal norms play a factor here as well? It is totally acceptable for someone to call in sick to work for a cold, but it would be completely frowned upon and even mocked if a woman called in for cramps… even though I’d argue that one can be much more difficult to deal with than the other! It just goes to show that even though this is a natural and healthy part of a woman’s body – We still have a lot of patriarchal norms in our society.
We live in such a fast paced, high pressure society, that these “quick pain relief” are necessary so that we don’t miss a beat. I personally think this time in our moon cycle is a good time to slow down and care for/appreciate our bodies.
What Natural Remedies Have You Tried?
As I mentioned in the beginning… I am always experimenting and trying new things when it comes to dealing with cramps. I’d love to hear if you have had any success with other natural remedies that I haven’t mentioned here. I am all for anything that helps get me closer to the 100% holistic mark!
Thanks for reading/listening! I hope you found some of this information helpful and I look forward to see your thoughts and suggestions below.
Xo, Lea
▶️ DTube
▶️ IPFS
Hi corusate, you are such a great dtuber, you make amazing videos, thanks for the continued content.
Aww thanks @pasie15!
for me, waiting it out is the best along with diet. i can deal with the cramps fine, but the moodiness, wow, that's another story. my poor hubby has to deal with it while i go through some weird anger rampage where every little single thing ticks me off.
Isn’t it funny how we are all so different? I get horrible cramps, but havnt had the mood swing side of things.
This is really helpful! I often just wait it out and sometimes it last the whole day. I know that walking can help with the blood flow but sometimes it’s just to painful that i cant even stand straight without crunching. I guess i‘ll try the other remedies too and see if it works☺️
Oh I hear you about the walking! Sometimes I can make myself do it... othertimes , not a chance! I hope some of the other things on this list end up working for you!
I've been using heat forever but as an adult I only use it when I'm at home. At work it's ibuprofen. I agree with the norms. I have called in sick only a handful of times because of cramps. Great article!
Thanks @musclegirlfusion! Glad you resonated with the section about social norms.
Lolz, all these are wonderful remedies but for me i take drugs a day or two to when i notice im about to have my period so when the period comes i dont feel pain.
Oh interesting! I’ve never taken anything beforehand. Funny how our bodies are all so different.
When I read your blog i.impress .Really it is informative and helpful able all steemiter .Your post resteemit done dear.
See just awesome thing to be right now and feels good.
Row just glab but seen was not surely done it.
I use a heating pad for my cramps, and sometimes they get bad
I struggle with cramps .... but stretching properly helps ..... great post .... thank you
I can totally relate - I pretty much stay glued to the couch with a heating pad for the first couple of days of my cycle because my cramps are so bad BUT I recently tried a new essential oil blend called Dragon Time (appropriately named) from Young Living.
I tried a bunch of single oils before without much success, but this one made my cramps go away within 5 minutes. It has Fennel (I love making fennel tea for cramps too!), Marjoram, Clary Sage, Lavender, Yarrow, & Jasmine.
Also , have you read the book Woman Code? It's all about eating certain foods during certain parts of your cycle to have better periods, fertility, etc. I only tried one month of it & it seemed to help, but as a chef, it's hard for me to stick to meal plans since my meals are often leftovers from cooking for somebody else haha