Painful Periods

Pain during periods calls for lifestyle changes as also a combination of pills

THE WOMAN of today is well in control of every domain she chooses to participate in. She is in the forefront of hospitality, has a patient ear for the customer in the back office, leads from the front in any enterprise and is surging ahead in every sport.

Vivid imagination as a young girl, undaunted efforts as a teenager and indomitable will as a young woman are virtues that the fairer sex has in abundance. Nevertheless, the onset of menstrual periods in some women can leave her incapacitated with accompanying pain. The uterus is a bunch of fine muscles, which like any other muscle mass, contracts and relaxes. During periods, when the inner layer of the uterus (endometrium) is shed, the contractions could disturb oxygen supply to the muscles causing pain and discomfort. In addition to painful uterine cramps, women may experience nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, headaches, weakness, and/or fainting. This condition is called dysmenorrhoea and occurs during reproductive years. It generally starts a day before the onset of menstrual bleeding and continues until the third day but most of the women feel relieved once the bleeding starts. Infection, certain harmless growths in the uterus or the endometrial cells occurring elsewhere in the pelvis, called endometriosis, can all cause similar pain. However, the pain is more severe and could occur during any day of the cycle.

What would help?

Fatigue, late nights, stress and anxiety can all make the discomfort worse. Therefore, it is necessary to have good rest before the periods.

Exercise as simple as walking for 20 minutes, three times a week, should reduce the intensity. Warm fomentation on abdomen with a heating pad helps.

Homoeopathic medicine has safe and effective remedies to alleviate the pain and, over a period of six months, prevent the intensity every subsequent period. Chamomilla relieves pain and heavy bleeding.

Backache and pain in the hips before and during menses can be cured by Cimcifuga. Mag Phos helps if there is pain in the abdomen and lower limbs. Xanthoxyllum cures if the dysmenorrhoea is associated with headache.