Home Remedies for Menstrual Discomfort

If you’ve ever experienced painful cramping before and during your menstrual period, you are not alone. Many women deal with monthly discomfort that can range from annoying to daily-life-interfering. For some, the cause of this pain could be endometriosis, uterine fibroids, or other underlying concerns, so be sure to reach out to your doctor if you experience very heavy bleeding, severe pain, or cramps that get worse over time. 

There are many home remedies and alternative medicine routes you can try to help reduce symptoms of menstrual discomfort. Give them a shot and see what works best for your body:

• Acupuncture

• Herbal medicines (like pycnogenol, fennel, or ginger)

• Heat (hot soaks and heat packs have been shown to be just as effective as OTC pain medicine) 

• Gentle exercise: yoga, stretching, going for a walk

• Massage

• Rub a mixture of carrier oil and essential oils like cinnamon, lavender, and clove over your abdomen

• Drink herbal teas and increase water consumption to stay hydrated

• Do things that relieve stress, like reading a book, having a conversation with a loved one, and getting good sleep

In addition to using remedies for pain, pay closer attention to activities, food and beverages the week before and during your cycle. Avoid any very cold or raw foods and beverages, bundle up in the cold, choose dark chocolate over other sweets, decrease caffeine and alcohol consumption, and avoid strenuous exercise or over-work. Consult with a holistic practitioner if your menses are a major disruption in your life.

References

Galan, N. (2019). Home remedies for menstrual cramp relief. Retrieved from

https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/324484.php.

Sparks, D. (2018). Home Remedies: Managing menstrual cramps. Retrieved from

https://newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org/discussion/home-remedies-managing-menstrual-cramps/.

Wong, C. (2019). 4 Herbs to Relieve Menstrual Cramps. Retrieved from

https://www.verywellhealth.com/herbs-for-menstrual-cramps-89901.

Asking for Help

In an effort to avoid being a burden or annoyance to co-workers, friends, and loved ones, do you ever stop yourself from asking for help? Maybe you need clarification on someone’s expectations, have hit a roadblock with a project, or are struggling in an area of your personal life. Even though you know deep down you can’t go this alone, does it feel uncomfortable to reach out for assistance? 

Heidi Grant’s Ted Talk explores her research about asking for help, as well as concrete steps to get better at doing it. Remember that like most things in life, changing habits takes time, patience, and practice. Bring an awareness to your current patterns of asking for help and consider practicing new ways to get your needs met. 

Steps to asking for help effectively:

1. Acknowledge that you need help, and ask for it out loud. 

2. Don’t fall into the trap of the “illusion of transparency.” (Other people can’t read our minds!)

3. When you ask for help, be clear on the kind of help you want, and why you want it. 

4. Avoid adding in disclaimers, apologies, and bribes. 

5. Keep clear boundaries between strangers who provide you with services (for a cost) from friends who do things to help you (for free). 

6. Find a way to ask for help in person or via a phone call. 

7. When someone agrees to help you, follow up with them afterward and let them know their help positively impacted you. 

8. Remember that asking for help reveals your humanness--we all need each other. 

Radical Acceptance

Take a moment to think about something in your life that didn’t go as planned. Maybe you advocated for yourself, but still received an outcome that felt unfair. Or you lost someone or something very important and are in the process of grieving. Often it feels like life’s throwing every possible challenge our way, and we become overwhelmed and exhausted. 

We all know that pain is an inevitable part of life, but we don’t have to accept the suffering that comes with it. It is commonly explained that pain + nonacceptance = suffering. To reduce or avoid suffering, we are asked to find acceptance of the situation, our emotions, and/or ourselves. Acceptance does not mean agreeing with what happened or shoving away the memories and emotions (because they will likely come back up anyway!). Instead, acceptance means sitting with the current moment and radically accepting “what is.” 

Radical acceptance is something you can practice over and over and over. Physically, it could look like sitting down to a meditation with your palms up toward the sky and a gentle smile on your face. Mind follows body, and this posture indicates an openness and acceptance of the here and now. Mentally, it could mean repeating a mantra or phrase like, “I cannot change this situation, it is what it is, and this feeling will pass with time.” Spiritually, it could mean feeling a sense of acceptance wash over you completely, and choosing to accept with your whole being. 

Just like mindfulness, new hobbies, and changing thought patterns, radical acceptance takes practice and is something we will need to return to frequently. When you notice yourself feeling stuck, stubborn, or upset about something that’s out of your control, gently remind yourself to practice radical acceptance. As highlighted by Tara Brach in this two-minute video, acceptance is an important first step to change:

References

Hall, K. (2012). Radical Acceptance. Retrieved from https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/pieces-mind/201207/radical-acceptance.

Rollin, J. (2017). The Importance of Practicing ‘Radical Acceptance.’ Retrieved from https://www.huffpost.com/entry/the-importance-of-practicing-radical-acceptance_b_592da801e4b0a7b7b469cd99.