Every girl hates PMS, that goes without saying. But the ways we chose to deal with, or suffer through, it are unique to each individual girl.
For some of us, popping a Midol and taking a hot bath works well enough. Others go on low-dose birth control pills to lessen cramps and help with lightening flow. And a handful of girls claim to have painless, bloat-free periods without intervention from chemicals or coping mechanisms.
The rest of us hate those girls. The rest of us also have a few hidden, healthy tricks at our disposal to stave off the misery of Aunt Flo.
Stomach Issues
Whether it’s cramps or “other” stomach related problems, That Time of the Month can do a number on your abdominal region.
At the risk of forcing you into flashbacks to high school health class, it’s important to first remind you why your stomach turns into a mess when you menstruate. Cramps are the side effect of your uterus shedding unnecessary lining. It’s more and less extreme for each girl, even for each period for one girl, but every girl has some form of discomfort when she menstruates.
An upset stomach tends to happen to girls with either regular or menstrually induced anemia. Blood loss means iron loss, and low iron leads to anemia.
Take care of your stomach with heat and health. Eat high-iron foods like red meat, beans, dried fruit, or—Popeye’s favorite—spinach.
Avoid high-fiber foods and don’t touch alcohol or coffee during this week.
Cramps, though sort of unavoidable, can be remedied with heat. Hot tea, a heating blanket, a hot bath. Avoid pain relievers or reducers since these just mask the pain, not cure it. Doing slow stretches or taking a gentle yoga class can also help—just avoid inverted positions (those with your feet above your head) as these can stop blood flow and lead to more discomfort.
PMS Crabbiness
Just like cramps, irritability comes along with every period in one form of another. But unlike cramps, the severity is something we don’t really suffer through.
Instead, or friends, families, boyfriends, and coworkers get to enjoy it.
For me, irritability is frustrating because it makes me feel like I’m not in control of my emotions. I’m normally a happy, upbeat person, but sometimes my PMS include a nasty bought of crabbiness that I just can’t shake. Turns out that maintain my sunny disposition was helped by adding some extra sunniness to my life.
I decided to spend time on me: I started taking long walks whenever I felt PMS-related emotions coming on, and the sunshine felt like a warm bath in happiness. I also stuck to low-carb, high protein foods and ate a lot of fruit.
The extra vitamins had my system running on high while the protein provided energy to stay alter and happy in spite of Aunt Flo.
Bloating
Bloating can happen at any time in your life; your period isn’t the only thing that brings it on. Stress, depression, an unhealthy diet… these are just a few of the countless things in a girl’s life that can cause her to bloat.
Period-related bloating is your body’s way of comforting itself when it realizes it’s going to be in for a rough week. Comforting your body before it has a chance to realize that will help lessen bloating, possibly even erase it.
You should always maintain a healthy diet; likewise, exercising regularly is very important for girls at any age. But the week before your period is a particularly crucial time to be healthy. As I mentioned before, avoid caffeine and alcohol at all costs during and around your period (in general, they’re good things to avoid.)
Ramp up your exercise routine by adding or increasing core strengthening movements like pilates or simple crunches.
And drink lots of water.
What? Isn’t water the whole reason I bloat?
Technically yes—water is what your body retains, causing you to bloat. But staying hydrated keeps you in overall better shape.
If you just can’t shake the bloating—or any other symptom of your period—remember that it’s temporary. If all else fails, curl up with a book or a loved one and relax. Being hard on yourself only makes the discomfort harder, and you deserve better than that.
Author Bio: Hannah Tool, even through her challenge of Crohn’s disease, has worked to turn her obstacles into victories. With help from her wonderful family and a whole lot of self-determination, she’s worked to not only achieve a healthy life for herself, but also for those around her as well.
