Home Remedies For Stomach Pain During Periods

Stomach pain or cramps are very common for females of reproductive age. Most females experience abdominal pain or cramps before and during their menstrual periods. Sometimes these cramps or stomach pain can create much discomfort and can make you unable to do your daily activities. 

As per the available studies, it is not clearly known why females have stomach pain during periods. However, the factors linked with painful menstruation period can be:

• Having the first child 
• Heavy blood flow 
• Being under 20 or the beginning of menstrual cycle 
• Early puberty, especially before the age of 11
• Never having a baby 
• Irregular periods 
• Highly sensitive or excessive prostaglandins, a hormone that affects the womb 
• Usage of birth control pills 
• Endometriosis 

Remedies for menstrual stomach pain/cramp 

To lower menstrual stomach pain or cramp, you can take over-the-counter (OTC) painkillers, and NSAIDs (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs). Using these drugs can help you lower your pain, but can have side effects. Applying certain home remedies can help you reduce your menstrual cramps or stomach pain without any side effects. Here are some home remedies for stomach pain during periods:

• Apply heat - As per a 2018 review of a few studies, heat therapy (a heat patch or pack) is effective in lowering stomach pain like NSAIDS. You can take a warm bath or apply a hot towel if you do not own a heating pad or a hot-water bottle. Furtherm, you can apply a warm fabric box filled with uncooked rice.    
• Massage therapy - Massage therapy done using essential oils like rose oil for twenty minutes can help you lower the severity of stomach pain during periods. A study of PubMed Central, aromatherapy and massage therapy can bring relief from menstrual cramp and pain. The essential oils that you can use for massage therapy for stomach pain are fennel, peppermint, rose, and lavender oils.    
• Avoidance of certain foods - During menstruation periods, you should avoid certain foods to have low impacts on you. You should avoid the foods that cause water retention and bloating. The foods you must avoid during your periods are alcohol, fatty foods, caffeine, salty foods, and carbonated beverages. Instead of these foods, you can take mint/ginger tea and hot water with lemon.  
• Vaginal orgasm - At present, there is no clinical evidence on the link of orgasm with menstrual cramp/pain. However, some experts say it could help females lower the severity level of stomach pain or abdominal pain during periods. Vaginal orgasms engage your entire body. During vaginal orgasm, your spinal cord signals the release of neurotransmitters. It triggers your mind to release oxytocin and endorphins that can lower your pain perception.   
• Addition of herbs to diet - Some herbs have antispasmodic and anti-inflammatory compounds that can help you lower swelling and muscle contractions linked with your menstrual pain or cramp. The herbs or herbal smoothies you can take are chamomile tea (2 cups a day), fennel seeds (30 mg four times a day for 3 days), cinnamon (840 mg of cinnamon capsules a day for 3 days), and ginger (a small piece in a cup of hot water).    

What you should do 

As a menstruating female, you should immediately consult your doctor as you notice heavy vaginal bleeding, constant chronic pain, passing of blood clots, pelvic pain, home remedies/OTC drugs do not work for you. At Archish IVF, our doctors and health professionals will help you get rid of all your menstrual cycle issues. And by following our doctors’ instructions, you will have a normal reproductive system.