Like millions of women all over the world I struggle with menstrual cramps
each and every month I also suffer from endometriosis which is a silent and
brutal health condition that plagues an estimated 200 million women worldwide I
have had ovarian cysts cause excruciating pain during my periods
making monthly visits from Aunt Flo something I dread we need to find ways
to help relieve menstrual period pain that's why in today's video I'm going to
share with you what I have learned because I was on a mission to find new
alternative approaches therapies and smart technology that could be your
breakthrough in terms of helping to reduce period pain and giving you the
relief that you need my name is Kavita Bouknight this is the Match Health
Youtube channel. Tip number one massage with essential oils. Ladies we all know
about how wonderful essential oils can be but research has actually shown that
aromatic essential oils such as clary sage or lavender oil really do help to
relieve menstrual cramp pain now what I want to tell you about is this company
called Lola that's created this amazing roll-on it basically is the perfect
formulation of 17 different essential oils. I mean really who's gonna have the
time to sit there and create something like this on your own and they've done
it for you in this nice compact roll-on that you can use whenever you have
muscle cramps or tension I love this stuff it is honestly become my new
favorite I love the smell and I use it everywhere. Tip number two eat ginger to reduce pain and inflammation. It is recommended to
have ginger two to three times a day while you're on your period to reduce
menstrual cramp pain but let's get real how many of you are actually having
ginger two to three times a day during your period let alone any other day
during the month that's why I want to share with you a quick and easy recipe
For a great ginger tea just boil some water then add grated ginger to a pot and let
it steep for 10 minutes then drain the water to remove the ginger and you can
add lemon juice and a natural sweetener of
your choice tip number three curl up with the heating pad to get instant
relief. Research has shown that heat can be just as effective as ibuprofen
without the side-effects and what's nice is that it can be almost instantaneous
in terms of the relief that it could give you from period pain look investing
in a good quality heating pad is a must but let me tell you about a heating pad
that you might not know about there are new heating pads called that to go that
are reusable and something that you can carry with you anywhere you go you boil
them and once they cool I drop them into my purse when you need it you just
simply snap the internal disc to activate the heat these are portable
compact and better than one time heat packs. My kids and I love these as hand
warmers. Tip number four take your vitamins to reduce period pain. Research
has shown that taking vitamin b1 and fish oil which is essentially omega-3
has been shown to help relieve menstrual pain. If you're looking for a convenient
and quick way to figure out if you are deficient in either b vitamins or
omega-3 then you can order a simple at-home test using Everlywell. The
company offers both a B vitamins and omega-3 tests that range in price from
$50 to $70 if you're looking to get more B vitamins and omega-3 into your diet
chia seeds are awesome. My favorite way to eat chia seeds is to soak them in
almond milk overnight or for at least an hour then I add cacao, dates and almonds
Tip number five self acupressure maybe the trick to less pain
a recent study at a university in berlin published exciting results in the
American Journal of obstetrics and gynaecology demonstrating that self
acupressure could be a strategy for reducing pain from menstrual cramps
unfortunately the luna app that was used in this particular study is not
available in the US and is only available in Germany but sign up at
Matchhealth.com and be the first to know when it becomes available
In the meantime you can use the acupressure heal yourself app for
detailed descriptions of the points used in the study SP6,
LI4 and LR3. You need to apply pressure to each of these points on both sides
for a minute each starting five days before you anticipate getting your
period tip number six use yoga to relieve muscle tension Yoga has been
shown to help relieve menstrual cramp pain
I like Adriene a youtuber who has a great yoga sequence with pillows listen
stretching out your abdomen or your back or honestly any place where you feel
tension in your body can really be the trick to helping you feel a lot better
and relieve some of your period pain my go-to yoga poses have been Child's Pose
and the knees to chest pose tip number seven up your magnesium to reduce muscle
cramps research has shown that upping your magnesium can really help relieve
menstrual cramp pain magnesium has a number of roles in our body but it is
known to help regulate nerve and muscle function ladies go and talk to your
doctor to get blood work done so that you can figure out what are your
magnesium levels and have the discussion around are you getting enough in your
diet or does it make sense to add a supplement to your diet of course you
should include high magnesium foods in your diet which include leafy vegetables
like spinach and Swiss chard bananas avocados and nuts if you decide that
supplements are appropriate then you might want to consider life-extension
magnesium caps. Tip number eight use a menstrual pain blocker to zap the pain
ladies now there's a device called Livia, it's a new wearable that you
basically turn on to switch off your period pain the Livia device basically
works off of a concept called gate theory. It creates electrical pulses to
stimulate the nerves and is on a race to get to your brain before pain signals
from your menstrual cramps. Because these vibrations get to your
brain first it then closes off the gates so that no other pain or pain from your
menstrual cramps can make it to your brain
blocking off those signals helping you to feel relief.
You are probably wondering does this hurt the answer is no. The other question
you're probably wondering is how does this feel
what are those electrical pulses the stimulation what does that feel like
it's basically like having a tingling sensation
you basically clip the device onto your waistband and then you attach two gel
pads to where you're experiencing the most pain. In a nutshell this device has
been shown to frequently reduce pain in its users. As a stimulation device there
have been no significant side effects reported the Livia device is priced at
around $150 however I have also included a link to a device that uses similar
technology but at a much lower price point. Tip number nine go to bed and feel
less pain ladies don't fight the sleep let's face it when we're on our period
we're often more tired fatigued and exhausted
that's why studies have shown that getting the rest that you need is
associated with less period pain so I have an app that is my go to. It is a
meditation app called Calm which for me is great because it has nature sounds
like this I mean doesn't that just make you feel more relaxed and sleep stories
that will help you fall asleep. Tip number 10 track your period my final tip
for you is to use a period tracking app to help you plan for when Aunt Flo is
going to arrive my go-to period tracking app that I recommend is called Clue. I
hope that you found this video to be useful and that you walk away with some
simple and easy tips and tricks that will make your life easier that will
help reduce your period pain and give you an opportunity to pamper yourself
and be sure to comment in the section below I would love to hear what tips and
tricks you use to help with period pain also don't forget to subscribe to the
Match Health YouTube channel.