When you have cramps before your period or cramps during your period, it causes a bit of anxiety when you get to the point where they are ready to occur again. You start to anticipate that they will become a problem, they will disrupt your life, and you want to find period cramps relief.
Period cramps occur for a number of reasons – and none of the reasons are ones that you can’t tackle successfully. You can learn how to stop menstrual cramps fast without medicine and without expensive doctor visits that really don’t get you anywhere.
Cramps are initiated by prostaglandin chemicals in the body. There are good prostaglandins and bad ones. The good prostaglandins are related to an intermediate compound called COX-1. The biochemical pathway with these good prostaglandins leads to homeostasis in the body regarding the digestive tract, the urinary tract, platelet functions, and white blood cell differentiation.
On the other hand, the bad prostaglandins are related to an intermediate compound called COX-2, which causes inflammation. When the COX-2 enzymes are inhibited, you will have less inflammation in the body.
How to Stop Period Cramps Fast? 3 Ways to Affect Period Cramps
A few of the ways you can inhibit the COX-2 enzymes and interfere with period cramps is listed below:
- Take fish liver oil. The types of fatty acids found in fish liver oil such as cod liver oil is enough to intervene in the production of inflammatory compounds and stop period cramps. The dosage needed per day can start out with a tablespoon daily and then decrease to a teaspoon over time. The best type to purchase is cod liver oil, and the Carlson brand offers you a product flavored with lemon to essentially remove the fishy taste.
- Take omega 3 capsules. It’s the omega 3 fat found in different foods that disrupts the COS-2 enzymes and leads to less inflammation. You can purchase omega 3 fat supplements at the health food store or online. They come in various dosages. Some of the best dosages are at 1000 to 1200 mg per serving, which is equal to one or two capsules. The normal dosage is 2000 mg daily – normal meaning for those in good health. When you have an issue related to inflammation, increasing this dosage is called for. Thus, taking 3 or 4 capsules in divided dosages is a good strategy for cramps.
- Flax seed oil may also be taken daily. This comes in a liquid form. Flax seed oil contains omega 3 and omega 6 fats. It’s the omega 6 fats you really don’t want as you probably get enough of them in your regular diet. One tablespoon is the usual dosage to take daily. Flax seed oil works for some women but not for others. You won’t know if it works for you til you try it
How to Stop Period Cramps Without Medicine? 5 More Ways to Affect Period Cramps Naturally
These strategies are more long-term strategies for combatting period cramps. Other methods include taking a Period Vitamin. This is a supplement specifically designed to support your body during its childbearing years. This is the time of your life when you will have higher requirements for vitamins and minerals than other times because your body is getting ready to support the needs of a new baby.
A period vitamin is taken only once daily. Often women want to say, “Why should I have to take anything?” and rebel against even a period vitamin that is doing nothing but supporting their body. This is really the 2-year-old rebellious child coming out in you when it happens (we all have one) and you must learn to control that 2-year-old just as you control your own 2-year-old son who has a temper tantrum in the store because he doesn’t get candy.
When you want to learn how to make period cramps stop, there are other ways you can use. For example, you could use hot packs on your belly as a home remedy. You could drink a cup of hot lemongrass tea or lemon balm tea (use one teaspoon herb per cup of boiling hot water). You could balance your hormones with a capsule of chaste tree berry herb taken daily. And you could take a capsule of 400-500 mg magnesium daily.
These 8 ways to stop period cramps are ones that can even prevent cramps a week before the period. But there are a lot more. Check out our ebook on cramps! It can fill in the gaps of your knowledge on what to do for them.