Do you know that painful period pain is the foremost reason for short-term school absence in adolescent girls? It also accounts for about 34%-50% of absenteeism at work/school according to some studies. In economic terms, this is equal to about 600 million lost work hours or USD 2 billion worth of lost productivity. One cannot put a value to the agony and distress. It stresses the person involved as well as all around her. The key to dealing with this pain is understanding how it came to be.
Dysmenorrhea (as it is sometimes called) presents as cramping of the lower abdominal area usually just before or during a menstrual period.
The womb is like a bedsheet on a mattress. Every month the bedsheet is removed and a new one is laid on it in anticipation of a visitor who will sleep on the mattress.
The womb has a lining of blood that it builds and shed every month. It builds the blood lining expecting a pregnancy. If there is none, it sheds it away and starts building again expecting a pregnancy the next month.
So, why the pain? Well, it so happens that while the womb is shedding the lining it has built, it enlists the help of a substance called prostaglandin. These prostaglandins are kind of rough and they make the womb contract and hence pain results. The action of uterine prostaglandins is highest during first 2 days of menses (when symptoms are worst)
The way to deal with the pain would be to reduce the activity of these rough guys, I mean the prostaglandins. A great way is to use non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS). Examples are Brufen and Voltaren. Notice that paracetamol or Tylenol or other drugs do not target prostaglandins so they are not good candidates.
Risk factors that you may want to avoid to reduce menstrual pain would be to stop smoking, treat depression/anxiety if you have these, lose weight if you are overweight and gain weight if you are underweight. The use of alcohol is argued by some as a risk factor for the pain as well.
If your period pain does not respond to anti-inflammatory medications described earlier, you may want to see your doctor to rule out other causes of the period pain. A sexually transmitted infection, urinary tract infection are two common causes of these. Endometriosis is also notorious for causing painful periods, painful sex and infertility. It is a good idea to always see a doctor for any pain.
If your doctor rules out secondary causes of your period pains and you are not responding well to the NSAIDS, the use of a birth control pill can be tried to prevent the pain of menstruation.
You don’t have to live with the pain of monthly periods, you can do something about!
