It's only going to get worse, isn't it? (Period Stuff)

liah

I never used to get cramps or spots or mood changes when I got my period, but it seems to be getting worse as the years go on, and I'm only 23.

Now I tend to get nauseous easier, light cramps, skin goes to crap, and I get a lot snappier and sometimes even weepy which is incredibly, incredibly unusual for me and I'm not fond of it at all!

I've heard of Starflower oil that's meant to help but I feel a bit odd about taking supplements at this age! Should I just suck it up and try to find some? I wonder what it'd even be called here..

Any suggestions? And does it really just get worse from here?

Acoshla

I got bad cramps when I was 17, but then I stopped eating a ton of chocolate and it went away. Then 2 years ago, when I was 23, they got worse again, combined with feeling nauseous, killer headaches, and the moods! I take evening primrose oil which definitely helps, you can take it the few days before or for the whole month. I was prescribed it for the most cruel pain I've felt since kidney infections, mastitis, it's awful! But it's also good for hormone balance, hence why it works for PMS.

But yeah, mine's gotten worse over the years, it peaked last year when I would almost faint with the pain, I remember sitting in work one day willing my boss to leave for his lunch so I could just slump over on the desk and cry with the pain, invested in a stash of painkillers after that!

LadyMayBelle

I never suffered from pains or anything until I hit about 22; I vividly remember waking in the middle of the night and thought I had been stabbed..the pain was unbearable, and I literally crawled on my hands and knees in search of painkillers..I was not on the pill at this stage but went straight to the doc begging for a prescription, which did help massively, but not with 'mittleschmerz' which I got on and off.

Past few years i have found that about every one in three periods are horrific , and do think it is worse they are getting!

seenitall

Dunno... it seems to be pretty individual, the period pain thing.

From about a year into getting my period, throughout my teens and early twenties, the first day cramps were bloody (excuse the pun!) horrible. A good few hours of absolute pure pain, followed by a few sessions of tossing the cookies. If I got caught out somewhere without immediate access to painkillers, it was goodbye world hello misery. Not exaggerating at all.

Luckily , started petering out in my twenties, just generally slowly diminishing in intensity somewhat. By the time I gave birth to my daughter, it was nothing as serious as it used to be, but since then especially it's happy pain-free days!!!

I heard it said by several women that giving birth was a turning point, and so it was for me.

The interesting thing is that recently I have started having some typical PMS symptoms, like bloating a few days beforehand, which I never used to have. But if that's a swap for what used to go on, it's a fair exchange!

pickarooney

liah wrote: »

I wonder what it'd even be called here..

Borretschsamenöl

Littlegirllost

I found my period got worse in my 20's, im 27 now and ive onyl recently gotten awful spots with it! I feel like a teenager again!

I have heard starflower oil and evening primrose are both good, your local health food store should be able to help you out!

Faith

I've bought some extra-strength evening primrose oil and I'm going to start taking it soon. The pill helps an awful lot with my PMS, but I get very moody and emotional around the end of a pack.

I haven't noticed any worsening of other symptoms, but I have noticed that, while my period might only last for 2 days or so, I'll get spotting for up to 5 days afterwards. It drives me mad, and I've already changed from one pill because of long periods. I must speak to my doctor about it again. It's not particularly heavy, but you would need to wear a light panty-liner.

jellie

If youre worried about it & its a big change then maybe you should go to the doctor?

mariebeth

I had that the whole way through my teens until I started on the pill, it really made a big difference to me.

bronte

I used never get PMS...not a bit of it.
It seems like now I get a least 3 days of it every flippin month. :mad:
Definitely has gotten worse as I've gotten older.
Roll on menopause. :rolleyes:

Giselle

Liah, get the Starflower Oil. Its only a capsule, and if it helps you'll be glad you at least tried it.

The over emotional sensitivity, the cramps, leg cramps, bad skin, exhaustion and generally misery were a monthly feature for me too, but I can say that after a daily dose of SFO for about three months, the symptoms were about 80% better. Except the tiredness, thats still a problem.

Even after a month on it I was much improved.

Don't go through it if you can ease it.:)

metrovelvet

Agnus castus is supposed to be very good for mood swings - caused by hormonal wackiness. I havent tried it. I should though.

Pain wise - much easier as I get older. None now. Bloating, nightmares, depression and anxiety all remained though.

spinandscribble

At least you don't faint! seriously it was very embarrassing trying to explain that one in class. lol

Birth control can affect it differently. Maybe go to your doctor and see. Maybe theres a link with your birth control and why your period is different now.

Wibbs

[interloper]I'd majorly go along with Faith, Giselle and Metrovelvet on their advice, speaking as a third party who had two ex GF's and a couple of mates in my life with very hard period times. The starflower/evening primrose/Agnus castus really seemed to help them. Starflower in particular. Some didnt notice so much as they were in the middle of it, but I defo did. The others it made a big diff. Avoiding sugar and sweet things in general seemed to have an effect too. Hell I gave up the chocolate for one and I am and always will be an unrepentant chocaholic. Again as outsider the pill/hormonal contraception as spinandscribble said can vary in it's effect but it did help in the women I knew.

I will say this though, if you do feel it's suddenly affecting you badly, then a visit to the doc is a good plan. I would go so far as to say a fellow woman doc. No sexism BS involved, but chances are you're gonna get more empathy with something the two of you may share. Put it another way.. If I had a *ahem* willy issue I'd be going to a bloke for much the same reason. [/interloper]

Lia_lia

Are you on the pill? Any of my friends that get bad period pains/dizzyness etc say going on the pill helped immensely with their periods.

Made no difference for me! But I don't really get period pains anyway. Only the odd time.

Cheap Thrills!

Listen! Suffer no more!

I went on the pill early (19) and was on it till my early 30's. No PMS all.

Came off it and started to get PMS, especially if I was eating rubbish/partying.

I found Evening Primrose oil and starflower oil totally solved this. It is really worth taking, it's nothing to do with age. I would never waste days of my life again, just use the supplements. They really work!

_Whimsical_

I used to get awful pains until I was 19. They used to be so bad that prescription painkillers only just took the edge off and the pain was so intense that I would faint with it. I had to put up with two days of horrific pain and vomiting and being unable to get out of bed every month. Then suddenly one day when I was 19 it just stopped and I've never had period pain again.

For around 3 weeks before it stopped I had been taking Agnus Castus which is a herbal remedy for period pains and hormonal problems from menopause to acne. I'm nearly reluctant to mention it because I don't even believe myself that 3 weeks of a remedy could make a dramatic difference for nearly 10 years but it might be worth a try for someone just in case.

liah

Lia_lia wrote: »

Are you on the pill? Any of my friends that get bad period pains/dizzyness etc say going on the pill helped immensely with their periods.

Made no difference for me! But I don't really get period pains anyway. Only the odd time.

No, was on the pill for about a year when I was 17ish, but that was before I really had any problems with my periods (they used to last like 2-3 days and I wouldn't feel a thing).. I went off the pill due to constant spotting, even after the first 3 months, and just never went back on it. Might reconsider again but if it just goes back to that spotting business it's definitely not worth the hassle.

They're not bad enough to require a doctor imho, it's just been a gradual increase over the years that I'm looking to stop before it gets worse.

Will DEFINITELY get Starflower oil for sure as soon as I find a place to get it, and will try to get some of the other stuff mentioned, too.

Thanks for the advice!

Eviledna

Anyone here taking Starflower on Cerazette? I'm suffering from PMS at crazy times due to the irregularity of periods on Cerazette, and every couple of months I go through a really bad time. I'm kinda afraid that starflower will make it go the opposite and bleed all the time! Anyone have personal experience of this?

Before anyone mentions it, yes I will speak to my doc, even though he knows absoultely NOTHING about cerazette!! Or herbal remedies for that matter!!

ordinary_girl

Posted this in a another thread but I figure I'd get a better answer here

ordinary_girl wrote: »

Any opinions on taking the pill in order to stop periods? I usually end up being out for two days a month with it and I just can't do that this year, my periods aren't agony but they get in the way and make me unable to function for about two days.

I know there are side effects to taking the pill but do you think it'd be worth it to stop my period? Any advice on this would be greatly appreciated.

Anyone else get really really down in the week before their period aswell? It's driving me crazy!

mrsdewinter

I've been very lucky: 22 years of periods and nothing worse than bloating and varying degrees of cramping. I have come to notice that when my weight goes up, the cramps get worse. But everybody's system is so different, it all comes down to doing whatever works for you, OP...

Faith

ordinary_girl wrote: »

Posted this in a another thread but I figure I'd get a better answer here



Anyone else get really really down in the week before their period aswell? It's driving me crazy!

You can't take the ordinary contraceptive pill to stop periods. At most you can run a couple of packs together to skip a period here and there. Alternatively, you could take your chances with a progesterone-only method - mini pill, injection, implant. Many people cease getting periods with these methods - however other report worse periods.

Unless of course by "stop periods", you mean "help with the symptoms". In that case, the pill is quite useful.

pickarooney

liah wrote: »

Will DEFINITELY get Starflower oil for sure as soon as I find a place to get it, and will try to get some of the other stuff mentioned, too.

Thanks for the advice!

Easiest is probably to buy it online, e.g.
http://www.hafesan.at/product_info.php?info=p6_Borretsch%F6l%20+%20Vitamin%20E%20500%20mg%20Kapseln.html

or try your local Schlecker.

_Whimsical_

liah wrote: »

Will DEFINITELY get Starflower oil for sure as soon as I find a place to get it, and will try to get some of the other stuff mentioned, too.

Thanks for the advice!

They had Star Flower Oil capsules in Tesco recently.

WaltKowalski

I'd forgotten how awful real periods are until I came off the pill a few months back.
I actually had to leave work last week - I went green and was a weak as water.
I take evening primrose oil so must try the star flower oil now.

LadyMayBelle

OpenBake wrote: »

Anyone here taking Starflower on Cerazette? I'm suffering from PMS at crazy times due to the irregularity of periods on Cerazette, and every couple of months I go through a really bad time. I'm kinda afraid that starflower will make it go the opposite and bleed all the time! Anyone have personal experience of this?

Before anyone mentions it, yes I will speak to my doc, even though he knows absoultely NOTHING about cerazette!! Or herbal remedies for that matter!!

Hmm, I think I might try ir now, and I'm on Cezarette..


and will speak to my GP!!

banshee_bones

liah wrote: »

No, was on the pill for about a year when I was 17ish, but that was before I really had any problems with my periods (they used to last like 2-3 days and I wouldn't feel a thing).. I went off the pill due to constant spotting, even after the first 3 months, and just never went back on it. Might reconsider again but if it just goes back to that spotting business it's definitely not worth the hassle.

They're not bad enough to require a doctor imho, it's just been a gradual increase over the years that I'm looking to stop before it gets worse.

Will DEFINITELY get Starflower oil for sure as soon as I find a place to get it, and will try to get some of the other stuff mentioned, too.

Thanks for the advice!

Liah, I found with the pill that it was really trial and error, I wouldnt write it off over one bad experience I would try again and find one that does suit you, believe me I went through five different types and had different experiences with each.

Callan57

Evening Primrose or Starflower either are brilliant ... but IMO you do need to take them all the time but they definitely work and way better than taking painkillers.
A female doctor once told me that the best cure for cramps is to take a shot of brandy straight down but no mixer. The alcohol relaxes the muscles she maintained .... it does work but you need to stop after one or you end up with a different kind of illness!

metrovelvet

Brandy is definitely the best for pain. Much better than ibuprofin or feminax.

Feeona

metrovelvet wrote: »

Brandy is definitely the best for pain. Much better than ibuprofin or feminax.

Any good for nausea? I'm eye-ing up the brandy bottle here

Eviledna

LadyMayBelle wrote: »

Hmm, I think I might try ir now, and I'm on Cezarette..
and will speak to my GP!!

It amazes me how little most GPs know about Cerazette or herbal remedies for that matter, in my experience they seem to warn you off or just wash their hands of it!

Does anyone have experiece in taking Starflower on a POP or mini-pill? Does it work or wreak havoc?

miec

Hi Op

I have experienced the reverse, when I got my periods as a very young teenager I used to puke / pass out/ crawl on the floor with pain, then I went on the pill and it eased it for years until I tried for a child, suffered the very bad periods got pregnant and since then happy days, I might have been left with piles and a caesarian scar but my periods are brilliant now, hardly any pain, no PMS and very light so it is not always the case of the older you get the worse it gets. Having said that diet plays a big role in how you are affected by your periods, so maybe look at that and taking a supplement as well. Also I would highly recommend a brilliant book called 'Women's bodies - Women's wisdom' by Christina Northrup.

Fluorescence

I used to get very mild periods - hardly even a cramp (though I'd have some atrocious mood swings). The last 2 I've had have been almost unbearably painful, with me feeling really faint and weak, getting sick and having that feeling around my eyes of being constantly on the verge of tears. Apparently when my mam was a young teenager she'd actually faint all the time when she had her period, and would be immobilised for the few days with blinding headaches. She grew out of them by the time she got to my age (19). I'm just hoping I don't start getting those! :eek: I may go on the pill or some other hormonal treatment purely to regulate them if things don't improve.

Malari

Holy crap, I don't get any pain or anything with my period. It used to be a little heavier before I went on the pill, but I am NEVER coming off the pill now, I'm afraid :eek::p