When someone has symptoms of PMS, severe or mild, they want relief. Sometimes prescription medication is necessary for some women to get that relief or others may find help with natural methods, but there are some over-the-counter medications that may help relieve some women’s symptoms.
Some of the over-the-counter (OTC) medications used are made of ibuprofen, naproxen, ketoprofen or mefenamic acid, most of which are called NSAIDs, nonsteroidal, anti-inflammatory drugs. These come in brand names like Midol, Advil, Actron and Aleve.
Pamprin and Premysyn PMS are also OTC products used for PMS symptoms. For the best relief with these medications you may need to start taking them a few days before your period is to begin.
When it comes to using OTC products be sure you read the labels and know what you are taking. Do not mix products if you do not know if they should go together. Ask the pharmacist or your doctor before taking more than one OTC product at the same time.
Also, check the recommended dose so you know when and how to take them. Repeated NSAIDs use can cause problems with the stomach and even cause ulcers, so be sure to check with your doctor if you have this issue.
While NSAIDs seem to help most with pain related to PMS, products like Premysyn PMS may help more with the other symptoms like bloating and tenderness. One thing that is good about these OTC medications is that teenage girls who are suffering with PMS symptoms can usually take these products without much problem and they find relief.
As always, something that is not OTC, but up to you, are a healthy diet and regular exercise, which still seems to be the best way to keep your body from feeling the full effects of PMS.
Recently on Web MD there was a section on a new nose spray that is in a trial phase for relief of PMS symptoms. The spray has not even been named for release yet, but is a mix of pheromones which seem to be relieving the participant’s symptoms. (Go watch the WebMD video about this nose spray)
The participants are all keeping record of their symptoms and the relief they get with each use of the spray. Since there seem to be no long term affects of the spray the women are able to use it several times a day with no problems.
One woman stated that she was seeing a great reduction in her symptoms with the use of the spray and she suffered with PMS two weeks out of every month with pretty severe symptoms. If this study proves successful then there may be another alternative to PMS relief on its way.
Until then other things that can be helpful in reducing the affects of PMS on our lives are of course regular exercise and a healthy diet. A few over-the-counter supplements that I’ve heard recommended are Chaste Tree Berry and Mood Sync, both seem to help balance out hormone levels and reduce some of the symptoms of PMS, especially physical symptoms, mood swings and anxiety.
Other supplements that are recommended for use are calcium (affects mood and fluid retention), magnesium (bloating and pain), vitamin B6 (depression), and vitamin E (breast tenderness and mood). Zinc is sometimes used for PMS-related acne. Black cohosh has been shown to reduce anxiety, depression and tension.
Some women find using different types of relaxation methods helpful like exercises, yoga, roll breathing and massage therapy. Other things that have been studied are bright light therapy (cool-white fluorescent) used in the a.m. and p.m. to reduce the severity of the symptoms.
There are so many suggestions and recommendations for PMS relief that it would be difficult to try them all, but hopefully we can all find a combination of things that work for us until this miracle nose spray is released and then maybe it will be all we need in one spray!
How about some more info on how you can find some PMS relief. Not everything is for eveyone, but some is for some. You can read the previous post for more information as well. So, let's continue.
Vitamin B6 and magnesium are necessary for the liver to neutralize estrogen. Increased sugar intake will also excrete magnesium and interfere with its ability to breakdown estrogen. Vitamin B can prevent clots from increasing as well as dissolve existing clots and research has shown that supplementation with this vitamin can reduce heart disease by 40 per cent. The amount of vitamin B6 should be limited to no more than 100 mg/day. Magnesium supplementation of 360mg/day has been shown to reduce total symptom scores. The largest effect was noted with breast tenderness and weight gain, which were both reduced by over 90%. Magnesium can help fluid retention. PMS Krill Oil is shown to help relieve cramps, water-retention and mild mood changes associated with PMS. As a dietary supplement, take two softgels daily with a meal or snack.
Remember that diet and exercise are important components in controlling the severity of PMS symptoms for many women. It is best to eat a diet rich in complex carbohydrates (whole grains, fruits, and veggies), and to avoid, as best you can, refined sugar, salt, alcohol, smoking and caffeine before and during your period. PMS causes bloating and water retention, as does salt intake. Avoid foods that are hard-to-digest and favor foods that are easy-to-digest and nourishing. Other dietary alterations that have been recommended include restricting the intake of animal fats, dairy products and calcium.
Yes, chocolate does have some value to us as it contains magnesium, a mineral that decreases menstrual cramping and helps normalize glucose metabolism. But the problem with using sugar and chocolate to meet these nutritional needs is that consuming them often induces a let-down feeling, fatigue, and headaches-all of which are characteristic of some types of PMS.
Studies also show that exercise can help reduce PMS symptoms; we suggest a goal of up to 30 minutes of exercise three to five times a week. The last thing a woman should do is immediately demand medication; she should first try some elementary lifestyle changes. Exercise helps premenstrually, as well as for cramps during your period. Although it seems as if that's the last thing you'd want to do, it can help.
PMS does not excuse or rationalize annoying, hurtful behavior, but it does explain such behavior. We need to understand our physical and emotional symptoms so we can recognize them when we experience them; we should take extra precautions not to overwhelm our family, friends and co-workers with our PMS drama!
The PMS team seems to be one team that is never full and always has room to draft more players, unfortunately. Premenstrual Syndrome is exceedingly common, occurring in 75% of women of reproductive age during their lifetime. For some teens, this is double the trouble with already racing hormones. It is important that we not only make these changes and implement healthier ways of life in our adult bodies, but also for our teen girls. There are so many things that have been shown to reduce symptoms and sometimes eliminate some symptoms entirely, but most of the time it is not just one change someone has to make, but will need to use these things in combination to see the best results.
PMS is a condition characterized by changes in mood and behavior that occurs during the second phase of the normal menstrual cycle, usually 1-10 days before your menstrual cycle. Knowing when this occurs is part of the battle, because what you do and eat before this time can affect the severity of the symptoms you may have each month. Symptoms may be both physical and emotional and can include fluid retention, constipation, painful joints, backache, abdominal cramping, heart palpitations and weight gain, in addition to the well known symptoms of breast tenderness, moodiness, food cravings, anger and irritability to name a few.
PMS is not a deficiency of antidepressant medication. It can be a sign that you are missing nutrients in your diet, and you are not balancing blood sugar and metabolizing your hormones well. Researchers say they're not sure exactly why, but it probably has something to do with how those nutrients fluctuate with changing levels of hormones. While there's no guarantee that you're not going to need a hot water bottle, some Ibuprofen, or a bar of chocolate, drinking milk could help keep those monthly pains away. Women who ate the highest amount of calcium in their foods, around 1200 milligrams per day, were 30% less likely to develop PMS than those who ate only 530 milligrams per day, the lowest average value. Calcium causes muscles to contract, while magnesium helps them to relax. Dietary calcium gives temporary relief of menstrual cramps.
I've got some more stuff in a couple of days about things you can do to help with the PMS relief. Anything we can do to do it naturally is better than cramming the meds.
