Natural ways to deal with PMS

If you suffer from monthly cramps and PMS, here are a few natural, inexpensive ways to deal with the pain.

• Gentle exercise, such as walking, will ease the emotional as well as the physical symptoms of PMS. However, if you suffer from aches and pains in the days before and during the menstrual cycle, listen to your body and rest instead.
• Try relaxation techniques such as yoga. Calming the mind can also have a calming effect on the body.
• Try this yoga stretch: kneel on your heels, drop your forehead to the floor and place your arms against your body. Close your eyes. Hold for five minutes.
• Use acupressure. Points in the foot are said to be connected to the pelvic area. These spots are in the depressions above either side of your heel. Gently press in with your thumb and fingertips.
• Avoid, or limit your intake of, alcohol and caffeine-containing drinks: though they may make you feel better in the short term, they worsen tension.
• Allow yourself to snack at this time of the month. Frequent small meals help to stabilize your blood sugar, reducing cravings and irritability.
• Use three to five drops essential oil of geranium in an oil burner, or add it to warm bathwater. It is said to balance the emotions – useful for coping with moodiness.
• Gently massage your abdomen, lower back and thighs with a blend of four drops clary sage essential oil in 15 millimetres (one tablespoon) vegetable oil.
• For irregular bleeding, stock your medicine cabinet with dong quai, chaste tree and raspberry leaf.

Try to relieve the tenderness triggered by hormonal changes without resorting to pain-killers.

• Try self-massage. Use plain vegetable oil and rotate your fingertips along the skin in coin-size circles. Finish by gently pressing the breasts in, then up, with your palms.
• Stay as calm as possible. Adrenalin, produced during periods of stress, can aggravate breast tenderness.
• Cutting out caffeine and highly salted foods may decrease bloating.
• Use castor oil to soothe the pain. First saturate an old towel with the oil and wring it out. Then lie down somewhere comfortable, place the folded towel over your breasts, cover with a piece of plastic wrap, and apply a warm hot-water bottle. Leave in place for 15 minutes.

If you're tired of running to the medicine cabinet every month, consider trying some of these natural alternatives to ease your pain.