Chinese Medicine Eases Menstrual Cramps

I remember the agony of pain, nausea, headaches, irritability, emotional swings, diarrhea, and indeed, fainting I experienced as a teenager with cramps. I had no choices beyond pain killers at that time. Today, my daughters have grown up with Chinese medicine and don’t have to endure the “curse” the way I did.

I have treated hundreds of women for cramps and PMS over the years. Everyone is slightly different, but the guidelines of Chinese medicine have always helped. Acupuncture and herbal teapills, timed with a woman’s, have helped many women with the difficult challenges of menses. Medical studies have shown that Chinese herbal medicine for primary dysmenorrhea roughly doubled pain relief and improvement in overall symptoms compared with conventional Western pharmaceuticals. *

Herbal medicine has been used for centuries in China. When properly used as directed by an acupuncturist and purchased from a reputable herb manufacturer, Chinese herbs are safe with very few negative effects.

While two women may have cramps, the cause of the cramps may be slightly different according to the principles of Chinese medicine. Some of the questions an acupuncturist may ask are:

Are the cramps on day 1?

Are the cramps on the lower abdomen, back or top of thighs?

What relieves the pain?

Are they every month?

Is there constipation before day 1?

How are the emotions?

And on and on, getting the specifics of the individual menstrual cycle. We ask a lot of questions. If the woman is on birth control, all the questions still apply. Getting quality advice from an experienced practitioner is important and can save time and money. Interviews can be in person or via tele-health using herbs and other advice only. Herbal interventions were usually started five to seven days before menstruation and continued for about 10 to 15 days -- until the first or second day of menstruation or throughout menstruation.

I invite you to book online with me or your local acupuncturist today to suffer no more!

*Chinese Herbs Ease Menstrual Cramps Better than NSAIDs

By Crystal Phend, Staff Writer, MedPage Today; Published: October 17, 2007; Reviewed by Robert Jasmer, MD; Associate Clinical Professor of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco