How do you best relieve period pains?

Bikram yoga

Heating pads and laying on my back with my feet elevated would help when my cramps were bad (in addition to Motrin/Advil).

Heating pads are good advice. Failing that, wine.

Isn’t sex supposed to help?

@daloon: Orgasm IS effective at easing cramps, and releases pain-releiving chemicals in the brain, too.

Heating pads, curling up in a ball on the floor and crying, sleep, sex (with self or others), eating something really warm and yummy.

Midol Extended Relief used to work for me but not anymore. It is very effective on most people though. and orgasms help very much :)

LOL @daloon ! Definetly not drawn to that idea… my agony is such that I want my partner to leave me the hell alone in general let alone getting down and dirty! (Dirty wasn’t meant to be a pun either!)

Whoa people… ok so sex/orgasms may actually be a huge relief!?? Hmmmm * cries *

@Rachienz it’s the only thing that works for me now. give it a go!

Haha, yeah, everyone is right about the sex helping. But if that’s not an option, like it hasn’t been for me, while I’m reduced to hysterical sobbing on my bed curled up helplessly begging for the agony to end…. I just take two Motrin, clutch the heating pad to my uterus, and wait for them to pass.
Mine usually go away after about a half hour, 40 minutes of intense pain. Probably at that point the pain-killer really kicks in…

Since my last brutal attack, I’ve been prescribed 800mg Ibuprofen and Percocet, so if I get struck again, I can use those. Maybe your OB/GYN can prescribe you the 800 mg ibuprofen if you continuously get horrific cramps.

For me, my cramps used to be so bad that I couldnt get out of bed and would miss almost a week of school. So I went on a birth control pill,and its improved the pain alot! I barely have any cramps at all anymore.Also, if your not on the pill, ultra strength pamprin really helped me aswell.

take midol and eat bananas.

Bananas?? ... maybe I shouldn’t ask! lol

Having kids seemed to work for me. I used to get cramps so painful that I couldn’t stand to be on my feet. But since you may not be ready for a cure that’s worse than the disease (just kidding, I love my kids, really)...

I used to take Advil and then take a nap. Lying on my stomach, which I normally can’t stand, helped a lot. Usually by the time I got up from the nap, the cramps were much, much better.

I remember reading somewhere that ibuprofen, the active ingredient in Advil (and Motrin, I believe), blocks the production of the hormones (prostaglandins) that cause cramps. You might also want to look at your diet. It’s been a while since I read up on the subject, but I think cutting back on certain things might help. Exercise is always good too, if you don’t already work out regularly.

Like @le_inferno suggested, you should mention the severity of the cramps to your doctor. She/he may be able to give you something if over-the-counter medications, changes to your diet, or excercise don’t work for you.

If prostaglandins are the problem, then ice may also help. It slows the flow of prostaglandins. I love it when I’m injured, because it really helps my spasming muscles, but my wife can’t stand it. She prefers heating pads. I have to wonder if heating pads actually make it worse. Has anyone ever tried ice?

@daloon I haven’t, but I don’t see how it could help, really. The heat relaxes the contracting muscle which causes the pain, wouldn’t ice only make it contract further?

@daloon Do you put the ice on the place that hurts, or on the sourse of the prostaglandins? For the life of me, I can’t remember where those hormones originate, but I got the funniest mental image of a woman trying to ice her pituitary gland.

@le_inferno No. Ice slows the flow of prostaglandins, which are what makes the muscles cramp. Heat actually increases the flow—at least, at first. It may feel good, but I don’t think it relaxes the muscles.

@MissAusten I put ice directly on the muscles that are spasming. It really calms them down, and helps them to move more freely. I used ice after several operations, and applied it directly to the area of pain. I didn’t even need pain killers after that.

Anyway, I don’t know. I’m a guy. Just wondering if anyone ever tried it. Probably different things work for different people, anyway.

Period pain is your muscles cramping. The best way to stop a cramping muscle is to stretch it out and warm it up.
As painfull as it is and sounds, sit ups and stomach crunches get the blood flowing.

Its excruitating but works.

Lots and lots of Motrin. Don’t waste your money on Midol or Pamprin when you can just buy some Motrin or any brand ibuprofen as it’s the same thing.

Years ago, Ibuprofen was nothing short of a miracle drug for me. ... for slightly more comprehensive pain relief, try menopause! : – ) ... no more cramps!

Before my hysterectomy (and ultimate relief!) I used to lie on my back on my bed, with my legs straight up against the wall and took prescription strength Aleve. Try to relax those cramping muscles as best you can.

As a man, the only thing I can recommend is Rooibos tea, which I personally love (for its taste) and all the girlfriends I’ve ever had agreed helped. It’s also good for stomach and bowel pains, and is generally relaxing. Warm, perhaps with sugar or honey, and it’s a natural product. I’ve often given it to some of my female friends with period pains, and it always worked (or at least made things slightly better in extreme cases).

My mother always recommended whiskey on the rocks (which does work, but must be used in moderation) Hope you feel better soon.

@daloon: I can’t say for certain, but it seems to me that the mechanism of a muscle spasm from over-use or injury would be different than that of an organ working to expell a build-up of body fluids.

And how exactly could you ice one’s uterus? There are muscles and varying degrees of fatty tissue between the skin and the uterus… the cold can’t penetrate the way the heat can.

No pain killers except Multi Symptom Pamprin have ever worked for me. It has slightly different stuff in it than Ibuprofen.

I find that if I am exercising regularly, my menstrual cramping is much less severe than if I’m not working out.

A good brisk walk does wonders for me
If you don’t fancy that try massaging your stomach with a relaxing oil that helps me too!

Iburofen 600 mg, you should take the pills with some food (a couple of crackers is fine) and a glass of water. It takes about 50 minutes for it to work once you take the pills. Tylenol, Alleve, Aspirin are not the same, Ibuprofen is a muscle relaxer and pain reliever. Also, for some weird reason I am less crampy if I wear tampons instead of pads.

I take Aleve (sodium naproxen). One pill shuts the pain down in short order.

ok, I am sorry, but everyone who says ONE or even TWO pills takes the pain away…is TOTALLY NOT understanding this poor girl. I hear ya’ sista’...I have to take at least 4 advil every hour to even breath. I take HOT baths, and put a corn or rice bag in the microwave and put it on my stomach and back. I can’t do anything but sit really still with lots of meds and lots of heat or I will puke…literally. I have considered the birth control route, but I am scared…so many people are sterile and I think it might have something to do with going on “the pill.”

Queen Elizabeth smoked marjiauna to relieve period cramps!

You may have a tipped uterus. That is why my pains are so bad, my mom, and my sister do as well. The good news is, that after you have a baby, the uterus straightens out. I need to get preggo…. fast!

@wickedbetty I hate to burst your bubble, but I had three kids and still had a tipped uterus. It made for quite painful pelvic exams late in my pregnancies. :(