Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS)

Overview

Premenstrual syndrome, or PMS, is a condition related to hormonal fluctuations that affect more than half of all pre-menopausal women in the United States. It typically occurs 10 to 14 days prior to menstruation, lasting through the first two to three days of menstruation, and can present with a wide range of symptoms.

Symptoms

According to Susan M. Lark, MD, a holistic physician who specializes in women’s health issues, there are four basic types of PMS, which she categorizes as Type A, Type C, Type D, and Type H, based on the symptoms that predominate in each category.

Women who suffer from Type A PMS typically experience anxiety, irritability, and mood swings. Women in the Type C category predominantly experience fatigue, headache, and sugar cravings. Symptoms for Type D usually present themselves as depression, confusion, and memory and cognition problems, while Type H sufferers most commonly experience bloating, sore breasts, and fluctuating weight gain.

Other common PMS symptoms that can be experienced by women in all four categories above include acne, oily skin and hair, cramps (dysmenorrhea), low back pain, nausea, and sleeping problems, including hormonal insomnia.

When addressing PMS, the treatment goals of alternative health practitioners are to help women achieve balance in body, mind, and spirit using a combination of therapies, which can all be practiced as self-care treatments.

Causes

The primary causes of PMS are hormonal and nutritional imbalances, poor diet, stress, and, in many cases, the unwarranted belief by women that menstruation is somehow unnatural and revolting. Such a belief is primarily due to social conditioning and completely false, since menstruation is in fact a vital and natural part of every healthy woman’s life cycle and evidence of her innate feminine power.

Do

This content is for members only. Please JOIN NATURAL CURES OR LOGIN

Diet

Supplements:

Take Vitamin D3 50,000-100,000 International Units a day for periods of 4 weeks at a time.
Wholefood supplements are the best way of ensuring your nutritional needs are met. The best we know on the market is Kevin Trudeau’s “KT Daily” product. You can find more details here kevintrudeaudailylifesessentials.com/
Take an Omega 3 supplement:

Krill oil –

Fish oil

Cod liver oil

Vegetarian –

Vitamin A, beta carotene, vitamin B-complex, vitamin B6, vitamin E, calcium, magnesium, zinc, evening primrose oil, and gamma linolenic acid (GLA) are all beneficial in the treatment of PMS.

Prescription and non-prescription medication:

What non-prescription and prescription drugs are you taking? Your non-prescription and prescription are partially the reason that you have this illness or disease – you need to get off these medications but do so only under the guidance of a licensed health care practitioner.

Mind

We know that when the body is out of balance, energy doesn’t flow, leading blockages and eventually disease. Here are some things you can do to combat stress and restore balance:

Go to a Dr Morter BEST (Bio-Energetic Synchronisation Technique) Practitioner.
Sign up for Energetic Re-Balancing: 2 practitioners to consider are:
Stephen Lewis, founder of the Aim Program. Find out more by clicking here.
. Find out more by clicking here.
Consider using Mary Millers Iching System Products – ichingsystemsinstruments.com
Reiki healing is very powerful in releasing stress and emotional baggage. Find a practitioner here.
Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) has had remarkable results in dissolving stress. Find a local practitioner here or go to www.thetappingsolution.com or www.tftrx.com
Try Hypnotherapy to relax the mind. Find a practitioner here.

Guided Imagery and Visualization:

Guided imagery and visualization techniques are an easy way to enhance your ability to relax, which is important during times of PMS. The following exercise can provide you with tools you can use to quickly shift away from feelings of stress to feelings of relaxation. Sit comfortably in an easy chair and close your eyes. Take a few gentle, deep breaths, and imagine yourself becoming increasingly relaxed with each breath you take. Feel relaxation spreading over your entire body like a wave of peace. Now recall a time from your past when you were truly happy and at ease. Imagine yourself back within that moment as if it is actually happening now in the present. Use all of your senses to make the scene real. Hear the sounds, smell the scents, and see everything about you in full color. As you relive this experience, notice anew how relaxed, happy, and at peace you feel. By taking a few moments to imagine this scene whenever you feel PMS symptoms building up, you will be able to quickly release your tension and reclaim the positive mood you were in when you first experienced the scene you are recalling.

Meditation:

Meditation has been scientifically shown to relieve stress, as well as to improve overall health and immune function, and to reduce the pain and suffering caused by chronic disease. In fact, in 1984, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) recommended meditation as the more appropriate and effective choice for treating mild cases of high blood pressure, instead of commonly prescribed blood pressure medications. Meditation can offer new insights and improved coping strategies, better enabling you to meet the challenges of the day. Some types of meditation, such as Transcendental Meditation (TM), have even been shown to produce deeper states of physical relaxation than ordinary sleep.Although there are many types of meditation practices to choose from, all of them have one thing in common: focused attention on the breath. If you are new to meditation, you can begin by sitting up straight yet comfortably and closing your eyes. Place your attention on your breathing as you inhale and exhale. Each time you find your attention starting to wander, simply refocus on your breath. Though doing so may seem difficult initially, with practice it will become easier and easier, and you will easily spend 20 to 30 minutes meditating in this manner. The key is to be gentle with yourself and not force. At first, you may find yourself unable to sit still for more than a few minutes. If that is the case, don’t continue. Instead, each day seek to add to the length of your meditation practice until you reach your goal of 20 to 30 minutes per session.

Relaxation Exercises: Practicing exercises that help your body and mind to relax can quickly release feelings of stress and tension associated with PMS. Here is an example of a relaxation exercise that you can easily make part of your daily health routine:

Sit in a quiet room with dim lighting, with your feet flat on the ground.
Close your eyes and focus on your breath. Gently begin to breathe deeply in and out from your belly.
Each time you exhale; mentally tell yourself, “Relax.” Do this for a few moments, until you feel a wave of relaxation starting to move through your body.
Now place your attention on your head, jaw, and face. As you continue breathing, direct the wave of relaxation throughout all of the muscles of your face and jaw, including those of the eyes, then over your scalp and along your head, down to the base of your neck.
Now tense your facial, jaw, and eye muscles for a few seconds, then, quickly release and relax them.
Repeat this process with each remaining part of your body, beginning with your shoulders, back, arms, and hands, then moving down to your chest, abdomen, pelvis, thighs and upper legs, calves, ankles, feet, and toes. Be sure each area of your body becomes more relaxed before you move your attention to the next area.
Once you have proceeded all the way to your toes, continue to sit with your eyes closed for a few more minutes, still breathing gently in and out of your belly, allowing your feelings of relaxation to deepen.
Just before opening your eyes, allow your breathing to become deeper and fuller, feeling a wave of energy passing through you. Once you feel vitalized, slowly open your eyes and return to your daily activities.