Dear World,

Blogmas 2021 | 12 Days of Christmas | Day 4

First of all, pain isn’t just the feeling of what seems like a shape object is jammed into your skin. Pain can also be equivalent to a ridiculously annoying experience that drains the life out of you and gives you weird and unhealthy food cravings.

If you’re anything like me, period days tend to be painful, uncomfortable and make you more irritable. I’m talking about back pains, cramps, headaches, bloating, hormones everywhere, 180° mood swings, gas …OMG… I cannot be the only person who gets gasy in those moments, and of course tears that feed a never dried up river.

Each period experience is different too, like why can’t my body make up its mind! Dammit.

Anyway. You can change some of your daily habits by adding or reducing some of your practices. One thing that helps with the bloating and the soul stealing cramps is exercise. Even if it’s a mild/light exercise – like entire body stretches, yoga, walking etc – it helps. Well, it helps me. My cramps somehow feel less painful, the bloating reduces, and I cry less.

When it comes to further pain management, I drink a whole lot of water and teas. I don’t like taking pain pills, so what I do is I make real ginger and turmeric tea (without sugar)…literally wash, dry and beat the roots, then place them in a pot with water to boil. Those roots?! Goodness gracious, they’re amazing.

Another thing that works for me is an overhaul of my diet and sleep habits. By the way, overhauling your diet includes the content you read, watch, listen to, and the environments you put yourself in. In as much as diets have the ability to impact your hormones and ultimately your response to everything internal and external, the other shit you consume can impact you as well. This is especially true for your period days.

So, ease off the junk food for a bit, reduce the other processed foods and drinks, change your environment and track how your body, mind and soul operates. So, eat more fruits and veggies, throwbaway that nasty cow’s milk (it’s good for calves and I know I ain’t no cow). Try a nut or an oat milk. Matter of fact, try really hard to cut out all dairy products.

You can also try changing your tools for period management. If you don’t see any kind of change, then call me out. You won’t though cause this is real, tried, tested and true. Well, by me at least. It works…for me. It may work for you!

I find that using period blood soakers such as tampons and pads/sanitary napkins aren’t as sanitary as the name suggests. I mean, blood. gets. everywhere. This is especially true when it’s not properly placed or when your flow is super heavy OR you fall asleep and toss and turn. I once had period induced nightmares and fell off my bed. Yes. It was awful.

Look at me projecting my period experiences. Sorry. These situations happen to me. If that ever happens to you, drop your experiences in the comments and let’s chat about them.

Back to ‘period blood soakers’. Since summer 2021, I’ve been using a silicone item generally known as a period cup/menstrual cup by the Pixie Cup brand. The cups from them are identified as Pixie Cups. When I tell you that it changed my life, I mean it.

I no longer worry about the toxic shock syndrome that sometimes come with the use tampons and pads. The cup literally collects the period blood without leakage (once properly inserted) and I can go about my days without a care for my period.

I’m weird and having a Pixie Cup feeds into that because the cups have measurement lines. It gives me an idea of how much blood my body excreted at the various stages of my cycle. I love that for me. You may be weird too and this might tickle your fancy. Ha!

I no longer have to concern my self with removing, wrapping and “discretely” disposing of period scented cotton items anymore. It’s now as easy as removing the cup, dumping the contents, cleaning the cup and reinserting. That’s more sanitary for me.

Anyways, to each his own (is that how it’s said?)

Also.

I’m a Pixie Cup affiliate ambassador! Use my code thesuburbangirlja at check out when shopping for Pixie Cup products and earn 10% off your first order!!

*These thoughts and experiences are my own and they’re not necessarily supported by empirical evidence. Great, glad to have gotten that out the way.

May your next period be pain free.

Signed with love,

The Suburban Girl JA