Painful Periods Aren’t Normal: How Homeopathy Can Help with Menstrual Health

Many women are missing work or school as a result of painful or heavy periods.

I recently came across the “Just a Period” survey by Wellbeing of Women and it made me realise more women are struggling with heavy, painful periods than I suspected. We often have no idea how common this problem is because we’ve all become so good at hiding it.

As a homeopath some women come to me specifically for help with their periods - usually because they are so badly out of balance they cannot function normally and are missing school or work as a result.  Usually they have either found the pharmaceutical route didn’t work for them or want to try natural remedies for their periods without side effects.

However I always ask all women how they experience(d) their periods because the monthly cycle is one of the regulating forces within the body and if this is (or was) out of balance it can impact the other systems in the body.

How Period Pain Disrupts Daily Life

In the Just a Period report 51% of women surveyed said their period has a negative impact on their life and 96% said they had experienced pain.  Of these 62% said that it was severe and 24% said it was very severe.  I haven’t ever collated the information women have shared with me but would say these numbers reflect what I’ve seen in practice.  I had assumed they weren’t as bad for the wider population but I am shocked for how many this is a monthly hell.  When a woman shrugs and tells me “this is normal” I sigh. 

I hear stories of:

• Sitting on towels in the car

• Curled up in bed with hot water bottles

• Passing out from pain

• Too nauseous to eat

• Work, exercising, travelling and holidays either compromised or cancelled

The Monthly Emotional Rollercoaster of Hormonal Imbalance.

For many women they first know their period is coming a week or more beforehand - as the oestrogen levels rise, so does their sensitivity.  They report reacting badly to things which at other times in the month wouldn’t bother them at all.  This heightened state of emotion can be anything from anger to tears but a woman in the grip of it will often say - it’s not me, I’m coming up for my period.

Parents will often tell me they are treading on eggshells around their teen who could fly off the handle or meltdown emotionally at the least obvious trigger.

What is normal for a period?

Because we don’t discuss the details of our periods and because it happens every single month, it becomes our “normal”.  When I was training to be a homeopath, I was taught that a woman’s cycle should be 28 days, light to start with, a couple of heavier days and then light to finish and lasting 5 days in total.

Homeopathy for Painful, Heavy Periods: How It Helps

As I started practising I noticed one after the other, from young girls, to women in their 40s, no matter how many years they had been experiencing their periods, and no matter how horrendous their experience was, once they started taking their homeopathic remedy their cycle shifted closer to 28 days, the pain reduced and the flow became more normal.  On top of this, the wild emotional rollercoaster eased up and again and again women would say “I don’t know when my period is coming” or “it takes me by surprise”.

If you speak to any homeopath they will tell you the same thing.

This is especially important for women trying to conceive - I find it astonishing how many women are put through the trauma of IVF without first balancing their cycle.

Does the Covid Vaccine affect periods?

During the Covid vaccine roll-out, I noticed a significant number of my clients reporting changes to their periods. This aligns with emerging studies, such as one from Turkey showing over half of women experienced menstrual changes post-vaccination.  Click here to read the study.

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10727619/#:~:text=More than half of the,bleeding compared to before vaccination.

Are you struggling to get through your day today?

It is likely one of the women you meet today will be having her period and there are probably women in your workplace today who are struggling to get through the day.  With over half of all women and girls including a heartbreaking 7 out of 10 of 16-24 year olds reporting that they have been shamed by someone close to them in relation to their period.  And half of all women having their symptoms dismissed, even by medical professionals, it’s no wonder we are keeping this to ourselves.

Does this sound like you?

If this sounds familiar, please know that support is available. Whether through me or another practitioner, homeopathy has helped many women find relief. Visit findahomeopath.org to find qualified, registered homeopaths or Homeopathy UK run free clinics.

How quickly would homeopathy improve my periods?

In the women I treat I would expect to see an improvement in your next period, even if it is only a few days away.  This is a bold claim but in 14 years of practice the only times this hasn’t happened is when the remedy I have selected isn’t the best fit for your symptoms.  However, in these cases what’s fantastic about homeopathy is that the symptoms shift a little to make the correct remedy easier to recognise and once selected, the improvement is swift.

And because homeopathy addresses the whole body you would usually notice improvements to other things such as your sleep, bowel habit, digestion, skin, headaches, mood and energy levels.

If you would like to see the results of the Just a Period Survey click here:

https://www.wellbeingofwomen.org.uk/what-we-do/campaigns/just-a-period/just-a-period-survey-results/

	Homeopathy and Periods - FAQs
What is a normal period supposed to feel like?	You cycle should be about 28 days, you should have hardly any symptoms to show it is coming, manageable flow and be able to carry on your normal week.
Can homeopathy help with period pain?	Yes.  Please YES!!  This is why I’ve written this blog.  Homeopaths all over the world are helping women discover menstrual pain is not a normal part of being a woman.
Is it normal to feel emotionally overwhelmed before your period?	Sadly many women feel emotionally overwhelmed before their period and worse - according to the Just a Period Survey, many are made to feel shame if they share their concerns.  Know that it is just your hormones out of balance and there homeopathy can provide emotional PMS relief.
What other natural treatments are effective for PMS and heavy periods?	Diet can make a huge difference because of the relationship between blood sugar levels and hormones. Also Acupuncture which like homeopathy, also focuses on balancing the body can be helpful.