I acknowledge that each person’s body is different and that what works for one may not work for another. Or you may have sensitivities or allergies if these are unfamiliar to you, so try these at your own risk. That said, I can offer what used to work for me, and you can try it out for yourself if you choose.
Overall ik- slow activities down as much as possible. I realize that the work world doesn’t support daytime naps and higher ups need things to get done; but when they push you, your symptoms get worse. You can catch up after the symptoms are over, but for the time of PMDD, you need as much peace, quiet, and rest as possible.
Anger without reason- rosemary. I used to eat Italian before my time of the month, and I found that the rosemary helped ease my anger. Not everyone likes the flavor. I used to put a few whole rosemary leaves into an empty capsule and take it only during PMS. It doesn’t take much. Yet rosemary can be an allergen, so please be careful. If you harvest it from your own garden, it is best to remove any spider webs or other unwanted stuff sticking to the resin before consuming. I’d recommend only one or two days of use during the most intense anger as necessary. It may turn anger into tears. The true emotion for shadow work may not be anger at all, so shadow work is not advisable during this time.
Crying- chocolate. This one is dangerous because chocolate works on the deepest hormones in the brain and can become addictive. If you go this path and find it works for you, remove all other chocolate and use it purely for medicinal purposes like I did. Even Harry Potter found out that emotions are eased with a bit of chocolate after a dementor attack.
Nausea- mints. They help keep the breath fresh, settle the stomach, and help remove toxins from the blood. Even the candy mints work because mint is so easy to grow that it is rarely replaced by artificial flavoring.
Stomach cramps- eat several small meals instead of three normal ones. Yes, you’ll have to work off the extra calories later, preferably after the danger of cramps is over, so use caution. This keeps the stomach active so your body isn’t empty at any point. It’s not what you eat as much as the sensation of being full, so if you want, pack fruit or veggies to snack on during the day. Oat breakfasts are encouraged for the heart, but also for the feeling of fullness for a bit longer.
Itching- cranberries. It doesn’t seem right- cranberries are so sour that they require a ton of sugar to make them palatable, yet they fight sugar and yeast. And they do a great job at it, too! You can do this with dried cranberries, which are not as bitter as the canned jelly (though the jelly works too if you like it) or with juice, whether mixed with other fruit juices or alone.
Bloating- celery. Not many people like celery, but it does help get the water off the ankles of otherwise healthy people. Be ready to need to use the bathroom a lot in the night. I found that packing celery seed from the baking section of the grocery store into empty capsules removed the flavor and helped me get enough diuretics to empty myself of excess water. Caution: take celery only four or five days in a row and then allow your body to relax a bit and release what it can for about a week before taking the next set when you’re first starting out. There may be a pause while your body figures out what it wants to do with celery. This is not an overnight cure.
Be aware that showering can cause discomfort during that time of the month. It is OK to skip a full shower or tub bath and simply spot clean for a couple of days to reduce physical issues. I’ll leave you to figure that out on your own. Just including it here because it can be an issue to consider.
Constipation- grapes, raisins, nuts, whole wheat, oats. Increase your fiber. This also helps with feeling full, but you don’t want to fill your intestines rather than your stomach. If you fill the intestines, the stomach stops working until the intestines empty.
Headaches- stop using as much caffeine as possible, except the forms listed above for medicinal use. This may cause jonesing if you drink a lot of coffee, which in itself can cause headaches. Mom had this problem. Her go to was one piece of bread, cut in half, with a thick slice of onion on it. Ik. Yeah, I know. It worked. She kept blinds closed and sound volume down and sometimes took a nap after eating the onion sandwich. In about half an hour to an hour, she was able to move around more normally. When she realized that caffeine was causing this symptom, she quit drinking coffee and never had bad headaches again. Coffee sellers don’t want people to know that not every body can handle caffeine the same way.
Cravings- let’s take a couple of these one by one, but the overall idea is to satisfy them as best you can. Sometimes, they simply get too much to handle, though.
If you crave sweets (and be honest, we all do), add cinnamon to your diet. It cuts the cravings, reduces blood sugar, and still allows you to get through the day. Cinnamon is great on toast, cereal, apples, and pretzels.
If you crave salt, lemon juice cuts through quite a bit. Some lemonade brands use artificial flavoring, which does not work. Your better bet is to buy the real juice and sugar it to taste for yourself. From there, you can add other flavorings like grape, strawberry, or raspberry as you like.
Now, if you’ll forgive me for connecting seemingly unrelated posts, PMDD could have caused much of what you felt on the last post about being confused about a friend’s reaction to your feelings. Now, aren’t you glad you waited to act on it all? The confusion is purely hormonal, and is perfectly normal. It is better to know ahead of time when these hormones are going to strike so you can refuse to react blindly. Make decisions during other times of the month, not during PMDD.
Not everyone can keep a calendar for that time of the month: people may call it “Moon Time,” but not every body reacts to the moon. Higher stress can bring it on earlier or make it hold off until the stress releases. After a while, you can get to know your body’s hints. I had a list of symptoms which included strange dreams which were out of my normal pattern, cravings, constipation, or discomfort a bit before the full time of the month. Make your own list. Write down how you feel each day of the month in a small calendar and see if your pattern follows the moon, stress, or even holidays. Such knowledge of yourself comes in handy throughout your life. It can also help you find out if you are sensitive to certain foods, help with decision making, where you caught your last flu, and what eased any symptoms for anything you might get. Doctors will hate you for not being their guinea pig, but you’ll be more active in your own health and life with its assistance.