PMS
A healthy menstrual cycle is basically free of complaints. Yet there are many women who suffer from both physical and emotional problems at the time of their menstruation. Sometimes the symptoms are so bad that they cannot function normally for a few days. That’s can be very disruptive. Moreover, menstruation is a natural process that should not cause so much discomfort every month.
PMS (before menstruation)
Menstrual problems often arise due to the hormone changes that take place in the period before and during menstruation. Most complaints occur in the period before menstruation begins. We call this the Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS). The symptoms can be both emotional and physical. Many women with PMS suffer from mood swings, irritability and somberness. Common physical complaints are abdominal pain, tiredness, headache, joint pain, back pain and sore breasts.
The cycle
In addition to premenstrual symptoms, there are also complaints that result from a disruption in the menstrual cycle. If the menstrual cycle is out of balance, menstruation may become irregular, last too long or last too short. It can also lead to excessive bleeding, intermediate bleeding or menstrual pain.
We have found that quite a few of our women patients think that all these complaints mentioned are part of the menstrual cycle. That is not true. A healthy menstrual period is regular, does not hurt and does not elicit strong emotional reactions.
What can acupuncture do?
Acupuncture treatment is aimed at your hormone balance and the energy balance in your abdomen. However the energy balance can also be disturbed elsewhere in the body, which influences your period as well. Sometimes a treatment is supplemented with herbal therapy to achieve a healthy cycle and have the physical and emotional symptoms disappear. How many treatments are needed depends on the nature and severity of your symptoms. Your acupuncturist will tell you more about this.