1 In Lifestyle/ Women's Health

6 Ways to Help you Ease PMS

PMS

We all have been there and you may even be there right now…just like me. Being women has its perks but it also comes with some downfalls, like having a period and a couple weeks of complete craziness and tears (PMS, I’m talking to you). Oh well, we can’t have it all, right?

Being a woman means that we have to deal with an incontrollable part of ourselves that is difficult to take care of: our hormones.
Hormones are the ones responsible to all the changes in our body for all of our life. They dictate how our bodies are going to act each month, sending us the signals that our period is coming, announcing that we are getting mad at everything and everyone that dares to cross our path and even other littles things we not even notice or know about. It’s all on them.

Anyways, I’m not exactly the best person to talk about hormones as I’m not a doctor or nutritionist or have any deeper knowledge on it. I’m here to help you go through the most dragging weeks of our months.The majority of women suffers with this syndrome, although, most of us, have no clues on what to do to soothe the symptoms.  Yes, I’m talking PMS! The Premenstrual Syndrome is highly common for most of us but I feel like we are not talking about it enough…

PMS symptoms can range from almost inexistent to severe and it depends on quite a lot of factors, such as genetics (sorry, can’t help with that). And for those with a extreme episodes of PMS, seeking your doctors advice is highly recommended.

During this crappy week, we have to be really careful with our bodies and treat it extra nicely. That’s because, there are certain things that we can do to help our bodies to adapt or not suffer so much on the week prior to our period. And that’s what I really wanted to share with you.

Because, honestly, who likes to be on such a terrible mood? When no one understands you? When everything pisses you off? And when all you want to do is to eat all that chocolate that exists on the face of earth???

One week before we actually get our period, we usually start having the critical mood swings, extra sensitiveness, cravings and tiredness. That’s because at this time of our cycle our estrogen, progesterone (especially this one) and testosterone all go from normal levels to rock bottom. This sudden change creates all the chaos in our bodies and we start feeling like crap :/ when you have your period, all three hormones are at the bottom, but you are already stabilised and from there, you start going back to your normal self.

So, what can we do to ease all of that? Well, there’s a few tips that even my mother used to give me and hey, mothers always know better, right? But also, I’ve learnt that our diets influence a lot in the way we feel (duh!) and even more so at such a delicate time for our bodies. So here are a few tips that help me immensely during this tough week…

6 Ways to Help you Ease Your PMS

  1.  Avoid the bad boys

    It’s kinda obvious and I hope you already do that on the other weeks, but on this one, avoid refined sugar, processed foods, carbs such as white pasta, rice and bread, alcohol and caffeine. Also, steer away from soy products. All of them have too much impact in our hormones and can intensify the feelings of tiredness and mood swings.

  2.  Eat the rainbow

    IMG_1269
    To balance out our diets, make sure to stock up on plenty of greens, colourful veggies, beans and wholemeal grains that are low GI, such as quinoa, millet, brown or wild rice… And enjoy our beloved AVOCADO and nuts too! They contains healthy fats that help alleviate symptoms.

  3. Move that body

    On these days, it’s important that we don’t succumb to the lack of motivation and continue with a healthy dose of exercise. Light to moderate are the best. Go for a 30-40 minute walk, do your yoga, hit the gym. Whatever you prefer, just don’t stop exercising. Our body needs and thrives on it. So shake that booty.

  4. Meditate

    meditation
    Yep, meditate. It seems like the most difficult task when all you want to do is to cry or punch someone in the face but it’s the best thing you can possibly do. Even if it’s just for 5-10 minutes. Believe me, it works wonders and you can stick it to your daily routine easily. So keep calm and meditate.

  5. Get your supplements right

    Most of us (unfortunately) are not getting enough nutrient from the food we eat. That’s due to many things, from the most obvious, not eating right, but also because of soil depletion, which leads to undernourishment. So sometimes, taking the right supplements will help greatly with your hormonal balance.

  6. Take some ‘me time’

    Colouring
    Oh yes, always so difficult to have this one ticked off the list right? But oh so important. It’s essential that we take the time to take care of ourselves and give our bodies a bit of a break. Stress levels are one of the worst offenders when it comes to hormonal imbalance. So, make yourself a little favour and cancel that appointment you didn’t want to go anyways. Or take the day off from everything and read a book that’s overdue, watch a movie or get colouring… Have you tried? Super therapeutical!

I hope you enjoyed reading a bit more about your PMS. We all go through it, so let’s talk about it. We never know when we can help.
Also, if you wanna talk about anything else, let me know. You can contact me here and open up about any questions, suggestions and enquiries you may have! I would love to hear from you 🙂

Peace and love,

Larissa x

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