What Causes Period Pain?

image of woman holding her stomach

If you experience more intense period cramps than other women in your life, you’re probably wondering why you got stuck with this monthly pain while others breeze through their period like nothing’s happening at all. The bad news is that it’s still unknown why some people are predisposed to experiencing painful menstrual cramps. 

In general, though, people are more likely to have painful periods if they have a heavy or long period, if their periods are irregular, or if other factors are involved — like sexually transmitted bacteria, smoking, or being thin. All bodies are unique, so what’s causing your painful cramps is probably different than what’s causing your friend to be in pain! The good news is that there are plenty of period pain treatment options — including Control! Our pain relief cream is inspired by women, for women and is specifically designed for menstrual cramps. Order yours today and continue reading to learn more about what causes period pain and how you can treat it! 

Symptoms

Symptoms of period pain can vary and are unique to the woman experiencing the pain. They can include one or many of the following:

  • Painful menstrual cramps in your lower abdomen that can be very intense
  • A continuous ache, that may be less intense, but lasts for a long time
  • Lower back pain or pain in your thighs

Some women also experience nausea, headaches, and dizziness during their period. If your periods are heavy, irregular, and you experience extremely painful menstrual cramps, your pain might be caused by a medical condition and that is important to diagnose and treat. 

Causes

In most cases, cramping and period pain are just a normal part of a woman’s cycle and not tied to a larger medical condition. During your period, your uterus contracts and gets rid of the lining that would have been used to help a fertilized egg grow, causing you to bleed. Cramping, or muscle contractions, are what help that lining, and the blood that comes with it, get out of your body. It’s a natural part of the process!

Sometimes if you have a heavy cycle or your muscles are just working extra hard, you’ll start feeling period pain, or painful menstrual cramps. You can think about it in the same way that you might get a calf cramp after running or working out — overuse of a muscle or holding a muscle in the same position for a long period of time causes it to get strained and cramp up. Control pain relief cream is a great period pain treatment for this type of painful menstrual cramps. Order yours today!

But other times period pain and cramping can be a sign of a larger issue, and if you’re experiencing severely painful menstrual cramps, you should be aware of the potential causes. You can still use Control as a period pain treatment, but you will most likely also need other forms of treatment that a physician can recommend and provide for you.

Endometriosis

Endometriosis is a disorder that affects somewhere between three and ten percent of reproductive-aged women. It is treatable by your doctor. It occurs when the tissue that normally lines the uterus is found outside the uterus, on the ovaries, fallopian tubes, or the intestines. While endometriosis is usually found in the lower abdomen, it can appear anywhere in the body.

People with endometriosis may experience pain in the lower abdomen, lower back, and pelvis as well as abnormal menstruation and painful menstrual cramps.

Uterine Fibroids

Uterine Fibroids are noncancerous growths in the uterus that can develop and cause pain, especially in the lower back. The cause of fibroids isn’t well understood, and they mainly cause pain and heavy periods. If you uterine fibroids are the cause of your painful menstrual cramps, the good news is that you can have them removed!

Adenomyosis

In this condition, the inner lining of the uterus, or endometrium, breaks its way through the uterus’ muscle wall, causing painful menstrual cramps, abdominal pressure, and bloating. Like most of the conditions on this list, it can also result in heavy periods. Medications and topical creams like Control can help relieve pain. And making it through menopause also helps, so you have that to look forward to!

Pelvic Inflammatory Disease

Period pain can also be caused by sexually transmitted bacteria, as is the case with pelvic inflammatory disease. This women’s health issue requires diagnosing what type of bacteria spread the disease and treating it with antibiotics. Unlike other conditions we’ve gone over, this one is a pretty easy fix! Just take your antibiotics and penicillin and you’ll be good to go in a couple days or weeks. 

Cervical Stenosis

In some women, the opening to the cervix is smaller, and makes it difficult for blood to flow out from the uterus. Think of it like a narrowing or closing of the passage between the uterus and vagina. It can cause no periods, painful periods, and abnormal bleeding. In some cases, this can lead to a buildup of blood and tissue in the uterus, which, as you can imagine, is not a great situation.

This women’s health condition can be extremely painful, can cause blood to go backwards up through fallopian tubes, and cause endometriosis, or push the uterine lining out into the pelvis. All around, it’s a serious condition. But it can improve on it’s own following having a baby or by using dilators. 

What You Can Do

There are plenty of natural cramp relief options for you, including Control topical pain cream! You should stay hydrated, exercise, and apply heat to the area where you’re feeling pain. You can also use over-counter-pain medication. If you’re looking for an option other than medication, you should order Control — a pain relief cream specifically designed for painful menstrual cramps!

You can also talk to your doctor about using a hormonal birth control that can reduce period pain by lessening the buildup of the uterine lining or preventing your period altogether.

When to Get Medical Help

Some types of menstrual pain are “normal,” but if your cramps are not eased by a typical pain killer or by Control topical pain cream, then it’s time to see your doctor. If your painful menstrual cramps are bad enough to interfere with your day-to-day activities, you should also see a doctor. 

If your cramping is suddenly different or unusually severe and lasts for more than a few days, then you should make an appointment with your doctor as soon as possible, and they can help you find out whether or not the pain is caused by one of the conditions we discussed above.

CONTROL Treatment for Period Pain

We’ve created our blog to help educate our community about issues surrounding women’s health. Control pain relief cream is inspired by women and made for women! We pride ourselves on providing women of all ages with a safe alternative to medication for period pain relief. 

Our period pain relief cream is FDA approved and safe, effective, and easy to use. We are confident that you will love our product and share it with all the women in your life. Order yours from Control today and start experiencing relief from painful menstrual cramps!

 

This blog has been prepared for information purposes only and is not intended to provide medical advice from KR Technologies or its affiliates. You should consult your own physician with any medical questions.