(no subject)

[ginny_t]

So, I was just thinking about the girl pain that I get. It's wicked fierce and most definitely not just 3 days a month. Seen doctors. They're ever-so-helpful. But that's another rant. (And before someone helpful suggests the Pill, that's not working. It just spreads the pain around. yay.)

I was just thinking about it, though, and I started awfully young. The onset age has actually decreased by about 5 years in the last 50 years or so. That's been attributed to growth hormones in livestock.

Stick with me here, I might be going somewhere.

The pain started a couple of years after I stopped eating red meat, and it's been getting progressively worse. And yeah, I did a Logic course, I know correlation is not causation, but I'm wondering if there's something to that timing. Or maybe I'm just cracked, thinking paranoid-vegetarian thoughts.

Say, saoilsinn, you mentioned calcium a while back. Pills? How many? How often? Details?

Any other suggestions?

Comments

[auraus.livejournal.com]

Hrmmm.. I stopped eating red meat last year.... should I be looking forward to this too? (There again, I've always had painful girl-pains. Go Go hot baths and chocolate ice cream ^_~)

[mmarques.livejournal.com]

If you're thinking it's possible related to diet, have you tried varying your vegetarian diet? For example, eliminating soy products for a few weeks.

Also, if you have a lot of dairy products, there can be hormones in the milk. You could try cutting dairy for a few weeks.

[mmarques.livejournal.com]

p.s. I've been allergic to all red meat except lamb (which I rarely eat) for about 10 years, and have not noticed more painful girl-pains since I stopped eating red meat. Cutting back a lot on poultry has not had a painful effect either.

I do sometimes have pains, but not for more than a day or 2, and I am now thinking that it used to be worse back when I ate more meat, but that might not be related.

[epi-lj.livejournal.com]

How's your iron and B12 and all that good stuff? One thing of course is that "around that time" you'll be especially vulnerable to anemia.

Do you take anything to help you get the vitamins and minerals that you previously got from meat? (I don't process supplements well, so I make sure to drink fortified soy milk regularly instead, but there are some great supplements.)

[otheronetruegod.livejournal.com]

Two things:

1) The actual suspect for earlier onset of puberty is a healthy diet. The growth hormone theory is pretty much considered to be bunk (http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/08/health/08real.html?ex=1111208400&en=695e287ac0ee3fb1&ei=5070).

2) Vegetarian diets are often woefully lacking in vitamin B-12, since this does not come from any source other than animals (no, not even in the vitamin supplements). There is evidence that B12 can decrease menstrual pain (http://www.fatsforhealth.com/news_update/menstrual.php).

Yeah, I know I'm a boy, but I like to know this kind of stuff. :-)

[ginny-t.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I know I'm a boy, but I like to know this kind of stuff. :-)

Which is why I didn't just filter this for the girls...

[vampy-chan.livejournal.com]

Looks like all angles of diet I can think of are covered :)

I won't suggest the pill... I'll just ask if you are on one right now is it known for those sorts of side effects??

The first one I was ever on made my girlie times so bad that I would spend two days sick in bed every month, doubled over in pain and vomitting from dusk till dawn... sadly I don't remember which evil pill caused that...
However the one I'm on now (alesse) is actually quite nice, little to no pain (aside from perhaps a migraine) and very short girlie times :)

Although of course those things vary greatly from person to person... just don't ever ever ever make my mistake of being seduced by Depo Provera's "no period" sales pitch ;_; not worth the suffering!

[exsanguinated.livejournal.com]

you could try black cohosh or blue cohosh tincture [BOTH IN SMALL DOSES ONLY] or yarrow in the form of tea. yarrow is also a mild sedative. all of these help ease menstrual pain. you should be able to find any of these at a noah's or herbies on queen st.

as for calcium, calcium carbonate is better than calcium citrate, but it also competes for absorption with a number of other minerals, so taking vit d with it helps calcium absorb better.

hope this helps.

[saoilsinn.livejournal.com]

My naturopath advised calcium in a dosage of 1200 mg per day. That's a lot of calcium -- I have a deficiency (the menstrual help is certainly a bonus). Calcium helps with PMS, bloating and cramps. The brand I use (which I am blanking on right now, but will email you after I get home & look in the fridge) was designed for optimal absorption by a naturopath. I take 600 mg in the morning with my Bio-K & flax and then another 600 mg in the evening with a meal.

Calcium also helps regulate sleep. Estrogen regulates calcium metabolism & calcium absorption fluctuates with the menstrual cycle. Studies have shown that low calcium levels and PMS have similar symptoms. Interesting...

I usually take pain killers for a few days when my period starts so that I can work. The cramps are usually quite bad. My cramps were better this month. I only took pills at the onset and once after -- a vast improvement. Yet, I have also been going through dietary change. Another thing of note is that I have been doing castor oil packs on my belly for bed three nights a week. I think that this really helped as well.

Also -- I have to day it. When I exercise more, my cramps lessen.

[ginny-t.livejournal.com]

Thanks! Yes, the brand your naturopath recommended would be sovery helpful.

[everyonesakitty.livejournal.com]

Dude. Sorry you're having such a terrible time. I, too, have had terrible girly experiences in the past. I ended up anemic every month and couldn't get out of bed for three days. Kinda hard to make your way in the world like that.

I found something that works for me... maybe it will help you. I'm a vegetarian, and I discovered I was missing B Vitamins, iron and calcium in major measure. I tried taking them as supplements, but that didn't work. When I finally found a whole food source for those nutrients, my girly troubles receded to a mere "ah, I'm a little tired today" once a month or so. No cramps, no stomach weirdness. No pain. No Anemia.

There's a grain called quinoa that has all those nutrients in abundance. Also, soybeans and black beans have them. I eat at *least* two of those three foods everyday no matter what, and it has totally changed my life. Also, cutting caffeine and sugar helped, but I know it's harder to cut stuff from your diet than to add .

I dunno. Everyone is different. *shrugs* I hope you find something that helps!!!!

[ginny-t.livejournal.com]

Quinoa, eh? Thanks, I'll try that. Do soymilk and tofu count towards the soybeans?

I know I need to cut out down on sugar, but it's *hard*.

[everyonesakitty.livejournal.com]

yes! soy milk and tofu definitely count toward the soybeans. The closer you get to the whole food the better though. Something about all the nutrients in the soybean work together to help you absorb more of the good stuff. I dunno how it all works. :)

[linzq.livejournal.com]

I too, don't think vegetarianism does it... I've been veg for 10 years now and no problems.

My new nutritionist suggested I get tested for an iron deficiency, even though my blood tests came back ok in terms of anemia... you might want to as well, although I don't know if it's related.