Do you want desperately to relieve period pain or menstrual cramps? If you do, I venture a guess that you’ve likely come across suggestions like cut out alcohol, caffeine and sugar the week before your menstrual period, start limiting gluten and dairy in your diet, try acupuncture, use gentle massage with massage oils or essential oils, or warm packs over your belly, and perhaps many other tips. These are all great for sure, but if you don’t already know about UteriCalm, Motherwort and Pycnogenol, you should read on! Historical use and clinical trials are proving that gentle, antispasmodic, anti-inflammatory herbs can in fact support women through more reproductive pain and discomfort often caused by PMS.
Painful menstruation (dysmenorrhea) can be experienced as tenderness to mild or severe pain before and during the menstrual period. For some women it is annoying and others debilitating, causing them to miss work, miss out on life events and resort regularly to non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) or hormonal birth control, neither of which are supportive of fertility health. For me, period pain is hands down the most annoying, so I wanted to share about my three go-tos when I’m in immediate need.
Gentle and Proven Remedies for Period Pain
1. UteriCalm
UteriCalm is a beautiful blend of several uterine-calming herbs known and traditionally used to relax smooth muscle, tone the uterus or strengthen a weak uterus, support healthy circulation to the uterus, and calm the nervous system. These herbs are: Cramp bark (Viburnum opulus), Partridgeberry (Mitchella repens), Black haw bark (Viburnum prunifolium), Milky oats (Avena sativa).
Learn more about UteriCalm for Painful Menstruation & Reproductive System Pain
See Fertilica™ Utericalm here…
2. Pycnogenol
The French maritime pine tree (Pinus pinaster) gives us the powerful antioxidant plant extract Pycnogenol. Several studies have now shown the ability of Pycnogenol to greatly reduce painful menstruation and several other symptoms of PMS (for women with endometriosis as well). For reproductive wellness, Pycnogenol works as an anti-inflammatory and supports healthy blood and lymph vessel function. Supplementing with a mere 30-60mg a day has shown to reduce PMS symptoms and dysmenorrhea.
3. Motherwort
Motherwort (Leonurus cardiaca) is known to relax smooth muscle and is calming with an affinity for the heart, supporting emotional health. A calm uterus, heart and mind are desired outcomes for battling PMS. It’s revered as an excellent choice for women with painful menstrual cramps and PMS (both the physical and emotional aspects of it). Motherwort can be started at the time of menstrual pain or PMS. Suggested use is 10-25 drops of liquid extract every 2 hours until the pain decreases or subsides. This method should only need to be used this way for up to 4 months in a row. Motherwort is also an important herb in FertilicaTM Radiant Womb – Therapeutic Massage Oil. It’s AMAZING! See FertilicaTM Radiant Womb Massage oil here…
Helping your body and mind through PMS
In most cases, it takes a while for natural remedies to work or to build up within the body the necessary nutrients in order for us to see or feel a noticeable difference. The great part about the herbs shared in this article is that they are gentle, rather fast-acting and may not necessarily need to be used long-term to feel the benefits. Consider learning more about UteriCalm, Pycnogenol and Motherwort to see if any resonate with you and might be worth a try with your natural fertility program. If you have chronic reproductive discomfort, these herbs may be helpful, but I would encourage also learning about Women’s Best Friend. It too is outstanding!
- Abernathy, S. (n.d.). UteriCalm for Painful Menstruation & Reproductive System Pain. Retrieved from: http://natural-fertility-info.com/utericalm-painful-menstruation-reproductive-pain.html
- Barton-Schuster, D. (n.d.). PMS: 5 Natural Ways to Feel Better Now. Retrieved from: http://natural-fertility-info.com/pms-5-natural-ways-to-feel-better-now.html
- Oliff, H.S. and Blumenthal, M. (n.d.) American Botanical Council Scientific and Clinical Monograph for PYCNOGENOL® (French Maritime Pine Bark Extract) Pinus pinaster Aiton subsp. Atlantica [Fam. Pinaceae]. Retrieved from: http://abc.herbalgram.org/site/DocServer/Pycnog_FullMono120809_LOW.pdf?docID=1741
- Kohama, T., Suzuki, N., Ohno, S. And Inoue, M. ( 01 Oct. 2004). Analgesic efficacy of French maritime pine bark extract in dysmenorrhea: an open clinical trial. The Journal of Reproductive Medicine [49(10):828-832]. Retrieved from: http://europepmc.org/abstract/med/15568408
- Suzuki N., Uebaba, K., Kohama, T., Moniwa, N., Kanayama, N. and Koike, K. (01 May 2008). French maritime pine bark extract significantly lowers the requirement for analgesic medication in dysmenorrhea: a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study. The Journal of Reproductive Medicine [53(5):338-346]. Retrieved from: http://europepmc.org/abstract/med/18567279
Elizabeth Willett is the Senior Herbalist and Lead Educator at NaturalFertilityInfo.com. She holds a BS in Mass Communications (2000) from Minnesota State University, and a Master of Arts degree (MA, 2010) in Holistic Health Studies with a specialization is herbalism from St. Catherine University in St. Paul, MN. Liz has written over 200 articles on women’s fertility and brings a vast wealth of knowledge and expertise in holistic health and healing to Natural Fertility Info.com
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