PMS

Angry Lady Dealing with PMS

Even though most women are familiar with premenstrual syndrome or PMS, it is not well understood by conventional medicine, which focuses only on temporarily smoothing over a few PMS symptoms. PMS is a common expression of nutritional deficiencies, hormone imbalance, problems with brain neurotransmitters and/or a disrupted interaction between the neurotransmitters and hormones. Alternative medicine addresses PMS by helping the body to balance hormones and neurotransmitters by supporting liver function and providing key nutrients for hormone regulation through nutrition, supplementation and herbal medicine. In addition, there are many alternative treatments to help support a woman’s body as it adjusts to the changes in hormones throughout the cycle, such as acupuncture, hydrotherapy and castor oil packs.

Symptoms of PMS can include:

  • Cramping
  • Constipation
  • Backache
  • Acne
  • Irritability
  • Anxiety
  • Mood swings
  • Depression
  • Hostility
  • Migraine
  • Allergies
  • Hives
  • Cystitis
  • Urethritis
  • Less frequent urinating
  • Asthma
  • Runny nose
  • Sore throat
  • Hoarseness
  • Joint pain and swelling

These symptoms can affect any woman who is menstruating. Women who experience PMS earlier in life are more predisposed to have a difficult perimenopause, so it is important that you visit your health care practitioner if these symptoms are adversely affecting your life. The sooner you take action to stop your PMS symptoms, the better it will be for your body — now, and as you near menopause.

At the Health and Healing Center, you will get a full diagnostic work-up to be certain that your symptoms are not due to any other illness. You may be asked to keep a symptom calendar to track your symptoms so that hormonal imbalances can be identified. Your doctor will develop a treatment plan that will work with your individual needs.