Is there anybody here who has used or uses Valerian Root for menstrual cramps? I mean actually tried it. I bought some to help Handsome sleep at night, but I was reading in my home remedies book that it is also used for cramps. I am curious if anybody knows if it really works. Em suffers from cramps that are getting worse as she gets older. She takes generic Advil, but I do not like giving her pills throughout her cycle. Her doctor said that caffeine and spices make cramps worse, so we cut some out. It has helped a bit. I thought I would try the Valerian Root for the cramps, too.
When I was in my teens my cramps were AWEFUL! I passed out in class once because of them, and they always got worse! Now that I've had kids I don't have the same problems anymore (weird), but I always used a heatpad on my belly, and drank Sleepy Time Extra tea by Celestial, and it had Valerian in it. I thought it helped.
I took dd12 to urgent care yesterday for what I thought was a UTI. It turns out that her body is still "resetting" from a ruptured ovarian cysts 3 months ago. She's on her 2nd period this month and is having some pain. The NP suggested naproxen. I am giving it to her now, but like you, don't really want it to be a routine way to get through the month. We were also told to limit caffeine, but we do that anyway.
If it works I'm sure it's because it simply knocks you out! LOL I only take Valerian root if I want to sleep a goood looooong time! HA HA HA!!!!! You could find a remedy that includes Passaflora (sp?) and Feverfew, they are both anti-inflammatories and pain relievers. I'm so sorry your daughter has bad cramps. I get cramps from just under my bra line to the tips of my toes for 3 days straight. I can usually barely walk. And NOTHING works except heavy heavy narcotics which I do NOT take.
OH OH I am on my second ovarian cyst this year! The first was 3 months of hell with a trip to the ER and an ambulance call because of the pain. I have the second one right now. Constant pain! It is horrible. I also have crazy bad periods and cramps. All the way up under my ribs, and it wraps around my back. I have a high pain tolerance too, but this is the worst pain ever. I started taking DIM for it two months ago. It has helped so much with my cramps. I spent three days of my last cycle in bed because of the pain. This time only a couple of hours. You can google it, but it is from broccoli and veggies like that. It is suppose to help get your estrogen levels back into balance. I have tried the Olympian labs brand, Complementary BIOdim and I am ordering Natures way Dim-plus to try next. I like the Olympian brand the best so far. The Natures way brand is the one that was tested in the studies. I am also ordering milk thistle because it is suppose to help the liver get rid of the excess estrogen that the Dim is removing from the body. To much of it can cause estrogen problems too, so I am going to watch that. When I started Dim I felt like a new person. My foggy brain left, I started to have dreams at night, and my family didn't feel the need to hide from me and my out of control emotions. Before I couldn't complete a thought, and I was only sleeping a few hours a night. I am not a big vitamin, or alternative medicine taker, but I see it as my only option right now. I do not want surgery, I can't/ won't take birth control pills, and my husband said dying was not an option either. Another thing I have done is castor oil packs, google that too. It is suppose to increase blood flow to those organs and help them heal faster and work better. It is also suppose to cleanse the lymph system. One thing they said it would do was change the color of the flow from a dark unhealthy red to a bright red. Which is exactly what it did for me. It also made me feel like crude for the first two days, which I think was it helping kick start my immune system, which has been sluggish for the last year. Basically you put castor oil on a cloth, lay that cloth on your lower belly, cover with a layer of plastic (grocery sack) then a heating pad, then a thick towel to keep the heat in. Lay there for 30-45 minutes. Repeat 3 days a week for acute issues. One lady says she does it for 2 hours at a time. Lay on a towel or something to catch the castor oil because it will stain everything it gets on. Wash off with a mixture of baking soda and water to cut the oil. I can't say it has helped with the cyst, but who knows, it did change the color of the flow.
Sixcloar - Having a cyst feels very much like a UTI! It is hard sometimes to not wonder if I don't have one, but I know it is just from the cyst.
I'm thinking that I need to break down and take her to a gynecologist. I hate to because of her age, but I don't want to put her future reproductive health in danger or for her to be in pain each month.
I don't think a gyno will be of much help, unless you want her put on birth control pills. That is what they did to me when I was young and had these issues then. It slowed things down a bit, and I didn't have another cyst until I was about to graduate college. They told me to just wait and hopefully things will straighten out on its own. Yipee. That is why I am researching and trying the natural route, because other then surgery and BC pills they do not have another answer. For me they did pelvic exams to feel the cyst every month, then an ultrasound on the 3rd month to see if it had gone down in size. A Gyno might be able to do an ultrasound and see if she is polycystic, or check and see if her ovaries are twisted or anything like that. I am pretty sure there isn't much help for the polycystic either. If it was twisted she would be in lots of pain and running fevers.
I don't want to go the birth control route. I'm not even sure she could anyway. DH has a history of blot clots starting in his teens. One doctor told me that my girls should not take birth control because of that. I think I'm going to give it a few more months to see how things go.
