Health Blog

by Cliff, July 16th, 2011

A woman’s life is NOT simple. It is safe to say that unlike men, women experience a lot of changes, not only during the adolescent years but even during adulthood too. Take for example menstruation—women undergo pre and post menstrual syndrome, and add to that the weeklong menstrual period. In these times, a lot of bodily changes occur, including psychological changes due to the fluctuation of hormones. Furthermore, add to this “default” amount of stress and pressure that work and family life can give. It’s no wonder why women often break down and explode frequently… children, most especially husbands can attest to that!

Sometimes, a woman will wish that this monthly menstrual period already CEASE… but that’s not an easy wish. Because most often than not, the cessation of a menstrual period point out to a reproductive system disorder… and one of them, commonly, is the presence of ovarian cysts.

What Are Ovarian Cysts Causes?

Ovarian cysts commonly result from an ovarian follicle which failed to rupture. Normally, at the start of a menstrual period, the ovarian follicles will continue to grow and nourish the ovum inside for possible fertilization. Hormones play a great role in the maturation of the ovum. The sudden cutting off of a certain hormone normally leads to the rupture of the ovum. When the follicle ruptures, the ovum is released into the ovary and travels all the way through the fallopian tube until a sperm fertilizes it.

In instances when follicles do not rupture, there is a fat chance that these follicles will turn into cysts, thus the development of ovarian cysts.

What Are Ovarian Cysts Signs and Symptoms?

Oftentimes, ovarian cysts really produce no symptom at all, not unless these cysts start to act up and rupture. When rupture starts, this is where ovarian cysts signs and symptoms may develop. Ovarian cysts may occur with the following signs and symptoms:

-          Pelvic Pain. A sharp and shooting pain in the pelvic area may occur. This may indicate an acute rupture of the cysts. A pain which is similar to that of dysmenorrhea may also occur, because of the irritation of the endometrial tissues with the contents of the cysts.

-          Abnormal/ Heavy Bleeding. This indicates the presence of some debris inside your reproductive system. These debris may result from the rupture of the ovarian cysts.

-          Amenorrhea. The absence of a menstrual period may also indicate that something may be blocking the release of your ovum, or that something may be wrong with the follicles, which is why they do not burst or release a mature ovum.

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Read the complete article and related information at All You Need To Know About Ovarian Cysts

That’s Fit

Posted on Jul 13th 2011 10:00AM

Studies show that one in every three women suffers from menstrual cramps, according to Karin Björkegren’s new book: “Yoga for Women.” And, while exercise might be the last thing you feel like doing when you’re on your period, studies have also proven that physical activity can lessen pain and cramping; it’s worth getting yourself to yoga class.

According to Björkegren, relieving menstrual pain is all about loosening the pelvis, which means a) resting during the first few days of menstruation and b) minimizing stress, both of which can be helped a long way by regular yoga practice. She recommends backing off of a full yoga practice during your period to give yourself a rest and incorporating the following combination of relaxing, pelvis opening moves four to five times per week before or during your period:

Supta Baddha Konasana — Butterfly Pose
Björkegren says: “This is a great preventive pose for menstruation issues. It opens up the groin and allows the lumbar to rest, the areas that usually hurt during menstruation pains.”

How to do it:
1) Lie on the floor or a yoga mat and place a bolster or pillow under your back for support.
2) Bring the soles of your feet together so your knees point out to the sides (as shown above).
3) Stay in pose for three to 10 minutes and breathe deeply.

Frog Pose
Similar to the Butterfly pose, the Frog pose improves the blood circulation and opens up the hips and groins.

How to do it:
1) Sit with legs underneath pelvis, knees pointing out to the sides and toes pointing inward (as in Butterfly pose).
2) Lean forward onto a bolster or pillow to support your torso.
3) Lie like this and breathe for three to ten minutes.

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Read the complete article and related information at Yoga Poses to Beat Period Cramps

Indian Express

The next time you are tempted to pop a pill during your monthly cycle, think again. For even the doctors at PGI have established, through a study, that home remedies are the best for overcoming pain than popping painkillers.

In spite of the frequency and severity of dysmenorrhoea, most women do not seek medical treatment for this condition as they lack knowledge of and experience with effective treatment. The prevalence of the menstrual pain varies from 50-90 percent.

A study was done by Dr Aditi Chaudhuri, Dr Amarjeet Singh of the department of community medicine along with Dr L K Dhaliwal, professor and head of the gynaecology department, PGI. The research was carried out to assess the prevalence of primary dysmenorrhoea and to measure the effect of exercise and hot water bottle on the occurrence and severity of primary dysmenorrhoea among the school girls of Chandigarh.

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Read the complete article and related information at PGI study finds home remedies best to combat painful menstruation

Daily Monitor

Uganda
By Gloria Kemigisha
Thursday, April 14 2011

Read the complete article and related information at Mysterious flow: Those confusing irregularities during menstruation

OneIndiaLiving

Menstruation, a period in which of five to seven days is the most torturous time for many women. The normal problems of menstruation commonly faced by women are menstrual cramps and vomiting. This happens due to some hormonal and internal physical changes which take place during this time.

During menstruation the uterus contracts and the hormone like substance called prostaglandins are released and the uterine muscle also contracts. All this together causes menstrual cramps and vomiting tendencies. Vomiting is mostly cause due to the inflammation which is created. The inflammation due to hormonal changes gives rise to acidity and gastritis, the main symptom of which is nausea. This makes one weak and causes sudden weight loss which exerts health risks.

Remedies of Menstrual Cramps and Vomiting -

Chamomile tea has both the abilities to control menstrual cramps as well as vomiting tendencies. To make the chamomile tea, just soak some flowers in hot water and add some sugar.

2.The best remedy to reduce menstrual vomiting tendencies is to suck on a piece of ginger. Ginger has antibacterial properties which helps in reducing inflammation and also cures the acidity which is causing the nausea feeling.

3.As mentioned earlier, muscle contraction is the process to exert force on the uterus. This menstrual cramp remedy is to apply hot compress. Take some hot water in a glass bottle and roll it over the abdomen. This helps in relaxing the muscles.

4.Eat a spoon of grounded cumin seeds is the remedy to cure the vomiting tendencies. Consume the cumin seeds in empty stomach in morning. You can also swallow it with water.

5.Yet another remedy to handle menstrual cramps is to relax the muscles with the help of massage. Place your hand on the abdomen and massage it slightly. This not only helps in relaxing the muscles, but also helps in improving the flow.

6.To reduce menstrual vomiting, cook one cup rice in three cups of water. After the rice is cooked, strain it off the excess water and drink few spoons of this water. This not only cures the vomiting at that time but also helps treats menstrual vomiting tendencies.

In these six remedies to cure menstrual cramps and vomiting you can cure the symptoms forever. These tips can be followed from one week before the date.

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And in this country we take drugs/narcotics and cut the damn thing out anyway……hmmm

Read the complete article and related information at Menstrual Problems Not A Worry Anymore

Geraldine O’Sullivan-Hogan suffered agony every month for 28 years, says Joy Orpen, and she is convinced doctors would have treated her more seriously had she been a man

Independent.ie

February 20, 2011

Having a chronic condition is bad enough, but when the medical profession fails to take it seriously, then a grave injustice is done. This, it would seem, is quite common in an illness that is exclusively confined to women.

Endometriosis is intrinsically linked to the menstrual cycle. It occurs when the endometrium — the tissue which lines the uterus — grows elsewhere, usually within the pelvic region. It behaves in much the same way as the lining of the uterus does, thickening and then bleeding during the menstrual cycle in response to hormonal changes.

However, unlike the tissue in the uterus, this waste matter has nowhere to go and causes scarring, tissue damage and adhesions.

If Geraldine O’Sullivan-Hogan, 50, had been diagnosed with this condition when she was much younger, she might have been spared untold suffering and confusion.

She says her childhood growing up on a small farm in rural Kerry was quite normal, until the age of 11, when she had her first menstrual period.

“That was fine, but the second was very painful,” she says. “It felt as if my insides were going to fall out.”

There was very little Geraldine’s mother could do beyond giving her daughter aspirin when she was menstruating. “I went to school dying from the pain. I also had a lot of diarrhoea, so it was difficult,” Geraldine recalls. Her problems were discussed with a doctor who said putting her on the contraceptive pill might ease her symptoms, but he refused to prescribe it as she was under 16.

So Geraldine had to soldier on.

“I dreaded getting my periods. I’d go around doubled over or I’d go to bed with a hot-water bottle. All there was in those days was aspirin. But, to be honest, even when I was given stronger painkillers later on, I soon discovered they didn’t touch that pain,” she says.

The Endometriosis Association of Ireland (EAI) says the condition is relatively common.

“A lot of women have endometriosis and never know about it because it doesn’t cause any problems. It is graded from one to four. In more severe cases the disease can behave in an aggressive manner and may spread to surrounding tissue, causing significant pain and infertility. The severity of the symptoms seems to depend on the location of the endometrial growths, if there are cysts, where the cysts have formed and if there are adhesions.”

The cause of the condition is unknown. One theory is that the endometrium escapes from the uterus into the pelvic area; another hypothesis suspects a genetic predisposition. What is certain is that there is no cure — all doctors can do is treat the symptoms.

Geraldine says an extensive survey in the US found that among endometriosis sufferers there was a high incidence of auto-immune type diseases, including lupus, MS, chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, as well as muscular and skeletal issues. The condition could also affect the ability to conceive.

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Read the complete article and related information at Endometriosis: A cycle of pain

Feministe

by Clarisse Thorn on 2.16.2011 ·

It’s dangerous to start posts with anecdotes, but I’m gonna try it again. This one is from when I was a little baby proto-feminist, and I got my period. My mama, who was born in the USA in 1945, regaled me with stories about old myths around menstruation: she talked about how when she went to college, for example, her home economics teacher very seriously reassured the students that “Now, it’s just not true that if you bake a cake while menstruating, the cake will fall,” and “Now, it’s just not true that if you milk a cow while menstruating, the milk will sour.” Imagine, if you will, living in a world where that kind of myth-busting had to be offered at the university level.

Mom then told me all about how PMS used to be viewed by doctors when she was young; how many male doctors used to simply refuse to accept the existence of PMS; how patronizing doctors would be when she was growing up, about her body and her experience. Mom suggested that I someday take a look at the gynecological sections of 1950s-1960s medical textbooks, just so I could see how medieval they were. She talked about how it used to be accepted among doctors — who were almost all male, natch — that a woman who felt cramps while menstruating was making it up. That a woman who felt unusually emotional or even in physical pain while menstruating was just being all hysterical, moody and useless — you know the way women are! She explained that as more women became doctors and feminism gained traction and science advanced with a broader perspective, PMS became recognized as a real thing. Cramps were no longer “typical female hysteria”.

I thought about this recently when I saw the 2009 film “Jennifer’s Body”, which was written by avowed feminist Diablo Cody (who wrote “Juno” too), and which I ended up liking a lot more than I usually like horror flicks. Here’s the menstruation-relevant exchange:

Needy [the main character]: Are you PMSing or something?

Jennifer: PMS isn’t real Needy, it was invented by the boy-run media to make us seem like we’re crazy.

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Read the complete article and related information at “I Know You’re Smarter Than Me” 2: Backlash, Feminist Ideology, and Flexibility

Livestrong.com

February 2011

Overview

Progesterone is a hormone made naturally by the body that plays a role in the menstrual cycle and helps maintain a pregnancy. If you have low progesterone levels, your doctor may recommend medication to help raise the amount of progesterone in your body. Though synthetic progesterone may be given, there are some natural ways to help increase progesterone. Before using supplements for this purpose, consult with your health care provider or gynecologist to see if these are safe and appropriate in your situation.

Step 1

Take chasteberry supplements. According to an article in the September 2005 issue of the journal “American Family Physician,” women with a luteal phase defect, when they do not produce enough progesterone, showed an increase in progesterone levels when they took chasteberry supplements for five months. The dose can vary, but is typically 4 g daily of chasteberry extract standardized to 6 percent agnuside, reports “American Family Physician.” Ask your gynecologist before using this supplement.

Step 2

Consume 150 international units of vitamin E. Taking this dose of vitamin E can help raise progesterone levels, according to Dr. David Williams of the American Academy of Anti-Aging Medicine. Use caution, as higher levels of the vitamin, around 300 to 600 IU, can decrease progesterone levels.

Read the complete article and related information at How Do I Boost Progesterone Naturally?

Articles JP Article Directory

December 14, 2010 | Posted by Nathan Michael

Before one or two weeks of the menses, a corpus luteun cystic gland will be formed on one of the ovaries from which the egg would have released. Primarily progesterone is produced from this hormonally efficient gland. The gland will make the ovary to grow big and also heavy for sometime till the cystic area goes out when the menses commence.

The other important change in the pelvic prior to one or two weeks of the menses is that the swelling of veins of the pelvis under the pressure of progesterone. They will also turn like varicose veins of the pelvis and occasionally it gives a burning pain, that will remain completely and mostly till the last week of the menstrual cycle.

When the pain remains only for three days and does not commence before 14 days of the menstrual time and starts only 7-10 days earlier, the best assumption for the pain is enlargement of the ovary situated on the right side. The pain on the alternate sides can be expected if there is due for the corpus luteum gland since the ovulation generally alters 1 month from one ovary and from the other the next month. However, there are many cases where the ovulation happens very recurrently from one ovary even though there is no illness found on the other ovary. Pain will happen for the woman when the ovary pulls on the adhesions during its enlargement to the nearby tissues or when the expansion of the ovarian capsule occurs. When the X-ray or ultra sound test is taken, adhesions will not be visible. But when the ultrasound for the pelvic is taken during the days of pain, then the small cystic spot on the right ovary where the pain is can be seen.

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Read the complete article and related information at Ovarian Pain before Menstruation – Causes and Treatment

Society for Menstrual Cycle Research

re: Cycling

November 29th, 2010 by Elizabeth Kissling

A cross-sectional study published in the November, 2010, issue of Fertility and Sterility reports that very painful menstrual periods during the teen years (that is, period pain so severe that girls miss school) may be predictive of an increased risk of developing deep infiltrating endometriosis (DIE), the most extensive form of endometriosis.

In a study of 229 women undergoing surgery for endometriosis, French researchers found that those with the most extensive form — known as deep infiltrating endometriosis (DIE) — were more likely to have had particularly painful periods as teenagers.

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Read the complete article and related information at Painful Periods as Predictor of Endometriosis?