Are My Cramps Cramping TOO Much??
Hello friends!
If you’re a person asking yourself, “I know period cramps are common, but are MY cramps cramping too much??” Then you’ve found yourself at the right place. Here at The Pelvic Model we often see people who have excruciating cramps, and we are here to help. It is common that people will go to their provider and get minimal to no answers, but we’d like to think we have useful tips and tricks ;)
For those who have painful periods that are outside of the norm (unable to go to school/work, OTC pain relievers hardly do the trick), our mind typically goes to endometriosis. Whether you definitely have endo or not, some of the things that we offer here can help manage pain levels.
Having painful periods creates muscle guarding around the core, pelvic girdle, and pelvic floor. Further, it can put people into a “crunched” position because their belly often hurts. What we do here is assess the body (beyond the pelvic floor) and start to lengthen appropriate tissues and strengthen others so that one can hold themselves in a more upright position – to put it very simply.
If you’re more of a visual learner, here are some things that we would do in the clinic.
Of course, this doesn’t encapsulate it all, but these are a few things to start with!
A little information about the points mentioned in the video:
Skin rolling! This is something that you’ve probably experienced at your pelvic PT appointment. This technique addresses the fascial layer, which is a connective tissue layer that goes under the skin but over every structure in your body (muscles, nerves, blood vessels, etc.). When you’re experiencing chronic pain, the fascia can become more dense, and that can subsequently create decreased blood flow. This technique improves the mobility of the fascia and thus helps blood flow in that region.
Addressing the colon can help with your periods as sometimes pooping is not that comfortable on your period. This can help motility of your colon.
I like to add in some twists to accompany the manual therapy that we had just done with ascending and descending colon.
Pop on some cups to further address the fascia and accompany this with movement. This got me feeling better right away!
Your pelvic PT is an amazing resource as well as we are well informed about endometriosis. We not only can help with the musculoskeletal aspect, but we can also help guide you to the right providers to fully create your care team.
‘Til next time!
The Pelvic Model Team
