Here’s Why You Get Lower Back Pain During Your Period - And How to Reduce It

Along with the abdominal pain, bloating, and headaches that menstruation can bring, a lot of women also suffer from low back pain during their time of the month. It is estimated that 40 to 50 percent of women deal with back pain during menstruation. This low back pain can range from an annoyance to a debilitating pain during those days of the month. Luckily back pain during menstruation is not serious and will subside, however, it can interfere with your activities of daily life and make this already less than ideal time, more dreadful. Fortunately, there are ways to reduce it and get back to normal life.

WHAT CAUSES LOW BACK PAIN DURING YOUR PERIOD?

It is thought that hormone changes are the cause of low back pain during menstruation. Prostaglandins are the hormones that are released during your menstrual cycle that are responsible for uterine contractions. If you have an excess of prostaglandins it can lead to very painful periods which can also radiate from the lower abdomen into the low back. If you are like myself your back pain may be even worse than your abdominal pain. Typical period back pain usually occurs within the first six days of your cycle.

Endometriosis and other conditions like uterine fibroids or adenomyosis may also be the cause of low back pain during your menstrual cycle. If you think you may have endometriosis or experience extreme pain, you may want to talk to your doctor about a diagnosis and treatment.

TIPS TO REDUCE PAINFUL CRAMPING AND LOW BACK PAIN:

There are lots of options to help reduce low back pain, some will work better than others for you and everyone can be different. The options range from exercises, to lifestyle changes, to products. Just remember, not everyone is the same and it is important to keep trying different solutions even if one doesn’t work for you.

Exercise & Stretch

Exercising on a regular basis has been proven to lead to less painful menstrual cramps and low back pain. Even during your period when the last thing you want to do is move, it can be very beneficial to stretch, walk, or try to do a light workout. The reason is, the more blood flow we get to our muscles the less inflammation there will be. Some helpful stretches for back pain are:

1) Child's Pose

2) Figure 4 Stretch

 

3) Seated Spinal Twist

4) Cat Cow

5) Sphinx Stretch

Lifestyle Changes

1) Maintain a healthy diet and add in vitamin B and magnesium. Even when your hormones are screaming for chocolate and ice cream, make sure you still get all your nutrients from balanced meals on top of the cravings. Not eating a balanced diet with anti-inflammatory foods including fruits and vegetables can increase the inflammation in our bodies and thus increase pain. Additionally, vitamin B and magnesium supplementation have been shown to assist in increasing blood flow and reducing muscular pain. Therefore, they can be great additions to your diet for reducing cramping.

2) Drink plenty of water to stay hydrated. Being dehydrated can increase the likelihood of muscle cramping.

3) Avoid caffeine and chocolate. Ok, I know this one is impossible for some of us. If that’s you move on to the next tip.

4) Avoid alcohol intake and smoking especially during your menstrual cycle. Both can worsen inflammation, thus making your pain worse.

5) You can also seek medical intervention from physical or chiropractic therapy, massage, or acupuncture. If the pain is so severe it is important to also speak to your doctor to rule out other causes.

Products

Any product that applies heat to the area will help relieve some amount of pain, however, using a hot water bottle or heat pad can be inconvenient and hard to do on the go. For heat, pain and inflammation relief that is long lasting and easy to use no matter what you are doing, we suggest Mobility Tape For Her. Mobility Tape For Her is a kinesiology tape made infused with menthol and borneol and upon application it heats up. The heat and menthol reduce pain while the borneol reduces inflammation. Since it is kinesiology tape you can apply it to your lower back to use it on the go, under clothes, while doing anything! It is waterproof and lasts for up to 5 days, perfect for your period!