Teens and Pms

I found, when I was a teenager, that getting enough exercise was key in avoiding cramping. Good overall health and exercise would be the best place to start.

I would take her to see an Gyn doctor. I have terrible PMS also and love Yasmin pill. Yes, this is birth control pill but it also helps with heavy periods and cramping. Hope this helps.

I've had that problem since I was 9, and I'm 27 now. It sucks. I went to my doctor and he gave me something for it. The pains have gotten worse after my second daughter and it still helps. also, he told me to take the pills he gave me and eat a lot of things with potassium, like bananas. I hope this helps.

I took naproxen as a teen. That helped. Another thing is physical activity....I joined the army at 18 I had no period until I became inactive again.....Excercise is the best thing...The more excercise the less flow!!!

I know this is the last thing you will want to do, but the pill (yes, birth control) can really help. I had the same problem when I was a teen. I was in horrible pain. I wold try to tire myself out so I would be able to sleep. Once I was so exhausted from going up and down the stairs, I fell a sleep mid way up. Now that I am grown and have had a child, I think I prefer child birth to the cramps I had as a teen. I out grew them, but the birth control really helped. Talk to her doc. Good luck.

As awful as this sounds... have her do crunches. Your uterus is actaully a smooth muscle and the cramps will actaully massage her uterus. It will hurt like the dickens for a min or so... but it should help. Helps me. Heating pads help too. Oh! and try to have her stay away from sodas and caffine. It will make a dramatic difference.

I know you have already received loads of advice. I can speak from experience that a visit to the GYN is a must. Birth control is an excellent option to help control length of period, pain, etc. You will also always know when she should be on her period and can keep her active. I have a 14 yr old step daughter who had 7-9 day periods until she became active in softball and colorguard, now they only last 4-5 days. I experienced ovarian cysts in my late teens and early 20's, the pain can be severe, especially on your period. Just take her as a precaution. Good luck.

Take her to the doctor - just to make sure that there isn't anyting wrong! Plus the doctor could prescribe a pain reliever that may help a little better.
My daughter and also I found a huge amount of relief from those heat patches that you can stick to the inside of your underwear (I can't remember the brand name).
In my daughter's case, she ended up having to get on a low-dose birth control pill to regulate and relieve some of her periods. Although, at 13, I coud see why you may not want to do this...
Good luck.

When I was 13yrs old (I'm 22 now) I had the same problem. My pediatrician sent me to an OB/GYN who diagnosed me with ovarian cysts. They put me on a low dose birth control pill to control the cysts and I hardly had problems with them after that. Hope this helps.

I had the same problem when I was 13 and had just started my period. My family dr. said that it was normal for teens when they start to have that, even up to a year after they start. If you're still concerned, ask your doctor for a referral to an OB/GYN (of if your insurance doesn't necessitate a referral, then bring her to yours).

Even if the doctor says your daughter has nothing wrong with her, she can still prescribe something stronger for your daughter's pains and give her tips on what to do.

Remember, too, what our docs always tell us: excercise will make it feel better, while resting (better in the short term) will make it worse and last longer in the long term! Encourage her to walk around, stretch out, etc. Every woman understands not WANTING to do those things when you're cramping, but let her know that the more she is active the less the cramps will be over time.

Buy her those disposable heating pads, they make them specifically for PMS, you just attach them to your abdomen and they heat for up to 8 hours -- they reall work, and help me a lot. I wear them every month! I take walks, stretch on a pilate's ball, do all kinds of excercises with those heating pads that I normally would be too uncomfortable to do without them!

Hope this helped.

D.

I had the same problem when I was that age. My parents took me to the GYN who found out that this horrible pain was caused by ovarian cysts. I was actually put on the pill to help even out my estrogen levels during my period and the pain wasn't so bad. If you haven't gotten her checked out yet, you really need to. Although women have pain with their periods and most handle it well, some pain is NOT normal and other treatments are necessary to make the pain bearable again. Good luck!!!

she probably needs to go to the gyno. they might prescribe birthcontrol pills for her...the hormones in them can lessen the severity of her pms/period pains...jennifer fuson at the woman's care center at central baptist hospital is great.

S.,

My daughter has not yet reached that milestone yet, as she is only 6. However, I would recommend you taking your daughter to see a gynecologist. In our town we have regular family doctors that also do female exams and such, but we also have a large office that specializes in obstetrics and gynecology that has many doctors, both male and female, as well as female nurse practitioners. I would recommend looking for such a facility in your area. (Or perhaps you already visit one yourself?)

I know that many doctors give birth control to regulate bleeding and relieve the symptoms of PMS. I'm sure that you, like me, would shudder at the thought of your baby girl being on birth control, but that is just one option. There are many other things medicines that can be prescribed to aleviate the symptoms of extreme PMS.

I, too, used to suffer from extremely painful PMS and would also be confined to bed for days at a time. So I would encourage you to consult a doctor soon.

I hope this helps!

-H. T.

get her to the doctor! I had the same thing when i was her age.. the doc actually ended up putting me on birth control and that helped... i know how she feels i hope it gets better soon!

I had the same problems as a child. I was an athlete, tried Rx naproxen, heating pads, water and avoiding sodas and nothing helped at all. If anything it seemed to make it worse. I had very little sympathy for my mom who basically said suck it up (and this coming from a woman with endometriosis so bad she couldn't have kids).

The only solution I found was to go on birth control pills to control my periods. I was too afraid of what my parents would think to go on them until I graduated from college and I was given a Rx that completely stopped and I mean STOPPED my periods (and I was nearly anemic toward the end b/c of everything) for close to 3 years using the first day of the period start for the pills.

My OBGYN said there was nothing wrong with not having the period as she was on the same Rx and didn't have a cycle for 10 years. She had recommended them years earlier but the stigma kept me from going on them.

It didn't effect my ability to have a child, either. Six weeks after going off the pill (Ovcon) I ended up preggers.

Because there could be something causing the symptoms, like Poly Cystic Ovarian Syndrome or something else like cysts you should take her to see and GYN to be on the safe side. If the cost is prohibitive I know Planned Parenthoods do women's health services and charge for pills on a sliding scale. It's about the only time I'll ever recommend going there.

My only regret is that I should have sucked up my fears and gone on the pill 10 years before I did. It would have saved me from a lot of hardships both socially and physically, and it didn't give me the mindset I could go have sex. I was just incredibly relieved I could have a normal life after going through the pain and massive bleeding since age 10.

Don't cringe at the thought of the pill if the GYN recommends it - but look at it as a way of providing full relief for your daughter and the key to a normal life.

I hope that helps.

S.,

If you do not see any relieve, your daughter should be seeing an OB/GYN, probably it is not serious, and it may be something to be easy to treat. Take her to the doctor.
Good Luck
Alejandra

S., hey been there with my daughter, many atimes.What we had to do for my Daughter is to have her stop with a lot of salt intake,And soda's. And had her eating lots more of veg. n fruits,and drinking lots of water.And she gets plenty of exercise.it seemed to work for us. Well good luck! Hope it works for her.

HI S.,

My little sister had the same problem!
You may want to see what she is eating the week before she has her cycle. Believe or not our diet has a lot to do with our cycle. Try giving her more veggies and water. That will ease the pain. She should stay away from sweets that week. This worked for my sister (and me).
If her cycle is regular, give here a pain killer the day or night before she comes on!

PS
If she can, she should do more cardio exercise - like walking.
All of this will prep her body for her cycle.
This is a way she can help her body without all the medications.
I will be praying for her. =)

Has she been to a gynocologist? I know she's young but if she's having periods, she could probably use a checkup. I'm sure you don't want her to have to take birth control this young, but sometimes that's the only solution for a heavy period with pain. You could also try a heating pad, moist heat actually works better to penetrate the abdominal muscles.(I work on the women's health floor at the hospital). For some people light exercise actually helps relieve pain, if she can bring herself to do it!

Have you tried a hot water bottle? I know that when my cramps got bad when I was about that age a hot water bottle would help wonders. If that does not work you might want to take her to an OB/GYN.

Have you taken her to the gyn? I had pain like that when I was younger and they put me on the pill. I was not sexually active and did not become after I was put on it. It actually helped allot with the pain. good luck!

hi there
just like i see some of the others have said...i had severe cramps when i was younger and suffered withthem till i was 18 i started my period at age 12, and my cramps kept me in bed for 1-3 days in tears...and yes at age 13 you dont want to be putting your daughter on birth control, but yes it does help i had little cramps when going on birthcontrol...hope you make the right decision and it helps her i know how it feels
L.

my daughter has the same PMS cramps just not that severe her dr prescribed her pills for her cramps u may try that

I would take her to the doctor just to be safe :) Although speaking from personal experience, sometimes exercise, milk, and heating pads work wonders. Exercising during my period (which can certainly be a pain at times) makes the duration of it shorter and often less painful.
Low dose birth control pills also work wonders, but her being so young I would try some alternative methods first. I have son who is very young so thankfully I don't have to worry about this.
But as a woman I know how crazy periods can be. Tell her to hang in there. Good luck!

I myself started my periods at young age (9) and had the same problems. The cramps would be so bad that I literally couldn't move. No OTC medicines would help at all...some would take a bit of the edge off but mostly I was miserable. My family never thought they were as serious as they were, always telling me that every woman dealt with PMS cramping. However at 15 I discovered I had endometriosis. My doctor gave me prescribtion pain reliever to use while on my period. In my case, my problem totally stopped when I had my daughter, as with alot of ppl in the boat. My advice would be to take your daughter to a good GYN to your area and let them run some tests. I hope for her sake they do something for her, reading your question almost made me cry remembering how bad my pain used to be every month.

I have severe endometriosis, and I definitely understand what she is going through. My pain is so severe that it has interfered with my life and has kept me from school and work. I tried birth control, but for me it didn't work at all. They doubled my dose, but I was an emotional wreck. What did work was a prescription for MUSCLE RELAXERS. I cannot begin to tell you what a miracle they have been, and I don't even take a whole pill. I have cut my pain pill intake by more then half. I wish I had them from the beginning. Talk to her doctor, and mention your concerns. Severe pain isn't normal and is a sign of something else.

Try naproxen. I had the same problems when I was a teenager. Doctor will have to write a prescription. The goal is to use it 2 day before the period comes on.

SHe could have endometreosis i would take her to an obgyn or her family doctor and explain what is going on, also heating pads on the lower abdominal area work, it workes for me i have the same symptoms as your daughter and found out that it was endometreosis ( i think that is how it is spelled). Good luck

I know this sounds crazy but birth control might help with the pain. Thats what my mother did for me. Take her to the local planned parenthood and talk to them about.

You might want to talk to a specialist (GYN) about birth control, take her see one. I know it's not the "feel good" thing for a parent to do with a 13 year old, but if she's in that much pain birth control can really help with it.
Or they could prescribe a stronger anti inflammatory, like Naproxen.

Definitely talk to her doctor, and let her doctor know if endometriosis is in your family history. Her doctor can talk to you about pain treatment options. I had the same problem when I was her age, and I almost always had to miss a day of school, and ended up in bed for the first day of my period because the pain was horrible. I laid on a moist heating pad, took Midol and even laid on top of a pillow because the pressue and heat together seemed to relieve the pain some. Back then, my mom did not know to talk to our doctor about the possibility of me having endometriosis, but that was the problem. I did not discover it until some exploratory surgery to determine why I was not getting pregnant. There are other things that might cause the pain, also, like cysts which are really common and most of us flush these out during our period. Don't panic, just talk to her doctor, who probably will refer her to a gyn.

Hello S.
I remember back when I had my period and the pain never seem to go away until I became active. Is your daughter in any activities? I found out that if I was busy with a sport or a busy with a culb I did not dwell on the discomfort on what was going on in my body. I knew I had to get up and keep going. I feel for her. Is this common in your Family? I wish you the best of Luck! Of course you might want to consider seeing her family Dr.,if all esle fails. Would you by any chance letting in on her? Like Feeling real sorry for her?
I understand that there is dicomfort and pain but you as a Mother could probably sense the amount of Pain or discomfort level she is having. Is it bad that she can not even get out of bed.? Or is she just taking advantage in her own special way? I hope for the best for you and your daughter!
R. C

I had a friend who had severe pain during periods as well. Her doctor recommended birth control. Ask you doctor if it will work for her. Good luck, its never fun having your period, exspecially at that age.