Testimonials: Menstrual Cramps

I wanted to let you know about the difference the Paleo Diet has made to my menstrual problems. The reason I wanted to talk about this in particular was because I have not read of any other women talking about relief from period pain on a Paleo Diet but if only I’d known years earlier!

I have always had extremely severe cramps in the first few hours of my period. I have spoken to many women but have only met a few who seemed to experience the same degree of pain. If I didn’t take medication in time I would always repeatedly vomit even after my stomach was empty. I would have diarrhea and terrible cramps. I just could not believe how painful they were. My hair would be wet within minutes due to sweating from the pain and I would see the sweat bead down my arms too. I could not even sit upright but mostly curled into a ball. I lived in terror of being caught out without medication when my cramps were starting.

Although being on the pill solved the problem for a couple of years in my twenties, I did not want to be on the pill long term. No other solution worked and even referrals to gynecologists did not help. However, for the two years I lived in Japan in my mid-twenties, I was free of all pain. I put this down to a diet high in seaweed, tofu and fish, and was frustrated I never managed to replicate the benefits at home in Australia despite trying hard to achieve a similar diet.

It seems odd now that I didn’t realise that the solution lay in what I was NOT eating in Japan. I was eating very little dairy and wheat. A doctor specializing in nutritional medicine made this link for me (even though I’d given up on solving the period problem and it was not why I went to see the doctor). After one week on a Paleo diet I had my first period in eleven years (since living in Japan) that did not require medication. I was astonished and jubilant.

I have experienced most of the other benefits that people have mentioned, too, such as weight loss, increased energy and no colds. My pre-menstrual tension has also almost entirely gone after months of getting worse. My favourite thing is not having an afternoon slump during my work day.

I hope you can let other women know about the success they may have with menstrual problems. I’d love to hear more from other women on this.

Edwina