Pre-Menstrual Syndrome (PMS) - What is it? How to Deal with PMS Homeopathically?

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Woman! A mysterious creation of God, a wife, a mother, a caretaker of the family, a business-woman, and a multi-tasking persona! Well, with all that complimentary thoughts about a woman, we also know that she is the one that caters so many responsibilities that are hard to count. No, I am not talking about her responsibilities of family or surroundings. I am talking about her responsibilities on health ground, pertaining to her body. So many milestones to cross in a single birth! Menarche, pregnancy, lactation, child-rearing, menopause, etc to name a few… Pre-menstrual syndrome is another nasty milestone if she doesn’t care for her health properly. Yeah, all milestones are not enjoyable, isn’t it?

So, this pre-menstrual syndrome, as the name suggests is the period in a woman’s life before her normal menses. I mean, if the pre-menstrual days bring her some sort of trouble, it is termed as syndrome or simply PMS.

Definition of PMS-

If we need to scientifically define PMS, we can say that it is a combination of woman’s emotional, physical, and psychological disturbances that occur after her ovulation and last till the onset of her menses.

Startlingly enough, about 80% of women population suffer some form or the other of PMS. Or we can say the hormones rule them to some extent making their life miserable to variable degrees. (Though the exact cause is not known, it is believed to be due to some weird interaction between androgenic hormones and neurotransmitters in the brain).

Clinical Features of PMS-

1. Mental and Emotional Symptoms-

·         Excess irritability

·         Depression

·         Loathing of life,

·         Lack of desire to work,

·         Hyper-sensitivity to every stimulus,

·         Crying,

·         Anxiety,

·         Excessive stress, etc.

2. Physical symptoms-

·         Breast tenderness (mastalgia)

·         Excess fatigue

·         Acne

·         Changes on bowel habit

·         Absurd food cravings or aversions

·         Flatulence and bloating of abdomen, etc

In rare cases, a severe form of PMS is observed that is termed as Late Luteal-Phase Dysphoric Disorder or Pre-menstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD). In this form the mental symptoms are often exaggerated that necessitate emergency measures at times.

Treating PMS-

Many times, the woman is unaware that she is suffering from PMS, unless there are marked physical symptoms like breast tenderness. However, questioning properly pertaining to her pre-menstrual phase gives the doctor a good clue about her PMS status. Foremost job of a doctor is to assure her that this can be tackled medically and with certain lifestyle changes. Most women fear of having some grave condition because of which they are facing such trouble every month.

Certainly the woman should also be checked well for any signs of pallor or other deficiencies, as these can only ad to the problem. Also her blood pressure should be monitored regularly in order to see any periodical upswing in the readings before menses. For a homeopath, all these factors and many other characteristic factors are important to consider before he or she begins thinking about the line of treatment.

Though the research says that there is little relation between personality types and PMS, I have often found that type A personalities often face kind of severe form of PMS than those with more relaxed approach. Therefore, digging deep to reveal the basic constitution in the patient is very much necessary to know the root cause of the problem.

The typical signs and symptoms that differ from woman to woman pre-menstrually are important to consider for treating that woman homeopathically. Many different homeopathic remedies are found to be useful for treating PMS. Rather, it is one of the best therapies that lessen the pre-menstrual problems for a woman, while balancing her disordered hormonal harmony. There are remedies like Natrum mur, Belladona, Magnesium phosphoricum, Bryonia, Ammonium carb, Nux vomica, Platina, Ambra grisea, Sepia, Ferrum phos, Asterias rubens, and many more that have specified symptoms. The homeopathic physician needs to match these drug-symptoms to the symptoms of the patient and treat her accordingly. To cure PMS permanently, one must have the constitutional approach to help the woman improve her health on all planes while relieving her of PMS.

Auxiliary Regimen-

Certain lifestyle changes are very much necessary for the PMS sufferers. They must not indulge too much in oily, fried food, especially prior to menses. This is the finding I often see in my practice. If the woman avoids eating excessively fried and junk food items at least 8 to 10 days prior to her next menstrual date, her PMS symptoms are less pronounced. Of course avoiding them completely makes things much better for her! Sedentary habits are also known to suffer from PMS symptoms more. So, get moving. Nothing can make your hormones work in a synchronizing way with your bodily needs as a good exercise. As always yoga helps a lot in controlling the mental and emotional symptoms of the woman and gives her added compliance when on homeopathy. The last but not the least, drink adequate water! Yes, it’s must!