7 Must Haves for "That Time of the Month": Dealing with Painful Periods

Struggling with painful periods is hard. But, there are absolutely things you can do to help make that time of the month easier! Here are my fave tools for surviving my period with endometriosis:

Dealing with painful periods is something that a lot of women have to do. I don’t believe we should have to, but sadly, due to PCOS, Endometriosis, Adenomyosis, Fibroids or even unbalanced hormones, periods can be cause that time of the month to be a dreaded one. Rather than just succumb to feeling awful, I’ve thrown together a list of my must have products that really help me to navigate the trials and tribulations of the menstrual cycle:

For period products:

I am super picky about my period products. As someone with endometriosis, my painful periods don’t mess around. If you didn’t know, one of the common symptoms of the disease is heavy bleeding with lots of clotting. There was a time before I had my endometriosis under control where I was going through super tampons AND pads in less than 2 hours. It was miserable.

I started digging into what I should be using to really love my body well with my period products + discovered that many traditional period tampons + pads are full of artificial fragrance + chemicals from bleached cotton – no bueno. Bodies that are struggling with extra inflammation (everyone with endo) really don’t need any other chemicals to process out.

Enter Saalt Co + their non-toxic, reusable period cups! I did A TON of research before purchasing a period cup because I was scared (don’t worry, they aren’t as scary as they sound before you try it). Saalt offers different sizes and firmness levels of period cups, which just made sense to me. If you’ve never heard of a period cup, it’s a medical grade silicone cup that sits in the vaginal canal. A rim forms a seal with the inside of the vagina and catches any period blood that would traditionally be absorbed by a tampon or a pad. Once the cup is full (depends on the woman how long that takes), you then remove + empty the cup before reinserting and moving along.

I use the Saalt Soft Cup, which is designed for women with crampy or sensitive lady parts. It is DIVINE. I have tried other cups since then + always come back to this one. I have a highlight on my instagram all about FAQ’s, so pop over there if you want more info.

P.S. If you really aren’t sure you can do a cup, there are also amazing period undies that hold as much as 2-3 tampons!

For pain:

Painful periods are so personal + so hard. If you’re struggling with them, I’m so sorry. There isn’t a one-size-fits all solution to period pain. If you’re a pain meds person, I say pop the pain meds. I know there is research about the dangers of over-consuming things like Advil or Tylenol + I would NEVER recommend you do that. However, there is no shame in doing what you have to do to survive – even if that means prescription pain killers.

For me, deep breathing, a few tears + my favorite rice heating pad are what I use to survive any sort of intense period pain.

For pesky hormonal breakouts:

While skin care really is totally dependent on that type of skin that you’re using it on, I’ve found one product that seems to work magic on every single face that uses it…especially in the midst of hormonal chaos (just another fun side effect to accompany painful periods)! Because okay, friend, are you like me – did you kill your breakouts in high school with clean + clear or wash your face a million times a day to try to clear your acne? I used to battle my pimples to the death with chemicals + exfoliators, but I found that it wasn’t actually working. And I think part of that is because my skin was being stripped + dried + damaged, which led to an overproduction of oil which is not a great thing to add to the equation with fluctuating hormones.

This Lotus Cleansing Balm is unbelievably gentle + calming. It removes my makeup without scrubbing by literally melting it away. And here’s the craziest thing: I find that using this balm as both my cleanser + then throwing on a pea sized amount as an overnight moisture mask means that I’m waking up with fewer pimples, calmer breakouts, hydrated skin + even fewer blackheads! This is my skin care saviour for that time of the month + the best part is it’s completely safe + nontoxic, which means no endocrine disrupters messing with hormones. (Did you know that can be true about most conventional skincare?!) Plus, one jar lasts me nearly a year, so it feels worth the investment.

For digestive trouble:

Friends, I wish I had a magic pill to cure digestive trouble during that time of the month! My best advice (if you struggle with diarrhea) is to limit or cut out your caffeine. Caffeine can stimulate the already active muscles in the digestive tract + make it worse! You can read all about why I re-evaluated my relationship with coffee here.

If you’re constipated, which happens to lots of people too, I have found that increasing my magnesium intake with Natural Calm really helps. And magnesium has been known to help with period cramps too!

For bloated bellies:

Sadly, I haven’t found a magical cure for bloating bellies during period time. In fact, if you struggle with endometriosis, it’s basically just an accepted part of the process, ha! I find a few things help me:

Don’t stress about it. Bloating happens. It’s not your fault + it will go away! Letting my body have one bad day versus believing my body is bad for bloating helps SO much.
WEAR LOOSE CLOTHING. Ain’t nobody got time for shorts or jeans cutting into that tender tummy. I purchased these Lululemon shorts in a size up from my normal + FRIENDS. They are magic. They’re the only thing I own that I can throw onto my sensitive stomach with no pain. They say they’re medium rise, but for me, they’re much more like a high rise that cradles my belly until it’s better.

For urinary pain:

Not everyone struggles with urinary pain or frequency during their period, but some endometriosis girls also struggle with interstitial cystitis which can cause bladder pain, pressure or even pain when going to the bathroom. The best tip I have for combatting bladder pain is to STAY HYDRATED! Yes, you will go to the bathroom more often, but it will be less painful.

When I’m struggling to ensure I get enough water in, I usually reach for Ultima Electrolyte powders, which just so happen to help with period cramps too. They’re sugar-free, but taste amazing, so they help me get my intake up. You can read all about why hydration is extra important for endometriosis in it’s own blog post here.

To prepare for next month:

One of the most impactful things for me this year has been starting on a vitamin and supplement routine. Because of the infertility risks associated with endometriosis, I decided to invest a bit more in my body in January of 2021. But I wasn’t ready to randomly throw together a bunch of supplements to try because they’re expensive, and I’m not a health care provider.

And then, I stumbled upon Binto. Binto offer a personalized vitamin and supplement routine that’s shipped right to your door based on YOUR diet, routine + needs. My pack is tailored to egg quality, ovarian health + fertility support. It includes prenatals, a few supplements and a probiotic at an INCREDIBLY affordable price. This has 100% been one of my best finds of the year. You can take the quiz + try your own pack for 20% off with the code JESSICAEATS.

Ensuring my body has what it needs means it’s better equipped to deal with things like major blood loss each month, plus the probiotic included in my pack really helps with my digestive fluctuations too!