As a female, we all have to deal with periods on a monthly basis. Once you get over not being pregnant (unless of course you’re trying then bad news for you), you’ll then have to deal with PMS, cramps and all. the. bleeding.
If you’re lucky, your period cycle is regular and you can plan your life around your PMS. If you’re even luckier, you won’t have to deal with period cramps. Other than pads and tampons, there’s a whole other world out there ready for you to explore on this journey to womanhood. We’ve put together a few things that will help to relieve your period woes whether it’s reducing pain or choosing the right menstrual products. Scroll on!
Period Panties
Period panties can be replacement or a backup for your pads and tampons, and usually come with additional layers to absorb leakage (no more oopsies!). Period panties come in all sorts of cuts and sizes, and in different thickness depending on your flow. You can also wear these panties with your tampons and cups to catch any unsightly leaks. Some people also use these on light-flow days towards the end of their period because it can be very tricky having to change your underwear when you’re out the whole day.
There are plenty of brands who sell period panties – some brands to get you started are Thinx, Dear Kate and Knix. HareBrained! has pop culture designs for the cool kid, and Padkix has cute and girly designs. Just make sure that you get the right ones for your needs as some panties are only designed to be used with tampons and pads.
Menstrual Cups
For the environmentally friendly or if you simply don’t want waste money on pads, go one step further with a menstrual cup. A menstrual cup is usually made of silicon, and can be inserted into your vagina to catch leakage although it has to be inserted properly. When your period rolls around, you just need the cup, which can be washed and reused, and eliminating the need for pads or tampons. The period cup is also useful for traveling in places where bathrooms are harder to come by as you won’t have to change your pads or tampons that often.
Also we know that you’re wondering about this: yes, you can pee normally without having to remove your menstrual cup because they are two different holes.
DivaCup is one of the most popular menstrual cup brands, although they only have two sizes to choose from. Me Luna has a bigger range of cups in different sizes and hardness, and they also have starter packs with a few sizes for you to play around with. It can take a while to find the right menstrual cup as they all come in different shapes and sizes, just like our vaginas.
Period Subscription Boxes
If you still want to rely on pads and tampons, you can always get a subscription box to make your period much more manageable. Instead of having to always keep track of your menstrual products, these subscription services will send you a month’s supply of pads or tampons and a bunch of other goodies like heat pads and tea to relieve your pains. It’s like getting a present sent to yourself every month! Also works as a reminder so you don’t get any bloody surprises.
Different subscription services include different products, and you can usually customise your box down to your preferred brand and how much products you’d like. You can sign up for FemPeers, who pays it forward by doubling your order and sends a box to a girl in India for free. Tampon Tribe only uses organic tampons, pads and pantyliners, or you can get The PMS Package which throws in snacks and beauty products for you to pamper yourself with.
Do note that the subscription boxes are only convenient for those who have a regular period cycle – an irregular cycle makes it pointless for a scheduled delivery of pads.
Hot Water Bottle
If you suffer from period cramps, do yourself a favour and invest in a good hot water bottle. Remember heat = comfort. Research has even show that using a hot water bottle has the same effects as painkillers for up to an hour. You can get a basic bottle from rainbow care for $8, or just look on Shopee, Lazada and Qoo10 for more quirky designs.
You can also easily fill a normal plastic bottle, wrap it with a towel before placing it on your tummy, although this isn’t recommended as some plastics are not made to contain hot liquids.
Heat Packs
Carrying around a bottle might not always be ideal, and there’s always heat packs to relieve the pains. You can get a pack of cheap heat packs from Daiso or the ones from Menstruheat that you can get at Guardian are pretty good too. Just make sure that the heat packs have stickers so that you can stick them to your clothing – do not stick them directly on your skin unless the product states otherwise (you can get burnt by them too).
Livia
There’s now a device that can turn your period cramps off. I would totally love a device that could switch off my period, but I’ll take zero period cramps any day. Livia is an electronic device that reduces your cramps by sending out vibrations. The science behind it is that the vibrations sent out by the device is more likely to be registered by the brain first, which then overrides any pain signals that might come after. In other words, the device is almost like a distraction for your period cramps. Different people have different tolerance levels, and the effectiveness of the device depends on the individual. Some people say that the device alone is enough to get rid of the pain, while others use it together with pills or chocolate and tea.
Drink Tea!
To combat the heat from your period, drink some cooling tea. Chamomile, ginger and cinnamon tea are really accessible teas that you can get from pretty much any supermarket or mini-mart. Peppermint tea is also a good choice as the menthol helps to relax uterine muscles, thus mitigating muscle spasms aka cramps. Try to select herbal teas that don’t contain caffeine, because caffeine is known to make your PMS symptoms even worse.
Painkillers, Pills, Drugs…
One foolproof way of really reducing your period cramps is to take painkillers. Personally I don’t like to take pills as I feel that my body will become accustomed to the pain, and I’ll have to take stronger and stronger medication to combat the horrible cramps, which coincidentally means that I’m usually incapacitated for a day on the first day of my period. So, I’ve enlisted the help of my editor, who also suffers from horrible cramps and kindly shared her list of go-to painkillers.
DISCLAIMER NOTE FROM THE EDITOR, ADELE: I’m not a medical professional, and all the recommendations here are what I have tried before — and work for me. They may not work for you. Before trying any medication, please consult a doctor first.
LOXONIN S PREMIUM
Adele: Loxonin is a popular brand of painkiller sold in Japan. It is strong. So strong that they do not recommend use for anyone under 15 years old. There are four main ingredients in this little tablet: Loxoprofen sodium hydrate, allylisopropylacetylurea, anhydrous caffeine, and magnesium meta-aluminosilicate. Loxoprofen is an NSAID (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug), similar to ibuprofen and naproxen, and I find that it is less harsh on my sensitive stomach that the other two types of NSAIDs (I have gastric issues). This medication relieves most types of pain, including menstrual cramps and fever. Think of it as Japanese Panadol, but with different ingredients and more effective. Note that you can only buy one box at a time at a pharmacy in Japan; although one friend was rejected by two different pharmacies in Tokyo, who refused to sell this to her without a doctor’s prescription. That was strange, because I easily bought a box over the counter when I was there three weeks ago for Shiseido’s press trip.
ANAREX
Adele: Anarex can only be bought at a clinic with a doctor’s prescription; it contains two main ingredients: orphenadrine citrate and paracetamol (which is Panadol!). That first ingredient is basically a muscle relaxer, and it does exactly what it implies — relaxes your muscles. That includes those crampy muscles causing all that excruciating pain. This particular pill causes extreme drowsiness and is best taken at night when you can just lie in bed and… relax. Anarex costs around the same as Panadol (about 40 cents per pill) and I use it as a replacement to Panadol when I fall sick with fever. I find that the added muscle relaxer ingredient is extremely helpful and effective when I get body aches from the flu.
ALEVE
Adele: This one is readily available in pharmacies, including guardian online here. It’s basically naproxen sodium, which — like Loxonin above — is an NSAID. It’s an anti-inflammatory pill that works fast (within 30 minutes!), and reduces fever and general pain. I find that it’s harsh on my stomach and I need to take an antacid with it to prevent sharp gastric pains; so this drug is last on my list and I only turn to it if I run out of the above two medications (one that can only be found in Japan and bought in limited quantities 😭, and the other that needs to be purchased at a doctor’s clinic with a prescription).
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