Jo's Health Corner: emmenagogue

Essential Oils and Dysmenorrhea (Menstrual Cramps)

Painful periods, also called dysmenorrhea, can really put everything on hold in a woman's life. I remember several occasions when I spend almost a whole day in bed due to painful menstrual cramps.
Today, as long as I keep eating healthy, cleanse, exercise, and take my supplements I manage to go through my periods without pain.

The hormone balancer
The liver plays an important role as a major hormonal balancer. It's job is to destroy excess hormones so that the aren't an overload of hormones in the blood stream, which that could cause the pituitary not to send out more hormones. Lemon is a detoxifying oil and has traditionally been used for congested liver and sluggish pancreas. It counteracts stomach acidity and speeds up digestion also.

As I mentioned earlier, aromatherapy is considered one of the most effective methods of dealing with menstrual, pregnancy, and menopausal problems.

Essential oil properties
As suggested by Battaglia in his book, The Complete Guide to Aromatherapy, I always include essential oils with antispasmodic, emmenagogue, and analgesic properties when I choose oils for treating menstrual cramps. Traditionally, essential oils such as aniseed, clary sage, juniper berry, jasmine absolute, Roman chamomile, sweet fennel, sweet marjoram, peppermint, rose absolut or otto, and rosemary have been used.

What kind of pain you have should be a guidance to narrow down the selection of oils you need. Battaglia suggests that Roman Chamomile and cypress are more useful for congestive pain. He says spasmodic pain has traditionally been relieved by oils such as clary sage, lavender, or peppermint.

How I apply the oils
I find relief from compresses and massage over the lower back,
I massage the lower back and abdomen.
Sometimes I lie down with a hot water bottle. I warming essential oils such as fennel, sweet marjoram, or rosemary in a massage blend before using the hot water bottle.
My favorite is that I apply the oils to the reproductive Vita Flex points on the feet.

Other information
The diet is very important, many foods can aggravate cramping, muscle tension, and overall toxification in the body. In general, a healthy diet based on fresh fruit, vegetables, whole grains (grain-free is even better) will promote the body's ability to cleanse and detoxify.

Causes
The cause of dysmenorrhea can be several, such as muscle cramping, inflammation, or some other underlying cause usually associated with a disease of the female organs in the pelvic cavity. Some cramping during the period is normal due to the release of the hormone oxytocin, the same hormone that causes contraction during labor. Menstrual pain due to congestion and inflammation in the pelvic region may be relieved by herbs that decongest pelvic circulation and reduce inflammation. This pain often occurs before the period starts. Liver cleansing herbs may be helpful as well

Severe cramping is often a sign of magnesium deficiency.

My dysmenorrhea corrected itself when I started building health and I started to:

change the diet - started eating lots of organic fresh foods, whole foods, high quality protein, the processed junk was eliminated
increase my exercise
add essential fatty acids, coconut oil, and real butter from grass fed cows to my diet.
drink protein shakes (very cleansing and nutritious)
increase my water intake
eat foods from animals not fed hormones
supplement with super foods, minerals, Probiotics, and an herbal synergy blend high in calcium/magnesium
add therapeutic essential oils to my drinking water - especially lemon
cleanse a couple of times a year with herbs, I also cleanse with essential oils
use essential oils in baths and massages

Build health
The best you can do is to start building health with real and fresh foods, and make sure you get enough nutrients in your body. Avoid things that rob the body of nutrients such as refined and processed products. Balancing your hormones is very important, we are exposed to way too much synthetic estrogen in the environment today. My post Hormonal Balance the Natural Way shares more information about it.

More female health information
You might enjoy my posts What's Your PMS Type? and Essential Oils Especially for Women.

Oils not listed as therapeutic grade should not be ingested. Please see the Safety Information, Dilution Chart, and Ways to Use Essential Oils, for more information about essential oils.

As always, this information is for educational purposes only, and is not meant to diagnose or prescribe. If you are pregnant, breastfeeding, or suffer from a medical condition, consult with your health care practitioner prior to using essential oils.

Before you leave:

I recommend that you always perform a skin patch test when you try a new oil.

Check out my safety page to make sure you are aware of any contrindications before you use essential oils. Some oils are not suitable when suffering from certain conditions. Also, Read this Before You Start Using Essential oils. Some oils should not be applied prior to sun exposure so make sure you check this list before spending time in the sun.

Not sure how to apply the oils? Visit these pages to learn how to apply the oils:

Topical Application

Inhaling Essential Oils

Are You Diffusing the Oils Correctly?

How to Dilute Essential Oils

Vita Flex Technique

If you're new to essential oils you might want to check out my Getting Started Guide.

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Johanna is an aromatherapist and she is passionate about educating people about health, essential oils, real food, natural remedies, and nutrition so they make healthier choices in their lives.
Follow Johanna on twitter and facebook for more health tips and information.

Source:

Salvatore Battaglia (1995). The Complete Guide to Aromatherapy. The Perfect Potion Pty Ltd

This post is linked to
Monday Mania, WFMW., Healthy 2Day WednesdayMama Moments Monday

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Essential Oils Especially For Women

Essential oils can be very useful for female concerns. In fact, aromatherapy is one of the most effective methods of dealing with pregnancy, menopausal, and menstrual problems. Many essential oils have been used to help regulate the hormone production and they can relax or uplift. Many oils are also very useful for reducing stress-related tension which may make the symptoms worse.

According to Battaglia, jasmine and rose may be used to relieve specific complaints, such as menstrual problems, since they have a general strengthening effect on the female reproductive system.

Some essential oil constituents have hormonal like behavior since their structure is similar to hormones. This means they interact with the receptors that identify hormones. According to Battaglia, estrogenic activity has been found in oils such as sweet fennel and ansiseed.

According to Salvatore Battaglia, oils with these properties are considered useful in treating conditions associated with the reproductive system:

Antispasmodics
Essential oils such as clary sage, Roman and German chamomile, sweet marjoram, and lavender may be used for conditions like menstrual cramps and labor pains.

Emmenagogues
According to Salvatore Battaglia, essential oils with emmenagogue actions have the ability to promote menstrual discharge, and they have may be used to treat amenorrhea and scanty periods.
Oils with emmenagogue actions are basil, German and Roman chamomile, clary sage, sweet fennel, lavender, juniper berry, sweet marjoram, rose, rosemary, myrrh, and peppermint.

Galactagogues
Galactagogues are used to increase milk flow. Galactagogue essential oils include aniseed, jasmine, sweet fennel, dill, and lemongrass.

Uterine tonics
Uterine tonics have a toning and strengthening effect on the whole system, on the tissue of the organs. Oils that are uterine tonics include jasmine, clary sage, myrrh, frankincense, and rose.

Parturients
Oils with parturient properties help induce labor by stimulating contraction. Essential oils that are parturient are jasmine, nutmeg and rose.

Antimicrobial
Essential oils with antiseptic and antibacterial properties may be used to treat vaginal pruritus and thrush, as well as leucorrhea. Antimicrobial oils include eucalyptus, bergamot, myrrh, German chamomile, rose, sandalwood and tea tree.

My favorites

Geranium
Geranium essential oil has a wonderfully uplifting, calming, flowery scent. Geranium has a balancing effect on the nervous system. It is considered an ideal oil to maintain homeostasis of the body. According to Battaglia, it stimulates the adrenal cortex, which regulates the hormonal system, and therefor geranium is traditionally recommended for where fluctuating hormones are a problem. Battaglia, says it useful in treating PMS and menopause problems.
According to Battaglia, geranium also dilates bile ducts for liver detoxification.

Clary sage
(Salvia sclarea) essential oil contains natural phytoestrogens. It has a mellow, warm, herbal scent that is uplifting and relaxing, making it a perfect choice for supporting a normal, healthy attitude during PMS. It is also supportive for menopausal women.

Roman chamomile
(Chamaemelum nobile) has a warm, sweet, herbaceous scent that is relaxing and calming for both mind and body. Its gentleness makes it especially valuable for restless children. Soothing to all types of skin, it is used extensively in Europe in skin preparations. Roman chamomile is also beneficial when added to massage oil for relief of muscle discomfort after exercise. Roman chamomile was one of the Saxons' nine sacred herbs.

Jasmine
is a great oil for emotional problems. Jasmine is a great oil for emotional problems, and according to Battaglia it is an anti-depressant. He also says it has historically been helpful in childbirth. Battaglia says if it is massaged in the back and the lower abdomen, it may relieve pain in the lower abdomen and strengthen the contractions.

According to Battaglia, jasmine has historically been used to assist in the expulsion of the placenta. Its hormonal activity is useful in menstrual problems. According to Battaglia, jasmine has traditionally been a good oil for for the skin and may help in conditions such as eczema, dermatitis, and dry aggravated skin.

Before you leave:

I recommend that you always perform a skin patch test when you try a new oil.

Not sure how to apply the oils? Visit these pages to learn how to apply the oils:

Topical Application

Inhaling Essential Oils

Are You Diffusing the Oils Correctly?

How to Dilute Essential Oils

Vita Flex Technique