Relieving period-related leg pain is possible!

Menstrual cramps, migraines and chest pain are among the most common symptoms just before and during your period. But among these multiple symptoms, we also find pain in the legs. The legs swell, feel heavy, are painful. Do you suffer from leg pain during your period? In this article, we see what causes your painful legs and we offer you tips and treatments to relieve your leg pain.

10 Tips to Relieve Leg Pain During Menstruation

If poor lifestyle habits can contribute to exacerbating leg pain, good habits can, conversely , help to alleviate it. In addition, several actions can help relieve pain.

1. Practice walking and physical activities

Walking and more generally physical activity can help alleviate your leg pain. This is firstly because it activates your blood circulation but also by producing endorphins, these hormones of pleasure and satisfaction which help to alleviate your pain.

2. Massage yourself/Be massaged

Massage is one of the tips that can help you relieve your painful legs. You can have a massage or opt for self-massage.

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3. Have good hydration

Good hydration is essential to avoid the risk of cramps caused by lack of magnesium. To help you drink enough water, we recommend switching to hot drinks without caffeine or theine (the latter can sometimes exacerbate dehydration).

🌈 On our e-shop, we have selected several herbal teas and infusions whose effects and claims we like. If it has not been designed specifically for leg pain related to periods, Mijane's Painful Period herbal tea alleviates the various discomforts that you may feel during your periods. You can drink up to 2-3 cups a day whenever you feel your pre-menstrual symptoms and during your period. In addition to helping you relieve your pain, it hydrates you: the best of both worlds!

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4. Eat a balanced diet

Our health largely depends on our diet. This is partly why the more you promote a varied and balanced diet, with a minimum of processed products, the better your body feels!

5. Supplement with flavonoids

Flavonoids are compounds derived from plants with a maximum of interesting properties in the context of health (4): they have antibacterial, antiviral, antiplatelet aggregation, antiallergic, anti-inflammatory, anti-tumor properties and also have antioxidant activity. (5)! In other words, they are great allies!

You can find flavonoids in different plants and this is why having a balanced, unprocessed diet has an interesting impact on your health. But you can also supplement with flavonoids!

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6. Put on support stockings

By applying a compression effect, compression stockings have the effect of promoting blood circulation, limiting water retention and thus relieving the “heavy legs” effect. Wearing them during your PMS and for the duration of your period can help alleviate your leg pain.

🚩Restraint is always subject to a medical prescription, because it must be adapted to each case (3). The doctor ensures in particular that there are no contraindications to this treatment.

7. Treat with heat

Leg pain may be related to uterine cramps and pressure on blood vessels. The vasodilator effect of heat can help reduce this pain. Beyond the hot water bottle that you can apply to your lower abdomen to alleviate menstrual cramps, we recommend that you take a nice hot bath.

🚩If you suffer from heavy legs due to water retention or venous problems, heat on the legs is harmful (3). We recommend that you contact a healthcare professional before using this technique.

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8. Discover pressotherapy

Pressotherapy is a treatment method which consists of applying external pressure to the body in order to promote blood and lymphatic circulation. To relieve heavy legs, it comes in the form of thigh boots connected to air pipes which wrap the legs. The legs are compressed at regular intervals. You can test it in an institute or at home, using pressotherapy boots.

9. Wear loose clothing

If your leg pain is linked to water retention, it is best not to wear clothes that are too tight on the legs and abdomen – avoid slim pants, belts or even girdles. This will make you feel better.

10. Quit smoking

Smoking amplifies period pain and, more generally, symptoms related to PMS and periods. Furthermore, tobacco reduces the tone of the veins and increases the risk of phlebitis (3): in the case of heavy legs linked to water retention, the risks are therefore greater.

If you want to stop smoking, we can only recommend that you consult your general practitioner. He will accompany you on this journey or recommend an addictologist who can better help you quit smoking.

Is it normal to have leg pain during your period and what are the causes?

Yes, it can be normal to have leg pain before and during your period. Depending on menstruating people and menstrual cycles, period-related pain (such as catamenial migraines, chest pain, back pain during periods , etc.) can begin up to two weeks before periods, throughout the period. luteal phase. Find out below the reasons why your legs may hurt due to periods.

🚩 This will certainly seem obvious to you but we prefer to make it clear to you in advance. Heavy and painful legs are not a symptom specific to periods and can be caused by other pathologies. We recommend that you consult a healthcare professional on this subject: using your testimony and additional tests, they will be able to determine if your periods are the cause of your pain.

Fatigue

The few days before your period and the days of your period are, for some menstruating people, a period of intense fatigue. Fatigue during periods is linked to different factors and can totally be the cause of some leg pain you feel, such as aches or a feeling of heaviness.

Prostaglandins and compressions

During menstruation, the body produces prostaglandins, chemicals that help the uterus contract to expel the uterine lining. These contractions can affect surrounding blood vessels, nerves and muscles, including in the legs, causing pain or cramping. Pressure on the nerves can therefore be very unpleasant.

Blood circulation

Hormonal changes during periods can affect blood circulation, leading to a feeling of heaviness or pain in the legs.

Water retention

Periods and, more broadly , hormonal variations can lead to water retention (1, 2). The latter is an accumulation of water in a tissue causing it to swell and it generally impacts the legs (3). If your legs hurt during your period, it may be because of this phenomenon!

Magnesium reduction

During menstruation, magnesium levels in the body can decrease, which can contribute to muscle cramps, including in the legs.

Amplification linked to lifestyle

Several factors linked to your lifestyle can amplify this feeling of heavy legs and pain in the legs due to periods. This is the case of lack of exercise, poor diet, poor hydration or even stress.

Sources:

1. Characterization of symptoms and edema distribution in premenstrual syndrome , 2015
2. Fluid Retention over the Menstrual Cycle: 1-Year Data from the Prospective Ovulation Cohort , 2011
3. Heavy legs , Ameli
4. Flavonoids: an overview , 2016
5. Therapeutic Potential of Flavonoids in Pain and Inflammation: Mechanisms of Action, Pre-Clinical and Clinical Data, and Pharmaceutical Development , 2020