Some people, every time they have their period, it’s like going through a disaster. It is no exaggeration to say that it is like fighting for your life against menstrual cramps, which seriously affects your normal life and work. So, why does it hurt so much when you have your period? How to relieve it? In fact, dysmenorrhea can be divided into primary dysmenorrhea and secondary dysmenorrhea. The only way to really relieve dysmenorrhea is to find out the real cause of dysmenorrhea and treat the symptoms. primary dysmenorrhea Primary dysmenorrhea accounts for more than 90% of dysmenorrhea and is more common. It is mainly related to increased prostaglandin content in the endometrium at the onset of menstruation and no organic lesions in the genitals. In addition, primary dysmenorrhea is also influenced by mental and neurological factors, and the subjective feeling of pain in each person is related to the individual pain threshold. Primary dysmenorrhea is more common in adolescence and often develops within one to two years after menarche. In some cases, dysmenorrhea starts 12 hours before menstruation, especially on the first day, when the pain is the most intense, and it will be relieved after 2 to 3 days. When menstrual cramps occur, the pain is often spasmodic, located in the lower abdomen on the pubic bone, and may radiate to the lumbosacral area and inner thighs. However, there are no abnormal findings in gynecological examination. Primary dysmenorrhea relief methods: 1, first of all, mild discomfort at the onset of menstruation is a normal physiological response, should relax and avoid excessive tension or anxiety, so as to avoid more tension and more pain. 2, second, in the menstrual period to ensure adequate rest and sleep, regular and moderate exercise, etc., are helpful to relieve pain. 3, the pain can not be tolerated when supplemented by drug therapy. Such as the use of prostaglandin synthase inhibitors to reduce or eliminate dysmenorrhea, the efficiency of this type of drug treatment up to 80%. The actual pain can be relieved by inhibiting ovulation and reducing the prostaglandin content of menstrual blood, which is more suitable for women with dysmenorrhea who need contraception, and the efficacy can be more than 90%. Second, secondary dysmenorrhea The so-called secondary dysmenorrhea refers to the initial years of menstruation, there is no obvious symptoms of dysmenorrhea, but after a few years, suddenly appeared dysmenorrhea, and the symptoms are becoming more and more serious. From the perspective of Chinese medicine, secondary dysmenorrhea is mostly caused by not keeping the small abdomen warm during menstruation, or eating too much spicy, stimulating and cold food in the diet, thus causing poor circulation of menstrual blood and stagnation of menstrual blood. If the symptoms are not too serious, it is recommended to drink some brown sugar and ginger water or take motherwort granules under the guidance of a doctor to relieve the symptoms; at the same time, do a good job of keeping the abdomen warm during the period and use hot water bags and other hot compresses to improve dysmenorrhea; in addition, pay attention to nutritional intake, it is best to eat more food containing iron, vitamins and protein. Clinically, secondary dysmenorrhea mostly refers to dysmenorrhea caused by pelvic organic diseases, patients mostly have a history of gynecological organic diseases (such as endometriosis, ovarian chocolate cysts, adenomyosis, etc.) or a history of intrauterine device placement, and abnormal findings in gynecological examinations. Therefore, if dysmenorrhea is caused by a gynecological disease, active medical consultation is required to identify the specific cause and provide complete relief of dysmenorrhea after symptomatic treatment. References: [1] Xie X., Kong B. H., Duan T. Obstetrics and gynecology. 9th edition [M]. Beijing. People’s Health Publishing House. 2018. [2]Lu Ying, The correct response to dysmenorrhea in adolescent girls?Oriental Medicated Diet 《东方藥膳》.2021年 8月上,第15期.