My Cramps During My Period Are Unbearable: Why?

It’s rare to find a woman who doesn’t experience some sort of discomfort around her period. About 80% of women experience period pain, which typically comes in the form of menstrual cramps. 

Though many of these women can grin and bear it for a few days, between 5% and 10% experience severe pain that disrupts their lives each month.

If you dread the arrival of your period thanks to severe pelvic pain, the team at Bay Area Physicians for Women’s Health wants to share some important information about this common problem.

What’s behind menstrual cramps?

Let’s first step back and explain why women experience menstrual cramps in the first place. Each month, the lining of your uterus thickens in anticipation of receiving a fertilized egg. When that egg is a no-show, this lining sheds out, creating your period.

To help expel these tissues and blood, your body produces a chemical called prostaglandin, which causes the walls of your uterus to contract. These contractions create the cramps.

Two types of painful periods

If you experience painful periods, which are medically known as dysmenorrhea, our first step is to figure out whether the issue is primary or secondary.

Primary dysmenorrhea

With primary dysmenorrhea, the menstrual cycle itself is responsible for your pain. This is the more common road to painful periods, and the discomfort typically starts a day or two before your period. Outside of cramping, you might also experience lower back pain.

We aren’t exactly sure why some females experience more severe cramping than others, but we have found that there’s a family link — if your mother had painful periods, you might, too. 

Another theory is that your body might be producing more prostaglandin, which leads to more uterine contractions and cramping.

Lastly, some women are more sensitive to pain, which can make normal cramping feel more severe.

Secondary dysmenorrhea

Some women who experience painful periods have a gynecologic condition that’s contributing to the discomfort.

Some of the key culprits behind painful periods include:

• Endometriosis, which affects 10% of reproductive women around the world
• Pelvic inflammatory disease
• Uterine fibroids
• Adenomyosis
• Cervical stenosis

Of this list, endometriosis is the most common — up to 29% of women with dysmenorrhea have endometriosis.

Finding relief for your painful periods

As you might imagine, it’s important to determine whether your painful periods are primary or secondary, which can dictate your treatment plan to a great degree.

If we find that your painful periods are primary, we can look at pain-relieving solutions that might include medications, hormones, and lifestyle changes.

If you’re experiencing secondary dysmenorrhea, we will tackle the pain at the same time as we address the underlying issue.

Rest assured, if you’re finding your periods to be unbearable, we will leave no stone unturned in our efforts to relieve your discomfort and improve your quality of life.

For expert diagnosis and treatment of painful menstrual cycles, we invite you to contact our office in Mobile, Alabama, to set up an appointment.