DD with severe cramps - WWYD? (Girl talk)

[Ginevra]

This has been a problem for a long while, over a year and probably close to two years. The girl has the worst cramps and other hormonal effects from her period I have ever witnessed in my life. I did call the doctor about this before, about 9 months ago, but she has done everything they recommended and does not get adequate relief. She is in a B&M school and has missed days or partial days almost every month because of it. She takes Advil like it's going out of style, wears a Thermacare heat pad to school, keeps an electric heating pad on at home, but she is still severely hampered from doing anything for at least one day, sometimes 2 or 3 days. You know those childbirth facial expression charts that measure pain? Her face looks like maybe a 6 or so from time to time and that is WITH the Advil and the heat pad.

 

Have you dealt with this problem? What was your solution? Should I ask the pediatrician again (not much rapport there) or take the problem to my OB/GYN?

[lovinmomma]

(((HUGS))) This was/is me. I have endometriosis. I have yet to find anything that REALLY helps. Ibuprofen is the best thing that I have been able to do. My doc tells me to take 6 every 4 hours. However, I can't do that all of the time because it's horrible for your stomach. I've tried tramadol which is a non-narcotic pain reliever. It helps when taken with the ibuprofen. SHe needs to see a doctor and work with the doctor to get a good plan together. It's not ok to be unable to function that regularly.

[lovinmomma]

Oh, and DEFINITELY go with the obgyn. My primary just put me on every pain killer you can imagine. I'm surprised I never became addicted.

[Cinder]

I was like that--horrible pain--from about 17yo - 20yo. Painkillers didn't help. Heating pad and sleep helped some but was hard to pull off at school. Going on the pill made the biggest difference.

[Chelli]

I would vomit I had cramps so badly. The pill is what stopped my pain. I got on it when I was in high school with my mother's blessing. I too was missing school days because of cramps. It was just too life debilitating to go one that way.

[Melissa in Australia]

I was like that as a teen. The thing that helped me was having my first child.

[Guest]

I would vomit I had cramps so badly. The pill is what stopped my pain. I got on it when I was in high school with my mother's blessing. I too was missing school days because of cramps. It was just too life debilitating to go one that way.

 

 

She does get very nauseated. I don't think she ever actually vomits, but she feels like she's going to some of the time.

 

This is the route that I am considering. I don't have a problem with her being on the pill philosophically, but I do worry about the potential for dangerous side effects. OTOH, I do believe that the pill would drastically help level out the hormonal issues and you are right - it is debilitating for her and something has to change.

[lovinmomma]

The pill did not help my pain level. However, after trying MANY different ones I finally found one that helps to shorten the length of my period and so I had less days of severe cramping. I hope that makes sense. In the meantime, however, all the changing of birth controls really messed up my hormones.

[ThisIsTheDay]

This was also me, before you could buy ibuprofen OTC. I had a prescription for 800mg that I used to take several times a day. That's 4 Advil, every 4-6 hours. The heavy cramping also caused me to bleed too heavily to leave the house, and this was the case for several months even after I began taking b/c pills.

 

Have you also looked at natural remedies that might alleviate the cramping? I know for me, for now, I would be reluctant to put my teen dd on b/c pills . . .

 

Your poor dd!

[musicianmom]

Everything changed for me when Aleve came along. Two Aleve, taken the instant I realized I started, would head off the pain.

[Woodhaven]

I was like that, but they never found anything "wrong" with me. As soon as my cramps began I HAD to head home right away. If I waited it would get so bad I couldn't walk or crawl. I sweat buckets, and remained doubled over on the bathroom floor for 4-6 hours. Really!

 

None of my doctors were of any help. None of the tests showed anything wrong. The only thing that ever helped was b-control pills. I don't know why they helped, but they did. I finally had to take them when I started working because my employer just got tired of me taking so many sick days. Many times they had to carry me down to a cab and paid my fare home! Even when I insisted I would be OK, they feared that something terrible was happening to me and they would be responsible.

 

Only after I had children did the cramps stop. Wish I had better news. Hugs to your daughter!!

 

Edited to add: I was pretty athletic, and worked out a lot, but that didn't help even a little.

[Flowing Brook]

My mom has the horrible cramps. When she drinks red raspberry tea everyday she does not have cramps. The months she misses and does not drink the tea she sounds like your daughter. I have seen her go from all but screaming to being comfortable after taking a ginger bath. half a cup in a bathtub of water. She will take a half hour bath. Often the pain killers don't touch the pain however the ginger bath will take the pain away. :grouphug: to your daughter.

[sixpence1978]

This was me in high school and college. I would take ibuprofen, use a heating pad, and sleep. My cramps would be so bad I also would vomit. In college I finally went on the pill for this reason and it helped tremedously. It does take some trial and error to find the right pill. Some of the ones I took made me mean and depressed. Others were fine.

 

I rarely have them now after having children. On the occasional months where I still have a bad day, I can usually link it to poorer eating, especially sodas.

[Guest]

Thank you all so much for the replies and feel free to keep them coming.

[Rosie_0801]

Try a chiropractor. Yeah, I say that all the time, I know.

[bluemongoose]

This was me too. Vomiting included. The thing that did it for me was going off dairy right before that time and meat completely (lacto-ovo vegetarian basically). Dont know why (maybe the hormones in it?) The dr also said that the only thing that would stop it was the pill, but I didnt want to go that route. I read about the meat and dairy thing in a womens mag (ironically while I was waiting for the dr appointment) and thought I would give it a try. It worked in that the cramps were bearable and I could continue activities without debilitating pain and vomiting. After children the cramping pain subsided even more.

[momtokea]

I had terrible cramps, and it turned out to be endometriosis. Take her to an ob/gyn.

[Annie]

Your poor DD. :( I found that combining caffeine with ibuprofen helped a little more for some reason. I remember the pain used to be so bad I could hardly walk. I would get shaky and my teeth would chatter. Augh, not fond memories. After I had my son, my cramps went away almost completely. It was such a blessing.

[justamouse]

Fish oil, about 4000 mgs a day. To start, you can wean down to 2 after a few months.

 

Everyone goes into the healthfood store looking for fish oil to help with other issues, and then they keep buying it because it makes PMS and cramps go away almost overnight. You have nothing to lose trying it, please, I urge you to.

 

Also, a baby aspirin a day the week before and the week of.

 

I was set to have a procedure where they freeze your uterus? I forget the name-(ablation?)-because I kept passing out as I clotted (vagal reflex?) and I was terrified of it, because the procedure didn't help any of my friends. The fish oil and the baby aspirin helped and I was able to cancel my procedure.

[gingersmom]

I had the same issues and so did my daughter. My daughter was missing so much school the nurse called me to discuss birth control. It has helped 10000%.

[Harriet Vane]

Don't bother with the ped anymore on this one. Take her to an OB/GYN.

[sgo95]

I missed school on the first day of my period for years. The symptoms were like a stomach flu in addition to uterine cramping and heavy bleeding. It was horrible but thankfully once I had my first child, my periods were much more normal. :grouphug: to your DD and I agree that a trip to the ob/gyn is warranted.

[Ewe Mama]

Count me in on the joys of horrible cramps. I would pass out from being in so much pain. After dealing with them since I was 11 years old, along with infertility when I married at 25, I was finally diagnosed with stage 4 endometriosis at 32.

 

Try the gynecologist for some suggestions.

 

[TranquilMind]

This has been a problem for a long while, over a year and probably close to two years. The girl has the worst cramps and other hormonal effects from her period I have ever witnessed in my life. I did call the doctor about this before, about 9 months ago, but she has done everything they recommended and does not get adequate relief. She is in a B&M school and has missed days or partial days almost every month because of it. She takes Advil like it's going out of style, wears a Thermacare heat pad to school, keeps an electric heating pad on at home, but she is still severely hampered from doing anything for at least one day, sometimes 2 or 3 days. You know those childbirth facial expression charts that measure pain? Her face looks like maybe a 6 or so from time to time and that is WITH the Advil and the heat pad.

 

Have you dealt with this problem? What was your solution? Should I ask the pediatrician again (not much rapport there) or take the problem to my OB/GYN?

 

I'm sorry. My daughter didn't have this problem but I did, back when I was maybe 13. I remember missing a day of school a month for one stretch of time. I don't know how to help you (except Advil), but I did outgrow it. It lasted until about 16 or a little before, because I remember my smart-aleck doctor saying something like, "Well, if you have a baby, it will go away!" Yeah, thanks pal...I'm 16, I retorted.

 

He was right though. It completely went away after I had kids. But lessened considerably after 15, as I recall. Hope she finds relief.

[TranquilMind]

Fish oil, about 4000 mgs a day. To start, you can wean down to 2 after a few months.

 

Everyone goes into the healthfood store looking for fish oil to help with other issues, and then they keep buying it because it makes PMS and cramps go away almost overnight. You have nothing to lose trying it, please, I urge you to.

 

Also, a baby aspirin a day the week before and the week of.

 

I was set to have a procedure where they freeze your uterus? I forget the name-(ablation?)-because I kept passing out as I clotted (vagal reflex?) and I was terrified of it, because the procedure didn't help any of my friends. The fish oil and the baby aspirin helped and I was able to cancel my procedure.

 

That's definitely worth trying! Where were you when I was 13? ;)

[skimomma]

This was me as a teen too. My mother would not even consider allowing birth control pills. The minute I turned 18, I took some of my savings, made my own appointment, and got on the pills. It made all of the difference in the world. Unfortunately, having a child did not make the cramps go away. They are as bad now as they ever were. I have chosen to just deal with them as I do not want to be on the pill forever. As soon as I feel them coming on, I take 4 advils and get in bed with the heating pad and ride it out. If I had a more complicated life that could not accommodate this course of action, I'm afraid I would have no choice but to go back on the pill.....

[skimomma]

The fish oil thing is intriguing. I am a vegetarian and I don't eat fish. I would consider it if it helped with the cramps. A big issue I have with fish is that toxins can be very high in fish. How does hat work with fish oil? Are there any non-fish alternatives that give the same results?

[speedmom4]

My dd was exactly like this. She was in excruciating pain, had long periods, and developed ovarian cysts. Putting her on the pill was a last resort. Boy do I wish we had done it sooner. She did seem a bit more snappy when she began taking them but after a couple of months we didn't notice any side effects. She took them for about a year and then stopped taking them and her period is much better. She is much more regular and the pain is more manageable.

 

God Bless,

Elise in NC

[Lolly]

My dd20 was the same. I knew the solution would be birth control. I didn't want her to start it so young because I knew she would probably have to stay on it from that point on. Since she was homeschooled, I just allowed her to stay in bed two weeks out of every month. (I know, but it worked out.) The summer before she started college, we went to the gyn. Sure enough, bc. They simply advised using it to not have periods at all. Unfortunately, the bc didn't work all that great. It did stop the cramping, but she bled continuously on it. Currently, she is on depo provera. It works really well. The regular pills do not. She has to be on a high dose for it to work. (They don't like you to stay on it.) The depo shot isn't supposed to be used long term either. She is currently to the point they will have to find something else. I dread this summer where they switch. Btw, she does not have endometriosis or any other problems that they can find.

[Chelli]

This was me as a teen too. My mother would not even consider allowing birth control pills. The minute I turned 18, I took some of my savings, made my own appointment, and got on the pills. It made all of the difference in the world. Unfortunately, having a child did not make the cramps go away. They are as bad now as they ever were. I have chosen to just deal with them as I do not want to be on the pill forever. As soon as I feel them coming on, I take 4 advils and get in bed with the heating pad and ride it out. If I had a more complicated life that could not accommodate this course of action, I'm afraid I would have no choice but to go back on the pill.....

 

:iagree: This is me exactly. Mine did not get better after having children either. Just as bad as usual and I treat it the same as you do. Take a truck load of Advil and lay around on the couch.

[jenangelcat]

Same as what everyone else said. I had horrible periods when I was 12-13 and my doctor kept laughing them off. My periods would last anywhere from a week to two months long with worse bleeding than my miscarriage and post partum bleeding, combined. I missed a ton of school. In the end I fired my doctor and went to a gyno. I was put my on the pill. It didn't work but the second brand did. They did surgery to confirm that it was endo.

[Farrar]

Yet another who was like this at that age. It was endometriosis, but I didn't get a diagnosis for YEARS. And I dealt with many, many rude, borderline cruel doctors about it before I got to that point. Do not let any doctors tell her "it's not that bad." That's my number one piece of advice right there. Also, be aware that doing that much ibuprophen for years will eventually screw up your stomach. Ask me how I know. :glare: So I don't recommend that either.

 

I will say that going on the pill around age 18 did help a little. Also, getting more calcium helped a little. And while I am not good about following through with this, some exercise, especially yoga, can also help a little, though finding the motivation to do something like that when you're in that kind of pain... I understand. It is hard.

 

Growing up helped me a little, but it wasn't cured for me until after being pregnant. So, obviously, not a great cure suggestion. My understanding is that if it is endometriosis, there are not great treatment options still, which is just sucks.

[Amy in NH]

Red Raspberry Leaf Tea

 

Make sure it's the real thing and not just raspberry-flavored. It has quickly cured my most painful cramps.

[Guest]

Hey everyone. This is "DD" speaking. Thanks so much for the consideration and the friendly advice. I can probably describe in better detail than my mom what my issues are, seeing as she's pretty confused by the whole idea of having period cramps.

 

I tend to be pretty badly irregular, and I've seen doctors before about it, who seemed to be pretty uptight about the fact that the duration between periods is over 30 days - sometimes up to 2 months. I also have TONS of PMS. You could ask my boyfriend, I am like a nightmare for about 2 weeks before the dreaded time. Everything irritates me and I am usually pretty unexplainably mad at the world, even if I don't want to be. I also am super nauseated every day for most of these two weeks, I get mild cramping, and lots of headaches, including light & sound sensitivity. Sometimes I also get backaches and sore breasts, and I am always, insatiably tired. No amount of sleep can satisfy me at this time.

 

And of course, the first three days of my period are absolute hell. The first day is almost always the worst, but sometimes it's the 2nd day that is the worst, for some reason. I am not really sure how much blood is considered a lot, but it seems to be a whole lot - so much that I need to get up at 3 AM just to go to the bathroom, and usually I wake to cramps and have to suffer through it until I get back to sleep. If you want an idea of the cramps, it's kind of like trying to walk around with knives in your stomach, and when I can walk my mobility is limited, and I kind of shuffle around like an awkward penguin. The cramps usually continue for most of the duration of my period, but die away after about day 5. The bleeding does continue though, in limited amounts, and I'm usually not totally in the clear until, like, day 10.

 

As for things I've tried - I take advil, like mom said, like my life depends on it. I have a memorized schedule, even. One schedule for school days, and another for non school days. I take 2 every 6 hours, which is kind of stretching it as much as I can, to try and get it so I only have to take 3 doses at the most a day. It makes me kind of antsy to take any more than that, idk why. Makes me feel like I'm ODing majorly. Lots of people have recommended birth control to me, which although it does kind of sound like heaven in a bottle, I feel more reluctant to try it unless it's my last and/or only alternative. The commercials for birth control kind of freak me out, considering it takes them about a full two minutes to list all the potential side affects. What I'm really hoping for is some other alternatives I can try - I know someone recommended raspberry tea and another recommended fish oil. I've only ever heard of the raspberry tea thing, but I'd be willing to test out the fish oil theory.

 

Please keep up the thoughtful replies - I'm really desperate for a solution here :(

 

-Love DD

[gardenmom5]

I'd take her to a gyn.

 

eta: I don't understand why the dr's are freaking your cycles are over 30 days. my cycles were *always* 30 - 45 days until I had my last child, *then* they were every 30 days. now, I"m menopausal and I can relate to the psycho.

 

I'd see a gyn (this is their speciality). I'd also consider a naturopath who specializes in women to see if there is something underneath it all. My dd had a terrible time wiht her cycle - it turned out to be a serious vit d deficieny that started a whole chain reaction for her.

 

My sil was put on birth control pills as a teen specifically to control her horrendous periods.

[Jilly]

Have you tried Pamprin? It is the only thing that worked for me when I was younger and suffered from debilitating cramps.

[gardenmom5]

I'd be concerned about the amount of advil you are taking as they can cause internal organ damage that won't show up for years.

 

pamprin or midol. don't remember which. one of them worked great for me, the other not at all.

[SamuelsMommy]

I also have had really bad cramps and heavy periods ever since high school. I recently switched doctors and mentioned my cramps not really expecting anything since most doctors have kind of blown it off in the past. The doctor asked what i was taking for pain and I said Advil or Tylenol. He said do not take those, take something specifically for cramps. He recommended Midol. I tried that the next month and the difference was amazing. I still have bad cramps at times and the Midol doesn't always help, but it is much better than the Tylenol or Advil. There is also a Midol PM that I take at night and it helps me to sleep better and not have as much cramping at night. Anyway, I don't think my situation is as severe as yours, but it might help a little.

[justamouse]

The fish oil thing is intriguing. I am a vegetarian and I don't eat fish. I would consider it if it helped with the cramps. A big issue I have with fish is that toxins can be very high in fish. How does hat work with fish oil? Are there any non-fish alternatives that give the same results?

 

 

You have to make sure the metals have been filtered out, it should say so on the bottle. Most reputable companies filter it. Fish oil reduces inflammation. Flaxseed and fish oil have a synergistic effect, too, but flax doesn't work on its own. Not for the cramps.

[justamouse]

I'd be concerned about the amount of advil you are taking as they can cause internal organ damage that won't show up for years.

 

pamprin or midol. don't remember which. one of them worked great for me, the other not at all.

 

 

Tylenol -any amt of an 'overdose' meaning taking it an hour earlier... causes severe liver damage. I don't even keep it in the house.

[justamouse]

What I'm really hoping for is some other alternatives I can try - I know someone recommended raspberry tea and another recommended fish oil. I've only ever heard of the raspberry tea thing, but I'd be willing to test out the fish oil theory.

 

Please keep up the thoughtful replies - I'm really desperate for a solution here :(

 

-Love DD

 

 

Please try the fish oil. Costco sells a huge bottle for cheap, and even Walmarket's is filtered. Don't skip a day. 4, even 5000 mgs at least.

 

Really, it is life changing. I started years ago, and went back into the healthfood store to get more (this was the days before the fish oil craze) and told the owner how it helped me. She had found out the same. We were like two newly converted talking to each other about it and she was telling me that MANY women were coming in, sharing the same story.

 

I'll be praying for you. :grouphug:

[Guest]

I haven't tried Midol - I was on Pamprin for awhile, and that took the edge off of my nausea, but was not as effective for my cramps, so I went back to advil. The Midol PM sounds pretty good, considering that I get pretty bad sleep during my period. I often have to take long naps when I get home from school on my period, because I don't get sufficient sleep at night.

 

I really don't like having to take advil every 6 hours - I take the max amount on the bottle per 24 hours, and I still have significant and highly debilitating pain. I have had doctors recommend different things to me - one even said that caffeine paired with advil helps sometimes, but I have pretty strong reactions to caffeine (I get really jumpy) and it only made the pain worse in my case.

 

Thank you for the prayers, mouse. I am definitely considering the fish oil. :)

 

--DD

[Galatea]

I have always had severe pain with my period, from the very beginning. School was miserable on those days. It really helped once I got on the pill, but that may depend on which one, because they aren't all the same.

 

Also, does she have normal 28 day cycles? I never did, and I wish I had known from the beginning that I likely had PCOS. It's not necessarily a clear yes if she has long cycles, but the severe pain and long cycles are symptoms of PCOS.

[NCMom]

This has been a problem for a long while, over a year and probably close to two years. The girl has the worst cramps and other hormonal effects from her period I have ever witnessed in my life. I did call the doctor about this before, about 9 months ago, but she has done everything they recommended and does not get adequate relief. She is in a B&M school and has missed days or partial days almost every month because of it. She takes Advil like it's going out of style, wears a Thermacare heat pad to school, keeps an electric heating pad on at home, but she is still severely hampered from doing anything for at least one day, sometimes 2 or 3 days. You know those childbirth facial expression charts that measure pain? Her face looks like maybe a 6 or so from time to time and that is WITH the Advil and the heat pad.

 

Have you dealt with this problem? What was your solution? Should I ask the pediatrician again (not much rapport there) or take the problem to my OB/GYN?

 

 

 

My dd15 has always had severe cramping, vomiting and was just basically out of commision for 1-2 days. Supposedly she doesn't not have endometriosis but other than the Pill no help has been offered by docs. We chose not to go that route yet.

 

Just 3 months ago we started her on Evening Primrose Oil (now she takes one of the oil mixes for women). What a major difference! She hasn't vomited since then and is only down for a few hours. She also takes Aleve BEFORE the true pain starts, which helps way more than waiting. The oils have made an amazing difference.

 

hth,

Georgia

[Mandamom]

I'm another one who has suffered and I'm really hoping that my girls don't. I will be very sad if they do.

 

Taking advil (until I got diagnosed with gastritis last year) and using heating pads has been my saving grace until a couple of years ago. That was when I started taking vitamin D3 and noticed a big difference in my cycle and pain. I still have some mild cramping but it isn't even every month.

[Paz]

This may sound strange but what helps for me and my dd is eleve and an acid reducer like zantac or tagamet. I got a lot more relief when I started taking the acid reducer. I do have bad cramping but I had almost like an IBS reaction as well that I didn't realize. It is like the acid reducer helps to relax things, as well. My dd finds a lot of relief in in, as well.

[Elizabeth in MN]

The only thing that ever helped me with cramps was switching from disposable pads to cloth pads. Tampons made the cramps unbearable.

[jenangelcat]

Definitely find something to relieve the pain and hormonal issues but I wouldn't just treat the symptoms and leave it like that. If it is something like endometriosis, you need to know. It could have long term affects on your health and fertility. As previous posters have said, it can be hard to get a diagnosis, as often doctors won't take you seriously. Back in 1993 when I was diagnosed after pushing for a year, I read a statistic that said it took on average 12 years for a woman to get a diagnosis. She'd wait several years to say something to her doctor, the doctor would brush off her concerns for another couple of years, she'd leave it for a while and then go for a second and possibly more opinions.

 

Endometriosis can only be diagnosed surgically.

[redheadmom]

If it is hormonal and not endometriosis, you could try supplements. Estrogen type hormones are found in a lot of foods and household products. Some people are more sensitive to them. Indole-3-carbinol is one supplement you can look into. It is basically from broccoli and similar vegetables. I take it and noticed a decrease in my PMS. It helps to regulate your bodies excess estrogen.

 

Evening primrose oil and fish oil are two other good ones to look at.

[AKshanmar]

Well, at least when you get pregnant, labor will be a breeze, because you are suffering about the same level right now! (OK, that was completely pointless, but I was trying to find something positive.)

 

I would definately go to a Obgyn. They will know what to check for. Cysts, endorometriosis.... I always had bad periods, but after my 4th child, I developed a fibroid tumor (which most likely is not your case, because you are way to young), but I remember thinking that if I didn't know it was just cramps, I would be in the hospital. (and really, it is as bad as childbirth) I had a delightful hysterectomy (The joy!) but, again, that doesn't apply to you yet, but see the obgyn!

 

Good luck!