By Ariana Jenks
To be completely honest, I hate my period. I’m sure that doesn’t come as a shock to most people who menstruate, since I don’t know anyone who looks forward to their time of the month. There’s something about period cramps that just seem to hit differently. After being diagnosed with PCOS (if you’re unfamiliar, that stands for Polycystic Ovary Syndrome which can make your period even worse than normal,) I struggled with figuring out ways to manage my symptoms.
I take daily medications for other health reasons, so popping an ibuprofen whenever my cramps act up is pretty typical. It does help, I won’t deny it, but there are risks to taking too much. And when your cramps are as bad as mine can get, I need something to supplement that pain alleviation every few hours.
A few years ago, I started digging into some holistic approaches to alleviate period pain. CBD was widely recommended amongst blogs and articles and has since helped me immensely. According to Healthline, because CBD might help reduce inflammation and chronic pain, it might also help reduce menstrual cramps and other period-related symptoms, like headaches, lower back pain, and sore breasts. An article from Goodhemp.com lists some great ways to try CBD for period relief. Did you know you can take CBD as a suppository? Yes, you read that right. Apparently the pelvic region contains more cannabinoid receptors than any other part of the body except for the brain. Hello! Playtex, Tampax, where the hell are my CBD TAMPONS?!?!?!?!!?
I’ve tried various ways to take CBD for period relief including topical lotions, drops, and edibles. I’ve found that the lotions are the most effective when attempting to relieve my back and joint pain since it targets the area directly, but when I need to tackle some of those other period symptoms, it’s time to turn to my edibles. When someone asks, what are some of the most common period symptoms, almost anyone who understands periods will say the hormonal urge to indulge in sweet, chocolate, delicious things.
Personally, I’m always craving something sweet while on my period, and although topical lotions help with my overall pain, CBD edibles work best to help me fall asleep when my cramps often keep me up. Working at C.B.Dough, there is never a shortage of sweet CBD treats to take home after work so I have my fair share to dig into when the time comes. I am all about The Brownie and The Blondie mixes and they contain 30mg of CBD per serving, so I’ll have two before bed and it’s just enough to get me into a deeper sleep while alleviating my period symptoms. Yes, periods suck and we will do just about anything to get through them with less pain, discomfort and misery, but my CBD combo is (in my opinion at least) the best way to make that time just the teensiest bit less bad. And I even sometimes look forward to when I get to guiltlessly treat myself. I’d love to know what your CBD period combo is! Comment below!