Other disease conditions like abnormal pregnancy, adenomyosis, intrauterine device, pelvic inflammatory disease, and endometriosis can also cause pelvic and abdominal pain just like a menstrual period.
When the above root causes are ones responsible for your painful discomfort, that type of cramp or pain is called secondary dysmenorrhea.
Symptoms associated with menstrual cramps may be mild to severe, which totally depends on the root cause of the painful discomfort.
Symptoms from primary dysmenorrhea are usually less threatening when compared with secondary dysmenorrhea. However, sometimes the symptoms can be severe.
The common symptoms associated with primary dysmenorrhea are dizziness, severe headache, itching, depression, nausea, vomiting, bleeding and severe painful discomfort around the pelvic and abdominal areas.
While the symptoms associated with secondary dysmenorrhea are severe menstrual cramps, irregular periods, heavy menstrual bleeding, burning sensation when urinating, foul-smelling, viginal discharge, pressure, lower back pain, leg pain, difficulty emptying bladder, constipation and frequent urination.
Keep reading to discover the most common disease conditions that cause cramping outside menstrual period:
Symptoms from primary dysmenorrhea are usually less threatening when compared with secondary dysmenorrhea. However, sometimes the symptoms can be severe.
The common symptoms associated with primary dysmenorrhea are dizziness, severe headache, itching, depression, nausea, vomiting, bleeding and severe painful discomfort around the pelvic and abdominal areas.
While the symptoms associated with secondary dysmenorrhea are severe menstrual cramps, irregular periods, heavy menstrual bleeding, burning sensation when urinating, foul-smelling, viginal discharge, pressure, lower back pain, leg pain, difficulty emptying bladder, constipation and frequent urination.
Keep reading to discover the most common disease conditions that cause cramping outside menstrual period:
Uterine Fibroids
These are noncancerous growth inside the wall of uterus, which pushes and causes the lining tissue of uterus to secretes prostaglandins that suppress oxygen supply and blood flow to the uterus. This causes inflammation and painful discomfort in the lower abdomen and pelvic region.
Pelvic Inflammatory Disease
This is a gynecological disease that affects the reproductive organs of women. It is caused by a bacterial infection through sexually transmitted diseases like gonorrhea.
Cervical Stenosis
Cervical stenosis can suppress the flow of menstrual blood from moving out through the cervix, and this causes painful discomfort and inflammation.
Intrauterine Device
This is a small birth control device that is inserted into a uterus.
Sometimes, these birth control devices may perforate the uterus of women or get inserted into the uterus with an infectious bacteria.
The bacteria can cause disease like pelvic inflammatory disease.
All these can cause secondary painful menstrual cramps and inflammation.
Endometriosis
Endometriosis is the appearance of endometrial tissue outside the uterus. Endometrial tissue can develop on ovaries and other parts of pelvic regions.
It is an estrogen-dependent inflammatory disease that is affecting 5% to 10% of women of reproductive age in the US (2).
Endometriosis causes viginal obstruction of outflow due to large quantities of backwashed menstrual tissue that has become implanted on pelvic organs (3).
This prevents proper menstrual blood exit and thereby causing painful discomfort associated with the menstrual periods.
Adenomyosis
Adenomyosis is the presence of endometrial tissue within the myometrium.
Adenomyosis is responsible for most abnormal uterine bleeding and menstrual cramps (4).
Atomic Pregnancy
Atopic pregnancy is the formation of abnormal pregnancy whereby the fetus is implanted or developed inside a fallopian tube instead of inside the uterus.
Ruptured Ovarian Cyst
Ruptured ovarian cyst is s fluid-filled sac that grows on ovaries. The cyst sometimes can grow large enough to cause pressure and pain on either side of the lower stomach just below the belly button, thighs, and lower back.
Inflammatory Bowel Disease
Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) which also known as Crohn's Disease or Ulcerative Colitis is a long-term swelling and irritation in various parts of the digestive tract. Cramps associated with IBD are pain in the right lower or middle parts of your belly. But, if it is ulcerative colitis, the cramps will be on the lower left side of your stomach.
Other symptoms of IBD include blood in your poop, fatigue, weight loss, fever, ought to pass bowel movement, diarrhea, constipation, and feeling that your bowels are not completely empty after you go.
Ovulation
Ovulation is also responsible for your painful discomfort outside period. This type of pain comes usually mid-month about 10-14 days before your period. You feel pain when your ovaries release an egg to keep your body in touch about possible pregnancy.
The painful discomfort associated with ovulation is harmless and normally comes with pain outside the belly. This painful discomfort also lasts typically from few minutes to hours.
The side of the cramps depends on which ovary released the eggs. The cramps may switch from one of the ovaries to another ovary every month or come from the same ovary every month.
Miscarriage
Miscarriage happens when you lose an unborn baby before the 20th week of pregnancy.
The cramps associated with miscarriage may be like that of menstrual period, but with time it can become severe. Severe pain and viginal bleeding are the commonest symptoms. Always refer to a nearby professional medical center for proper medical checkups.
Pregnancy Pain
Pregnancy pain also looks like that of menstrual cramps. This comes in place when the growing fetus (unborn baby) is attaching to the lining of uterus.
Painful discomfort associated with pregnancy pain is few slight cramps about 4 weeks into your pregnancy, which is equivalent to the time of your period.
Interstitial Cystitis
Interstitial cystitis is a long-term painful disease condition that affects the bladder. It usually comes with cramps and tenderness in the lower stomach, genital areas. Common symptoms are painful sexual intercourse, and ought to pee.
Appendicitis
Appendicitis is an outgrowth of a small pouch or stone-like structure on the extreme end of a large intestine. It causes painful discomfort like that of menstrual period.
The cramps can become severe and travel to the right lower side of your stomach. Symptoms include sickness in the stomach, fever, and it hurts when you cough, sneeze or move.
Related: How to stop menstrual cramps fast
Irritable Bowel Syndrome
Irritable bowel syndrome IBS can also cause stomach cramps like that of period cramps. The painful discomfort associated with IBS are sudden pain in the stomach. Common symptom is difficulty in emptying your bowels.Ovarian Cancer
Ovarian cancer pain is a painful discomfort associated with the outgrowth of cancerous cells in the ovaries.
The painful discomfort that comes with ovarian cancer is hurting and pressure in your lower belly.
Your belly may be inflamed so much that you find it difficult to button your pants.
Related: The ultimate guide to menstrual cramps
Effects Of Menstrual Cramps
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The effects of menstrual cramps are quite distressing and annoying, affecting women's daily life activities and social interaction.
According to one study, while accessing the effects of menstrual-related pain on attentional interference, it was found that when the participants completed different tasks during their menstrual pain, the performance was less accurate and slow when compared with the performance during nonphase pain.
In this study, 52 women were tested by giving them different tasks to complete during their menstrual periods.
Two different tests were made. One is made during the nonphase pain, and the other is made during a painful period.
Results analyzed from this study showed less accuracy and low performance of tasks completed during a painful period.
Following are the most common effects of menstrual cramps:
• causes poor academic performance
• Restrictions of daily activities
• causes low-quality sleep
• affect mode and general behavior negatively
• causes anxiety and depression
Risk Factors Associated With Menstrual Pain
• smoking of cigarette
• alcohol drinking
• obesity
• women who never experience pregnancy
• women who menstruation at an early age such as 11 years old
•Secondary dysmenorrhea
Treatments Of Menstrual Cramps Outside Period
It can also include any method that is locally made and nonsynthetic such as local heat application, dietary and lifestyle changes.
The secret is that most natural or organic products are powerful agents with the highest moisturizing, soothing, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, and antioxidants benefits.
Several studies have found that natural home remedies such as aromatherapy can successfully remedy pain when used together with conventional treatments.
According to one study made on 80 students while finding the effect of chamomile tea for relief of pain associated with primary dysmenorrhea, it was found that drinking 2 cups of chamomile tea was effective for reducing pain associated with menstrual cramps.
Changes in diets are also effective to relieve painful discomfort, inflammation, fever, and excessive bleeding that is associated with menstrual pain.
Adding dietary foods and supplements rich in vitamins, minerals, healthy fats, and soluble fibers can be effective for treating menstrual pain.
According to a recent systematic review by Karger, which focused on nutritional factors affecting primary menstrual cramps.
In this review, it was found that increased consumption of fruits and vegetables for vitamins and minerals, as well as fish and milk and dairy products have a positive correlation with fewer menstrual cramps,
whereas different results were obtained from the consumption of other nutritional groups.
Local heat application in the lower abdomen was found to work great in reducing pain associated with menstrual cramps.
Topical heat application reduces inflammation, kill bacteria and improves blood and oxygen supply to the tissues.
According to one study, while accessing the effect of local heat application on area affected by acne-related diseases, it was found that topical application of heat reduces significantly the microbial growth and inflammation.
Secondary dysmenorrhea is sometimes very difficult to be treated with natural home remedies.
This is because treatment is only effective when you know the root cause.
And this same with secondary dysmenorrhea.
Always refer yourself to a nearby professional medical center for proper medical checkups.
But, never try to self-treat yourself with conventional medicines by going to a random retail medicine shop and buy over-the-counter medicines.
Always seek professional medical advice.
Disclaimer
When cramps continue and or you start to experience severe bleeding refer yourself immediately to nearby professional medical center for proper medical checkups.
Do not take conventional treatments from a non trusted persons as conventional medicines are not like natural home remedies. They increase your chance of developing adverse drug effects.
Preventions Of Menstrual Cramps Outside Period
• reduce your refined carbs intake
• stop drinking alcohol
• try to stop smoking cigarette
• increase your dietary supplements intake
• improve you're on personal hygiene
• exercise daily
• take high proteins diets such as eggs
• go natural
• stop using birth control devices such as intrauterine device
Conclusion
I hope this guide gives you excellent help in understanding the causes, preventions, and treatments of menstrual cramps outside period. We would love listening to words about this guide. So, do write to us in the comment section below.
Written by Idris Ya'u
Written by Idris Ya'u
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