Disclaimer: Other brands of Ibuprofen are also available (this was just the best picture I could find on Google). I have to admit, I froze up a little to talk about such a 'taboo' subject. The P word sends us all into mental breakdown, but it's something that women all over the world are dealing with on a regular basis. It shouldn't be regarded as something too personal to address, and so I decided to post this after all.
I've always suffered with periods, whether that was they just weren't happening at all or I suffered so much so that I was almost rendered bed-bound. After a few tests and scans, doctors diagnosed me with Poly-Cystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS), which is much more common than you'd think. I wrote a post a little while ago about it now, and I myself was shocked to discover that 1 in 4 women suffer from the same condition. It effects all women differently and symptoms differ from person to person, but if you're interested in finding out a little more about that, check out my post. So anyway, I started taking the contraceptive pill, Cilest, which thus far has succeeded in regulating me so I have a little more control. The only issue was that with more frequent periods came more frequent pain, heavier bleeding and all that fun stuff. I tried taking paracetamol religiously, which combated some of the cramps but did nothing for the amount of blood I was losing, which increasingly started to worry me. I used hot water bottles at night to ease the pain, tried light exercise and even tried adding healthier foods into my diet. All of these things helped ease the pain for a time, but nothing was easing up the blood loss. It wasn't until recently that a friend suggested taking Ibuprofen. The non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug works by reducing your body's production of inflammatory elements called prostaglandins. These little buggers have an impact on the blood vessels in the inner lining of the uterus and therefore can affect the amount of blood loss. Taking Ibuprofen can apparently decrease the amount of the bleeding by 20-40%, and sometimes even more for women with heavy periods. As a pain killer, it also tackles cramps and pains. At first, I didn't quite believe that anything would be of much help. I'd always likened Ibuprofen to Paracetamol and assumed that they only had pain-relieving qualities as is more commonly known. But I decided to give it a try. Low and behold, it actually worked. At times, I even stopped bleeding altogether. The important thing with Ibuprofen is to take it properly and as instructed. I had assumed that you could take it every 4 hours no problems like Paracetamol, but as it turns out, you can only take 2 pills every 6 hours and you should take them with or after food as the acidic value in the pills can destroy your stomach over a long period of consumption. If, like me, you find that you need pain killers more regularly than every 6 hours, you can also take Paracetamol at the same time to compensate. It may seem like a lot of pills but trust me, it's worth it. If you struggle with your periods, give it a try and see if it works for you cause this month, Ibuprofen has been an absolute life-saver for me.
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As women, I don't think we give ourselves enough credit. Our bodies can do incredible things and the modern day woman has more power than ever. Let's talk about all of the wonderfully unique things that make being a woman totally awesome and why we should appreciate ourselves a little more.
1. First of all, every single person that has ever existed on this planet was home grown in the womb of a woman. We literally create all human beings within our bodies, carry them around for nine months until we bring them into the world. The science behind the body of a woman is so complex and, let's be real, pretty mind blowing. 2. The 21st century woman has more power than ever with the right to vote, the choice to get an education and career and more opportunities than ever to be in a position of power. Even our prime minister is a woman! (I mean, she's not a GREAT example, but she still made it to the top as a woman.) There's even less judgement bestowed on women who choose a different path to the stereotypical maternal housewife, although those roles are also still supported within society. The point is that we now the choice to make that decision for ourselves and no one will think any less of us for doing so. Some women even do BOTH. That's how incredible we are. Boss-bitch Monday-Friday 9-5. Full time Mum/wife/friend/partner. 3. There's this unwritten girl code that creates a sense of unity. We should always be supporting each other and lifting each other up. We should be celebrating womanhood in all its forms. 4. We have a great platform for self expression and creativity. We are entitled to experiment with how we portray ourselves to everyone else and create an image and persona we wish to exert. We can become anything. 5. We live, on average, about 7 years longer than men. That gives us almost an extra decade to live our best lives. 6. We've got so many inspirational role models to look up to, including: Virginia Wolf, author of Mrs Dolloway in which she challenged the idea of the submissive 'perfect housewife' and influenced the feminist movement of the 1970s. Marie Curie, Nobel-prize-winning scientist, who's research into radioactivity saved a multitude of lives. Unable to attend university in her native country, Poland, due to her gender, she decided to move to Paris in order to gain an education. We now have the opportunity to progress academically if we should choose to and we shouldn't take that for granted. Amelia Earhart, the first female to fly solo across the Atlantic. Her inspirational achievements taught women across the globe to be ambitious and strive to achieve your dreams, regardless of gender. Eleanor Roosevelt, First Lady of America who fought for the rights of African-American women, despite the social climate of the era, teaching women to speak up about their beliefs and support others even when others disagree. The list of inspirational women is endless. All in all, we grow humans, stage the way for creativity and still find a way to excel in our chosen fields. Being a woman is pretty awesome. |
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