Having breast pain before a period is more common than most would think. Most doctors don’t completely understand what causes these specific symptoms during your cycle, but they know which hormones are involved.
Dealing with sore breasts isn’t the only thing women have to worry about. Experiencing PMS and cramps is bad enough, so reducing any breast pain can take some weight off your shoulders.
Read on to find out what breast pain before your period is, and five ways to reduce it.
Why Do You Have Breast Pain Before Your Period?
Research shows that hormone changes, the fluctuation of estrogen and progesterone, are the most common cause of breast pain before your period and can cause swollen lymph nodes. This process is called Cyclic Mastalgia
Several other factors play into this as well, including genetics, water retention, clogged milk ducts, and injury. The list is extensive but goes to show that there are quite a few effective ways of detecting what is causing your discomfort.
Symptoms of Breast Pain Before Period
Symptoms can include tenderness in both breasts or just one and can be on a wide scale of pain from dull to very sharp. When you experience something like this, it can last from a day to a few months, so recording your symptoms is important to keep tabs on patterns. So how can you relieve the soreness?
1- Hot N’ Cold Therapy
Using an ice pack or a heating pad on the targeted area will really help reduce pain and inflammation. This can be paired with a very gentle massage and even meditation to calm your mind and body.
2- Wear a Supportive Bra
Most women actually wear the wrong bra size, so switching it up and getting real measurements for a supportive bra will go a long way. There are many resources online that can help you size yourself, and this way you can even order online.
Wearing a supportive bra such as full coverage or push up bra will help women with larger breasts keep them secure and in place. At night, try wearing a soft bra to bed to continue your pain management.
3- Nutrition
Make sure you are putting the right kind of substances in your body. This means paying attention to what you eat and drink to help limit some of the outside pain influencers. Caffeine is shown to cause an increase in pain during your menstrual cycle.
Decreasing caffeine intake and supplementing your diet with nutritious foods like flaxseed with help reduce pain and inflammation in your body.
4- Self Care
Taking the time to stretch and relax your mind can help ease the stress and discomfort you’ve been experiencing too.
Try taking some time for yourself to stretch or try specific yoga poses for relaxation and unwind.
5- Medication
When all else fails, or you run out of time in the day, taking a safe medication is always a good thing to fall back on. Women’s health is a very broad topic, so doing research on what will really help is sometimes a challenge.
What Else Do You Need to Know?
If the pain is persisting or non-cyclical, consider asking your doctor about what your next steps should be. There is a chance the pain could be caused by an infection or inflammation in your breast, so seeking help is your safest option.
Otherwise, practicing self-care and following those five tips will help reduce breast pain before the period.
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