Stomach Cramps
Stomach Cramps
At-Home Comfort Measures
You hurt bad. You're doubled over, knotted up. You want to scream. You want to sleep. Anything to get rid of this pain.
"Stomach" cramps can (and often do) carom around your abdomen like a cue ball on a billiard table. Almost every woman has had cramps sometime. If you suffer from irritable bowel syndrome or lactose intolerance or even have the occasional bout of PMS, you know a cramp when it grips you. The exact diagnosis or cause of stomach cramps may or may not be obvious. It could be stress, or a virus, or something else.
TEA AND SYMPATHY
Stomach (or abdominal) cramps will go away on their own after a few hours or days. But you don't have to suffer that long. Women doctors offer these comfort measures.
Try a hot-water bottle. A cramp is really just a knotted muscle. "If stomach muscles are making you crampy, lying in bed with a hot-water bottle on your stomach may help ease the pain," says Wanda Filer, M.D., a family practice physician in York, Pennsylvania. A hot-water bottle is much safer than a heating pad, says Dr. Filer, because it cools down, while a heating pad stays hot and can burn you if you fall asleep or use it overnight.
When To See A Doctor
If stomach cramps are accompanied by nausea, vomiting, fever or blood in the stool, see a doctor to rule out more serious conditions such as ulcers, says Wanda Filer, M.D., a family practice physician in York, Pennsylvania.
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Stick to the B-R-A-T diet. That's bananas, rice, applesauce and dry toast--foods that are easy to digest and won't hurt your tummy. "High- fiber foods like popcorn, nuts or cabbage can be hard to digest and make cramping worse," says Dr. Filer.
Drink plenty of water. If your cramping stems from constipation or diarrhea, the best way to ease the cramping is by drinking water, water and more water, say women doctors. Water gets the waste products moving through your intestines, which should ease your constipation. If you have diarrhea, drinking lots of water will keep you from becoming dehydrated.
Cook up a batch of chicken soup. "It works," says Dr. Filer. Nobody knows why, but chicken soup soothes stomach and abdominal cramps and cleans out the digestive system.
Avoid dairy. If you have diarrhea or lactose intolerance, you'll find that milk and other dairy products such as cheese and milk are hard to digest and often cause cramping. So until your cramps subside, go easy on the white stuff, says Dr. Filer.
Swallow some peppermint oil. If you have bowel spasms or trapped gas, peppermint oil stops the aching, says Tori Hudson, a naturopathic physician and professor at the National College of Naturopathic Medicine in Portland, Oregon. Peppermint oil is available in capsule form in health food stores. "Take one capsule two or three times a day between meals until your cramping goes away," says Dr. Hudson.
Or check out herbal teas. "Valerian, fennel, ginger, chamomile, rosemary, peppermint and lemon balm teas also relieve gas and stop spasms of mild stomach cramps," says Dr. Hudson.