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Many of you may experience nausea during menstruation. In this article, we will discuss how nausea occurs during menstruation, common questions, and how to deal with it!
Table of Contents
Why do you feel nauseous during menstruation?
Nausea during menstruation, is it possible to be pregnant?
What are the symptoms of nausea during menstruation?
What to do if you feel nauseous?
Why do you feel nauseous during menstruation?
Nausea during menstruation is caused by an increase in the production of the hormone prostaglandin. Prostaglandins increase the contraction movement of the uterus to facilitate the smooth flow of menstrual blood during menstruation. In addition to this, prostaglandins also increase the function of the stomach and intestines. Prostaglandins cause abnormal contractions of the stomach and intestines, which can lead to nausea and queasiness.
Prostaglandin secretion is not so high if menstrual blood flows out smoothly. However, if the flow of menstrual blood is blocked by poor circulation around the uterus due to cold or hormonal imbalance, the body will try to make the uterus contract more, and more prostaglandins will be secreted.
Thus, those who experience nausea or vomiting during menstruation are considered to have excessive prostaglandin production.
Nausea during menstruation, is it possible to be pregnant?
If you are indeed menstruating, there is no possibility that you are pregnant because the endometrium necessary for conception is being expelled as menstrual blood. However, there are cases in which the bleeding you thought was menstruation is irregular bleeding such as "ovulation bleeding" or "implantation bleeding. In this case, there is a possibility of pregnancy.
If you experience nausea during menstruation, which you do not usually feel, check your basal body temperature first to confirm the possibility of pregnancy. Basal body temperature can be checked by taking your temperature when you wake up in the morning while you are lying in bed without moving your body. The basal body temperature is divided into two phases: alow-temperature phase before ovulation and a high-temperature phase after ovulation. One of the characteristics of basal body temperature is that it enters a low-temperature phase with the onset of menstruation.
If the bleeding is indeed menstruation, it should have already transitioned from a high temperature to a low temperature, as shown in the graph above. If the high temperature continues during the bleeding, it is possible that it is not menstruation but irregular bleeding, i.e., you may be pregnant. If this is the case, use a pregnancy test to find out when you are one week past the expected start of your menstruation.
What are the symptoms of nausea during menstruation?
If you feel nauseous every menstruation or if the nausea during menstruation is severe, you may be suffering from a gynecological disorder.
Endometriosis
Endometriosis is a disease in which the endometrium forms outside the uterus. It has been reported that about 25% of patients experience nausea and vomiting.
Dysmenorrhea
Dysmenorrhea may be diagnosed when nausea is so severe that it interferes with daily life, even if no disease such as endometriosis is found. Dysmenorrhea is thought to be caused by excessive secretion of prostaglandins, which increase the contractions of the uterus. This is treated by taking drugs that suppress the production of prostaglandins or by taking low-dose pills to suppress ovulation.
What to do if you feel nauseous?
(1) Avoid going hungry.
During menstruation, many people may lose their appetite due to sickness, and their diet may become unbalanced. However, hunger often makes nausea more intense, so try to avoid hunger as much as possible. Ginger and mint are recommended as they are effective foods for reducing nausea.
(2) Pressing acupressure points
If you want to "control nausea right now," you can press the acupressure point called "Sanli," located slightly below the knee, or the acupressure point called "Labor Palace," which is located where the index and middle fingers meet when you hold your hand.
Other methods include the following
Lie down in a restful, comfortable position to calm the mind.
Gently massage your belly to calm the stomach.
Get enough sleep.
Please give it a try.