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Pain during critical days
Last reviewed: 06.07.2025
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Such a delicate topic for women as the menstrual cycle is considered indecent for discussion in society. From early childhood, girls are taught that menstruation is something akin to shameful, they even came up with a veiled name - critical days. However, there are a great many questions on this topic and girls, having become women, believe, for example, that pain during critical days is normal. Such a misconception is formed due to poor information, ignorance of one's own physiology and fear of asking such sensitive questions.
Complaints about painful menstruation are quite common. According to many sociological surveys, approximately every third woman on the planet experiences pain during her period. For some, the pain appears several days before the onset of menstruation, while for others, the painful sensations do not go away even after it ends. Severe pain can lead to loss of consciousness and exhaustion of the body due to constant stress.
Painful menstrual cycle is called algomenorrhea. Primary and secondary algomenorrhea should be distinguished.
[ Primary algomenorrhea
Algomenorrhea is considered primary only in adolescence, when girls begin to form a menstrual cycle. Pain during critical days in adolescents is caused not by pathological changes in organs and tissues, but by dyshormonal manifestations, that is, the restructuring of the body to a new level of hormonal background. Most often, algomenorrhea develops in emotional girls with an asthenic (very thin) physique. Menstruation is accompanied by pain not from the first days and not immediately, but approximately 1-1.5 years after the onset, this is associated with the development of the ovulatory cycle.
During menstruation, girls complain of cramping, wave-like pain in the lower abdomen, less often across its entire surface. In rare cases, the pain can spread to the hips and sacrum. In addition to pain, symptoms such as:
- nausea;
- dizziness;
- headache;
- diarrhea (loose stools);
- intestinal colic.
Excess prostaglandins, leading to narrowing of blood vessels and spasms of the uterine muscles, are considered the main cause of primary algomenorrhea.
Secondary algomenorrhea
Pain during critical days can be caused by pathological changes in the pelvic organs. In this case, we speak of secondary algomenorrhea.
The causes of painful menstruation are considered to be:
- anatomical changes in the uterus (fibroids, disorders of the uterine ligamentous apparatus);
- inflammatory diseases of the pelvic organs;
- complications after surgical intervention in the uterine cavity and tubes (artificial abortions);
- endometriosis;
- congenital malformations of the genital organs.
How to cope with pain during critical days?
To eliminate pain during the menstrual cycle, it is often enough to take a pill of any antispasmodic, for example, No-shpa. This method of pain relief is suitable for any type of algomenorrhea. But if the cause of pain during critical days has not been established, it is necessary to start with diagnostic procedures.
A visit to a gynecologist is the first step that needs to be taken. After undergoing an initial examination and a number of gynecological tests (ultrasound of the pelvic organs, smear for pathogenic flora, blood test for hormones), most of the above-mentioned causes of algomenorrhea can be identified. In some cases, laparoscopy is indicated - an endoscopic diagnostic method. With the help of laparoscopy, the possibility of making a diagnosis increases many times over.
Treatment of algomenorrhea
Treatment procedures during primary algomenorrhea mainly consist of relieving spasms and normalizing prostaglandins. A visit to a gynecologist will help solve the problem of painful periods in teenagers in the shortest possible time. A properly selected diet, a measured daily routine, and support from antispasmodics are often quite sufficient.
With manifestations of secondary algomenorrhea, the situation is much more serious. Treatment will depend on the identified true cause of pain during critical days. These may be hormonal drugs and antispasmodics, anti-inflammatory therapy and surgical intervention.