Natural Ways to Relieve Neck and Body Pain During your Period

Ever wake up with a stiff neck after sleeping in a poor position all evening?  Or worse, deal with chronic pain and aches daily because a sedentary lifestyle or career forces you to look down at your computer or commuting all day?  Over time, your muscles will begin to clench in order to protect them from further damage, causing aches and pains, while losing natural range of motion.

Dr. Bang, of Cleveland Clinic states “Often the joint catches on something, either pulling a muscle or hitting the nerve irregularly, or maybe both. Then you’ll have instant pain and your body has a protective spasm. Your body doesn’t want you to get hurt more, so it will clench, causing you to feel like you can’t even move — and leaving you wondering what you did to injure yourself.”

When kinks like this happen, it can debilitate even the easiest of daily tasks. That said, we’ve compiled a quick list of natural remedies you can try to gently ease up on the tightness and, over time, get mobility back!

Turn Up the Heat

Prepare a warm bath or hot shower, allowing the warmth of the water to relax your muscles. Upon exiting, dry off and apply a slightly warmed batch of oil to the same area.  Some prefer to add essential oils that are safe for topical application and soothe pain, like lavender or peppermint. It’s best to dilute them with the oil you are using as a base. Massage using firm yet gentle strokes for several minutes in a clockwise direction.

Cool Down

Relieve a stiff neck with a cold compress. While heat can help relax the muscles, the cold temperature will help numb pain, limiting the buildup of lactic acid, which causes soreness after extended neck and body strain or a night of poorly-positioned slumber. Wrap some ice cubes in a thin washcloth. Hold the compress against the stiff area of your neck for 10 to 15 minutes. Repeat every 2 hours for the first 48 hours. If ice isn’t readily available or too messy, you can use frozen vegetables still in the bag. 

Soothe in Salt

Epsom salt, that is. Epsom salt is known to help improve circulation – which in turn, can help with mobility and range of motion. As it reduces muscle tension and stress, you may find you are able to move slightly back to a normal, restorative position of the neck and body. Couple this with the warm bath by adding 3 cups of Epsom salt to a tub full of water. Soak the area of the body that is tight for 20-30 minutes. This can be done daily the first few days of relieving sore muscles.

Massage

Massage can be offered in a variety of different modalities tailored to your preference. Deep tissue, Swedish and lymphatic just to name a few. Massage helps greatly in the release of sore muscles because it helps the body return to a naturally restorative state while increasing blood circulation, thus reducing stiffness. Beyond immediate relief, massage will help you sleep better which is important for the body to enter deeper states of homeostasis – the body’s natural ability to restore and heal itself into alignment.

With so many options available, and so many ways to suffer from body aches and pains, what have you found to be a helpful healing practice?