Four important things to do while on your period

I highly doubt that any woman looks forward to their period. It is one of our most defining moments in womanhood, and one of the lowest at the same time. That time of the month comes with bleeding, cramps, nausea, bloating, breakouts, mood swings and weight gain among other alterations. The combination of the side effects all happening at the same time is exhausting to deal with.

Life goes on and we have to do whatever we need to do and be able to handle our day-to-day lives like normal. In order to feel your best when you feel your lowest, check out the tips below on how to tackle your period head-on.

You should be doing this on or off your period because hygiene is key. Avoid going longer than a day without taking a good ol’ shower during your period because bacteria build-up will lead to infection and an unpleasant odour.

Washing off the remnants of your menstrual flow will keep you, not only smelling fresh but feeling fresh too. Use an unscented, pH balanced intimate cleanser to wash your lady area so as to avoid throwing off your pH levels. You will feel so much more confident when you smell ‘so fresh and so clean clean’.  

During the menstrual cycle, hormones fluctuate and most women get breakouts on their face before or during their period. This is the time to give your skin some extra TLC (Tender Loving Care). Not only will you look good but you will feel relaxed and confident after taking extra care of your physical appearance.

Remember to properly cleanse your face, give yourself a face mask and slather it with sunscreen to stop those pesky scars from getting darker from the sun. No one will even know that aunty flo is visiting when your skin is popping.

When you bleed, you experience a dip in your iron levels, especially if you have a heavy flow. You need to compensate for some of the iron that you will be losing to avoid fatigue, bodily pain and dizziness.

Load up on sukuma wiki, spinach and fish. You can even treat yourself to dark chocolate which is rich in iron and magnesium. At the same time, be sure to avoid excess salt and sugar, caffeine, alcohol and spicy foods.

Exercising has numerous health benefits, your period included. Exercising is probably the last thing you want to do when you’re feeling groggy and your crumps are on level 10. Try it out because exercising can help improve your overall mood, so the people around you won’t need to be at the butt of your mood swings.

Menstrual symptoms vary among different women. A condition called dysmenorrhea is the term used to classify painful periods. Exercising, even as simple as walking, can help decrease these symptoms. There is no need to push yourself too hard, simply try light cardio, low-volume strength training or Pilates to boost your mood.