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For students worldwide, exams generally create a lot of stress. For female students, periods can be an added stress during exams. Though periods can’t affect the intellect level, they can create many distractions. It may become difficult to concentrate and prepare for the exams during periods.
Periods come with severe pain, fatigue, headache, mood swings, and many others. Even the PMS (Premenstrual Syndrome) creates mood swings, prominent cramps, food cravings, and various other symptoms to alert you about the soon-to-start period and that you may need comfort sanitary pads anytime. All these symptoms can put even more stress and the pressure of exams.
Tips for dealing with period pain during exams
Though painful periods can result from hormone imbalance or some other serious issue, here are some of the key tips that one must follow to deal with periods of pain during exams. Understanding period symptoms and PMS signs can help make your periods manageable.
- Drink a lot of water: Drinking lots of water is one of the best solutions to deal with period pain. It helps to lessen the effect of PMS symptoms on the body. When the menstrual cycle starts, the girls should drink at least 1.5 liters of water. Even if you are in the exam hall, make sure to carry your water bottle along with you to keep your body hydrated.
- Include healthy food in your diet: It is imperative to eat a healthy and well-balanced diet during periods, especially when preparing for the exams. Try to include food rich in magnesium like green vegetables, nuts, fresh fruits, etc. Healthy food helps in relaxing the cramps and tense muscles. Eating a lot of unhealthy food during periods can greatly reduce the level of magnesium in your body and may trigger the chances of severe pain and cramps.
- Use a heating pad: To relieve the pain and cramps during periods, it is best to use a heating pad in the abdomen area. Applying the heating pad provides temporary relief from period pain. When you apply a heating pad to a particular area, the pain receptors start getting dull, and heat receptors get activated, relieving the pain. Therefore, use a heating pad to lessen the cramps and pain in the abdomen. This way, you can prepare yourself to give a long examination (2-3 hours’ duration) without experiencing severe pain and cramps.
- Keep track of the bowel movements: It is advisable to check your bowel movements. A slow bowel movement can be a sign of congestion in the stomach. If this is the case then, the congestion of the stomach may create a physical mass, leading to an irritating and uneasy feeling into the sensitive womb. So, how to keep bowel movements in perfect condition during periods? Well, you must increase the intake of fiber-rich food. Also, start drinking a lot of water. This will keep the bowels moving, and you will feel at ease during your exams.
- Stay organized and well-prepared: You can keep yourself well-prepared and organized to deal with periods. You can track your periods to know the next due date of your periods. This will keep you mentally prepared for such a situation. However, tracking periods can be quite difficult for irregular periods. You can still make an educated guess based on the signs that your body gives before starting periods. You can also wear a comfort sanitary pad or tampon to the examination hall, even if the periods have not started yet. Still, your body has started showing the symptoms like cramps in the abdomen, body pain, etc. This way, you can eliminate the chances of any leakage and staining of clothes. On top of it, you can concentrate fully on giving your exam instead of thinking about periods and related issues.
- Do exercise: A few exercises are highly recommended during periods. Performing these exercises can keep you fit and fine during periods and keep your mind calm. You can also try going out for a walk or jogging as it can also greatly reduce PMS symptoms. When you do exercise or just a walk, your body releases a neurotransmitter known as dopamine which helps relieve the symptoms of periods.
Conclusion:
Experiencing menstrual cramps and other period-related symptoms is not a pleasant experience, especially when you are already stressed due to your examination. Preparing for exams, sitting for long and writing exams can increase the stress levels during periods. However, by following the above-mentioned tips, you can easily tackle your periods and concentrate fully on your exams. Just make sure to determine what works best for you during periods, whether doing an exercise, using a heating pad, drinking a lot of water, using comfort sanitary pads, tampons, etc. If you prefer using pads instead of tampons, it is advisable to use superior quality pads that assure complete hygiene and comfort for a longer time. You can even buy sanitary pads online as different pads are available nowadays to deal with low to heavy flow days. Choose the right pads according to your needs. Do whatever helps relieve the symptoms of periods so that your performance during exams will not suffer.
