With many people experiencing painful periods, we take a look at some of the natural ways you can manage your symptoms

Over half of people who menstruate experience painful periods. This can accompany other symptoms pre-period (known as pre-menstrual syndrome), last for one or two days or, for some, the whole duration of their bleed. Although for many people there might not be a complete cure for their pain, there are things that can be done to minimise its impact on day-to-day life.

Menstrual cramps are a very common symptom of periods. These occur when the uterus contracts and sheds its lining. Women often experience discomfort in their lower abdomen, back or groin but, for some people, the pain can be chronic and debilitating.

What causes painful periods?

There are a number of reasons why someone might have period pain. If you are experiencing painful menstruation, it’s important to speak to your GP as they will be able to help you understand why you’re experiencing this and provide answers with a diagnosis. This can go a long way to managing your periods effectively.

Some reasons why you might have painful periods include:

• ovarian cysts
• endometriosis
• PID (pelvic inflammatory disease)
• fibroids
• PMDD (premenstrual dysphoric disorder)
• adenomyosis
• having a copper IUD

How to relieve period pain

When we experience pain, it can be easy to reach for over-the-counter medicines, like paracetamol and ibuprofen. Doctors can prescribe stronger painkillers but there are other remedies that you can try for those wanting to take a more natural approach.

1. Heat

Applying heat can help the muscles relax and reduce cramps. You can do this by using a heat pad or a hot water bottle but be sure to wrap it up in a towel to prevent burns. Never apply the heat directly to the skin. Having a warm bath or shower is another way you can stimulate the relaxation of the muscles.

Patches are another alternative to hot water bottles or heat pads. They are great for on-the-go comfort, plus they are discrete and convenient. Why not give these cruelty-free and natural patches from BeYou a try?

2. Massage

Massaging your abdomen can help relieve period pain by relaxing the uterus and reducing spasms. For the best results, focus on massaging in circular motions in the area of pain itself. A full body massage, however, may be beneficial in reducing any stress and discomfort from your menstrual symptoms.

3. Relaxation techniques

Stress has been known to increase period pain, so trying to be as relaxed as possible during your period can help significantly when it comes to cramping. To help the body relax, you could try therapies such as Yoga, Pilates or reflexology. Not only are they a great way to release tension and distract you from any pain, but they are also great forms of exercise.

4. Exercise  

For those suffering from period pain, i

What exactly is it, why does it happen, and what can we do about this mysterious sleep condition?

It’s the sleep condition that comes with a lot of fear attached, but what exactly is sleep paralysis? Well, it can be identified as a brief loss of muscle control, known as ‘atonia’, which makes you feel as though you are not able to move. This tends to happen just after falling asleep, or as you begin to wake, and it can fall into two categories: isolated (when the episodes are not regular, and are not linked to another underlying diagnosis) and recurrent sleep paralysis, which involves multiple episodes over a period of time.

An estimated 75% of people who experience sleep paralysis will also have hallucinations, which might feel different to, and more intense than, typical dreams. Generally, hallucinations during sleep paralysis fall into one of three categories: intruder hallucinations, where you might perceive danger or an unwanted presence; chest pressure hallucinations, where you may feel like you are suffocating; and vestibular-motor hallucinations, which can feel like movement, or an out-of-body sensation.

But what causes sleep paralysis in the first place? We asked Dr David Oyewole, consultant psychiatrist and medical director at Nightingale Hospital. “Sleep paralysis happens more frequently than commonly thought,” he says. “Some studies have shown about 30% of people have experienced at least one episode of sleep paralysis. In the general population though, it is thought to be closer to 8% having experienced an episode.

“People experience sleep paralysis when they become ‘partially awake’ while asleep. To explain, when in a stage of sleep associated with dreaming (rapid eye movement, or REM), the brain normally switches off, or reduces the ability of the body to move.

“However, some people become awake before the brain switches the body back to normal movement. If that happens, one then experiences being awake but not being able to move, which can understandably feel quite scary.”

There is a lot of fear around sleep paralysis, not least due to the fact it crops up in horror films – which are bound to keep you up at night, anyway. But the good news is that, as long as it doesn’t cause significant health problems, sleep paralysis is usually classified as a benign condition. That said, it can still affect your overall wellbeing. You might start to develop anxiety around sleeping, which can then lead to poor quality sleep, in turn affecting your health when you don’t wake up feeling rested.

So, what can cause sleep paralysis, and what can you do to help prevent it?

“It is known that stress and emotional challenges can increase the chances of sleep paralysis, as well as eating, drinking alcohol or coffee, or exercising just before bedtime,” Dr Oyewole explains. “Good sleep hygiene (such as prioritising sleep, sticking to a routine, and staying active throughout the day) will help minimise your chances of being affected by sleep paralysis.

“Avoid drinking alcohol or caffeine, eating, or exercising for four hours before bed. There’s also evidence to suggest you should avoid sleeping on your back.”

Having said this, Dr Oyewole notes that you should speak

In need of some career guidance? Here we look at some of the options available so you can find the right support for you

For many of us, we spend a great deal of our lives at work. For some it’s a calling they feel passionately about, for others it’s simply a way to fund their time away from work. Whichever camp you fall into, being unhappy at work can take its toll.

Feeling that sense of dread in the pit of your stomach as you think about the day ahead, knowing you’re either going to be bored, stressed or anxious at work, is a tough thing to experience. Perhaps you know what’s at the root of it and what needs to change, perhaps you don’t.

Maybe you don’t have that sense of dread, instead you feel restless. You don’t know what you want out of your career, you just know it’s… not this.

You may have started exploring your options already. Looking on job sites to see if anything jumps out at you or speaking to your manager about your unhappiness. Maybe you know you need to do some work on yourself to improve things at work, or maybe you’re fully aware you are not the problem.

Wherever you are, if you’re feeling stuck, lost and unsure how to move forward, you could benefit from professional support. Sometimes we need a guide to show us the way, and that’s nothing to be ashamed of. Let’s look at some options you could explore here.

Career counselling - could a counsellor help with your career?

Typically we think of counsellors and therapists as people we go to when we’re struggling with our mental health, perhaps after a diagnosis of a condition like depression, for example. While this is of course true, counsellors can support in a range of different areas, including your career.

In this video BACP accredited therapist Caroline Plumer explains more about career counselling, the common reasons you may seek support and how to find a therapist who can help you.

If your mental health has been affected by work, or your mental health is affecting work, speaking to a counsellor could be beneficial. They can help you better understand what’s happening and help you manage the situation. This may mean making changes in your work life, or even discussing what’s happening with colleagues, if you feel comfortable doing so. It could also mean making a decision to leave your role and finding something that better supports your mental health.

Career counsellors can also help you to build resilience, navigate difficult conversations and relationships at work, and build confidence. They may also be able to support you with workplace bullying, work-related stress and low self-esteem, making work an easier place to be.

Career coaching - how can coaching support your career?

Career coaching is another option you may want to consider. The

We share 12 meaningful ways you can make positive, sustainable, and actionable changes in your life to make happiness your priority and start building a brighter future

Are you happy?

Being happy is a goal that many of us aim for, but how do we know when we’re really happy? Shouldn’t it be simple - you either are, or you aren’t? Happiness is an emotional state where we feel a myriad of different things including joy, satisfaction, wellness, contentment, and fulfilment. But feelings of happiness can be fleeting, like momentary bright sparks in an otherwise stressful, busy, and overwhelming landscape.

So, how do you know if you are happy? Is it something we should even be working towards, or should we be waiting for it to happen naturally?

Long-lasting happiness is steady. It’s something we feel continuously as a sense of contentment when we feel fulfilled across different areas of our lives. Perhaps when you feel like your work is making the best use of your strengths, or that you are able to live a life that best aligns with your core values.

Happiness doesn’t just mean an absence of stress, worry and anxiety. You can still be happy while experiencing other, less enjoyable but completely natural emotions. In fact, when we are feeling happiness at our core, we may feel more able to face big life events, changes, or periods of high stress without feeling as overwhelmed.  

Happiness isn’t just a luxury we should wish for. It has been shown to help predict positive outcomes for mental and physical health, wellbeing, and longevity. Experiencing more positive emotions increases our overall satisfaction with life, helping us build our resilience, develop stronger coping skills, and feel more confident and able to face life’s challenges head-on.

So, how can we stop wishing for happiness, and start making the pursuit of happiness part of our day-to-day lives?

12 ways to make happiness your priority

1. Define what happiness looks like for you

Currently, there is no one single definition of happiness. If you try to look it up, each definition is just a little different from the next. There are even different types of happiness that different people seek out.

Some may focus on more hedonic happiness (focusing on experiencing more pleasure and less pain), while others may look for eudaimonic happiness (focusing on happiness as the end result of seeking and fulfilling their life purpose, a challenge, personal growth, or overall feeling like they have fulfilled their potential).

Take time to sit down and consider what you most value in life. What is it that makes you feel a sense of satisfaction, fulfilment, or contentment? Is it spending time with friends and family, moving up the career ladder, helping others achieve their goals and better themselves? Is it creating a sense of financial security, supporting others, focusing on your passions, or reaching a state of complete self-reliance?

Our core values are highly personal and shape the way we live our lives. Spending time

The feeling that we’re putting on a different face or adopting a slightly different persona is something many of us have experienced. But for some, social masking is a way of life, and seems like the only way they feel they can fit in

We’ve all done it. That moment at work where a question arises and we just aren’t quite sure how to respond, or a friend makes a comment we think is a joke but aren’t 100% certain. We surreptitiously check to see how everyone else reacts first lest we choose the wrong thing to say. In many ways, we all practise a bit of social masking to help us avoid social faux pas. However, some of us rely on it much more than others.

Social masking, also known as social camouflaging, is thought to be one of several potential reasons as to why autistic women and girls often receive a diagnosis later in life.

In early 2018, a TV documentary revealed that more than half of undiagnosed autistic adults could be women – a figure that shocked researchers and experts alike. Of the 750,000 participants, more than 11% met the criteria pointing towards a diagnosis, with an unprecedented 52% of them being women.

With previous studies indicating that the ratio of male to female autistic individuals stood at anywhere between 2:1 to 16:1, experts put forward a range of theories to explain why these results suggested women may be under-diagnosed. The conscious and subconscious use of social masking is one of several popular explanations.

Psychiatrist Dr Louis Kraus specialises in autism. He suggests that, while the indicators of autism can be less obvious in women, many learn to mimic the behaviour of others around them, helping them to mask their difficulties in understanding social norms and cues.

Experts think girls and women may do this more often, as they want to socialise, be part of the group, and make friends, which can lead to them attempting to mimic the behaviour of their peers.

Autistic girls may also be more likely to recognise the signs of social expectations, even if they don’t fully understand or are unable to meet them. This can include mimicking facial expressions, memorising acceptable topics of conversation, and adopting physical behaviours observed in others, such as maintaining eye contact during a conversation.

While social masking may seem like a positive way to learn social cues through practise, many mimic these interactions, rather than fully understanding them. This form of social camouflaging, while helping individuals to blend in, can also delay diagnosis and support.

Many who practise social masking report still feeling disconnected or overlooked in social situations. To an outsider, they may appear to bounce between activities, conversations or groups, as they struggle to connect or have trouble recognising typically expected responses and behaviours. To combat this, many will create a “social script” of conversational phrases that can be reused when required, or copy social behaviour from friends and sometimes even TV shows.

Can it increase anxiety?

Those who regularly use social