PMS

Natural Cures for Your Teen's Discomfort

By Laura Cone

Teenagers' emotions can go from ecstatic to down-in-the-dumps blue based on a disappointing test score or a derogatory crack made by a "popular" girl. It's just another part of parenting a teen. Still, when you throw PMS into the mix, you may not be sure if those three little letters stand for "premenstrual syndrome" or simply the "predictable mood swings" of adolescence.

Dr. Susan Lark, a physician and author of Premenstrual Syndrome Self-Help Book: A Woman's Guide to Feeling Good All Month (Forman Publishing, 1984), says parents will notice cyclical changes in their daughter's mood around the time of her period. She may become more moody, irritable and sad 10 days prior to the start of her menstruation.

"They wonder why their daughter is so difficult to be around," Dr. Lark says. "Usually she is fun-loving, nice and pleasant and enjoyable and all of a sudden they are a little demon. Other things that might be distressing to the girl herself is she might notice she has more pimples around the time of the premenstrual time. She may have more bloating and swelling and breast tenderness even though she is a young woman."

If your suspicions are confirmed, there are things you can do to help. Keep in mind, though, the safest treatments for PMS are not always the same for teenagers as they would be for adult women.

Susun Weed of Woodstock, N.Y., an herbalist and author of Wise Woman Herbal for the Childbearing Years (Ash Tree Publishing, 1986) and New Menopausal Years the Wise Woman Way (Ash Tree Publishing, 2002), says the most effective and least expensive solution for PMS in teenagers is to rest the first or second day of the menstrual period. Weed, who has a 38-year-old daughter, says more than 75 percent of the young women she counsels with PMS problems find their symptoms disappear by following this simple advice:

Want to see more?

• Walking into Womanhood: Preparing Your Daughter for Her First Gynecological Visit
• Female Athlete Triad: What Every Parent Should Know
• Yeast Infections: Treatment and Prevention of a Common Condition
• Talk about it!