A Natural Way To Ease Period Cramps?! BeYou Patches... Do They Work?

I know what you're thinking... A patch which basically looks like a long plaster which contains some natural oils can calm or stop your period cramps or even endometriosis/PCOS flare up pain? Yeah right! I know, I thought the same when I first heard about them. So I thought I'd talk about my experience whilst trying out the patches and whether or not I recommend them because let's face it, periods suck and if there's a natural way to calm or stop cramps then I'll take it!

Depending on if you're taking the pill or using any other hormonal contraceptive then you'll probably get period cramps each month. I'm not on the pill or anything right now just because I don't like the idea of having my body pumped full of hormones which can and probably will cause side effects, especially when I already have other problems going on with my daily chronic back and pelvic pain (which I think is endometriosis). Plus I'm not in a relationship or seeing anyone right now so I don't need to use anything for contraception either. However, after many months of my doctor recommending going on the pill to see if it'll help with my daily pelvic pain, I'm finally giving in and going on it at the end of January. Yep. I'm sooo not looking forward to going on it and dealing with potential side effects but I thought I'll try it and see if it helps and if not, I'll just come off it again. I'm thinking of maybe documenting it on my blog and doing monthly updates (if I last that long on it lol). Anyway, let's talk about the BeYou Natural Patches which claim using them during your period will stop you needing to cling onto your hot water bottle every month whilst crying at any sad advert that comes on the TV (yep, that happens to me often too). I do unfortunately have bad periods - they are heavy and really painful and they have been like that since I first started my period. Especially on days one and two in particular and to be honest I think they've been getting worse over the past 18 months but I've kind of been in denial about it which is another symptom of endometriosis which the doctors won't listen to me about. I usually just use ibuprofen, paracetamol, a hot water bottle and chamomile tea which gives me slight relief but nothing groundbreaking.

Each BeYou pack contains 5 patches to get you through your period which are £6.99 per pack or you can sign up to their subscription service for £4.99 each pack and choose the amount of packs you want per month depending on the length of your period. The patches contain just two ingredients which are Eucalyptus oil and Menthol which slowly get absorbed through your skin which helps to ease any muscular tension which is what causes period cramps. The best way to describe the smell is kind of like Vicks VapoRub but the smell does subside after the first hour or so of wearing the patch.

I have daily chronic pelvic pain as I've already mentioned and bad painful periods and I've found that the patches really help my period pains, especially at night when the pain can literally wake me up from a deep sleep. But I think they only help my pelvic pain (possible endometriosis pain) a little. In a way I'm kind of glad they only help my pelvic pain a little because if I was buying a lot more packs per month to help with my super bad pelvic pain days it would end up costing me a lot of money per month. I don't mind paying the subscription fee of £4.99 per month and I might start having 2 packs per month just to support me a bit more during the more painful days but that's all I'd personally like to spend as I already have to spend a lot of money on other pain relief per month. I do think they help and as I've already said, I have signed up to their subscription service so I would recommend trying them if you're wanting to go down a more natural route or just want some extra pain relief! 

When you first apply the patch it can be a little fiddly but you soon get used to applying them. I peel off one side and place it on my lower stomach and flatten it down and then peel off the rest and smooth it down as I go along. I'm basically a pro at it now haha. It does tingle a little for the first 30 minutes or so I'd say which is kind of a weird feeling but it does calm down afterwards. I do still use my hot water bottle to help with my pains but that's just because it's normal for me now and just a force of habit. However I have had a few nights of sleeping with a cool hot water bottle because I can't be bothered to refill it and just having a BeYou patch on and it's helped to reduce the period pain which is good. I also like that although they can be a little fiddly to put on at first the patches stay put all day and night and they do seem to work for the maximum of 12 hours as the website claims too.

Also if you do have endometriosis or PCOS then I have spoken to some people and seen people talk about them in the support groups I'm in on facebook saying that the patches have helped them with their endo and PCOS flare up pains so if you are debating on trying them for flare ups as well as period pain then I'd still say to give them a try because you never know, they might work for you! Also if you're thinking of trying out CBD oil for pain relief for chronic pain then check out this post.

Have you tried out the BeYou patches yet? If so, let me know your thoughts below. 

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