Premenstrual breast or chest tenderness, pain, enlargement? 

How to ease your cyclic symptoms

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Tender. Painful. Ropy. Lumpy. Achy. Huge.

 

Do any of these words remind you of how your breasts (or chest) feel the days, or weeks, leading up to your period?

Probably one of the most common PMS symptoms, fibrocystic breasts (or chest) can range from mild and barely noticeable all the way to extremely painful making it hard to exercise, be sexual, wear certain clothes, or even feel like moving.

This cyclic tenderness and enlargement of your breasts or chest is so common that it's basically considered to be a variation of normal. 

But for those who get more extreme symptoms, they can be a major issue. 

Thankfully, there is SO much you can do to ease your symptoms. 

Listen to this episode to learn:

• how changing your perception of your breasts (or chest) can change your whole relationship with this part of your body
• why a breast (or chest) self-love practice of some kind is important
• how to tell if you have fibrocystic breasts (or chest) and when you need to go get checked out for cysts or lumps you're noticing
• possible causes, including both scientific research + natural therapeutic perspectives
• nutritional, herbal + lifestyle strategies to support different systems of your body to ease your symptoms (including your lymphatic system, detoxification, elimination, hormone balancing, and more)
• the reasons I believe self-massage is essential

References

Briden, L. (2018). Period repair manual: Natural treatment for better hormones and better periods. Greenpeak Publishing.

Hoffman, D. (2003). Medical herbalism: The science and practice of herbal medicine. Healing Arts Press. 

McQuade-Crawford, A. (1997). Herbal remedies for women. Prima Health.

Osouli Tabrizi, S., Meedya, S., Ghassab-Abdollahia, N., Ghorbani, Z., Jahangiry, L., & Mirghafourvand, M. (2021). The effect of the herbal medicine on severity of cyclic mastalgia: a systematic review and meta-analysis. J Complement Integr Med. doi: 10.1515/jcim-2020-0531.

Romm, A. (2018). Botanical medicine for women’s health (2nd ed). Elsevier.

Stachs, A., Stubert, J., Reimer, T., & Hartmann, S. (2019). Benign breast disease in women. Dtsch Arztebl Int., 116(33-34), 565-574. doi: 10.3238/arztebl.2019.0565.

Trickey, R. (2003). Women, hormones and the menstrual cycle: Herbal and medical solutions from adolescence to menopause. Allen & Unwin.

DISCLAIMER: This podcast is for educational purposes only, I am not providing any medical advice, I am not a medical practitioner, I’m an herbalist and in the US, there is no path to licensure for herbalists, so my role is as an herbal educator. Please do your own research and consult your healthcare provider for any personal health concerns.

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Learn to track your cycle and listen to your own body wisdom - Track Your Cycle Simply in 3 Easy Steps Guide (click here)  

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