Period Cramp Relief: How a 22-Year-Old Beat Painful Periods — Naturally
We’ve all been told that period pain is normal. That bloating, acne, and cramps are just part of being a woman. But what if those symptoms are actually your body’s way of saying ‘hey something’s off’?
Today I want to share a powerful case study from one of my recent clients — a 22-year-old woman who came to me struggling with debilitating period cramps, chronic constipation, and persistent acne that no skincare routine could fix.
Her story shows exactly what can happen when you stop guessing and start taking a data driven approach to your healing. She was able to get significant period cramp relief and decline in her other symptoms rather quickly because through functional testing we understood what her body truly needed.
Meet My Client - 22 Year Old Recent College Grad
At just 22, my client’s monthly cycle had become a nightmare. Her period cramps were so intense that she often had to cancel plans. If it wasn’t mandatory, and she was on her period, she skipped it — because she simply couldn’t function.
On top of that, constipation had been a problem for as long as she could remember. She’d tried all the usual fixes — probiotics, morning coffee on an empty stomach, even Miralax — but nothing ever worked for more than a couple of days.
She also battled breakouts that seemed to flare up with her cycle, leaving her frustrated and self-conscious. She knew her acne was connected to her gut and hormones — she just needed help getting to the root cause.
The Functional Approach For Getting Rid Of Period Cramps
When we started working together, she was already doing a lot of things right: eating balanced meals, strength training twice a week, and living an overall healthy lifestyle.
She wasn’t on birth control or any medications, and her supplement routine (mineral drops, creatine, and collagen) was already solid. We just needed to hone in on what was going to get her some relief from her period cramps.
Because of her age and symptoms, I decided to start with an HTMA test — Hair Tissue Mineral Analysis — one of my favorite tools for uncovering the deeper “why” behind hormonal imbalance.
🧠 Quick refresher:
- DUTCH testing tells us what your hormone levels are.
- HTMA testing tells us why they’re off in the first place.
Both tests are valuable, but when you’re trying to take fast, targeted action, HTMA is often the most actionable place to start.
What Her HTMA Test Revealed
Her results gave us a clear roadmap of next steps. Here’s what stood out:
1. High Magnesium
This might sound like a good thing, but on HTMA results, it actually means the body is burning through magnesium too quickly.
Magnesium supports over 300 enzyme functions within the body — including muscle relaxation. This was contributing to her painful, 10/10 cramps every month. I was confident that supporting her Magnesium levels would help her get the period cramp relief she was looking for.
2. Elevated Zinc and a High Zinc-to-Copper Ratio
This pattern often points to inflammation and estrogen dominance. Her history of constipation supported that — because when you’re not eliminating waste daily, estrogen gets reabsorbed into the body instead of being released.
3. Heavy Metal Retention
Low-level heavy metal excretion suggested her detox pathways were sluggish — again, connected to the constipation that had been an issue for years.
4. Thyroid Resistance
Her calcium-to-potassium ratio was high, indicating that her thyroid hormones weren’t getting into her cells effectively.
This can lead to fatigue, slow metabolism, and that feeling of “I’m doing everything right, but nothing’s changing.”
5. Adrenal Burnout
Her sodium-to-magnesium ratio was very low — a sign that her body had been under stress for quite a while, causing the adrenals to be fatigued and in need of nourishment.
Our Plan of Action to Correct Her Imbalances
Armed with this data, I created a simple, sustainable plan focused on restoring her foundations: minerals, digestion, and stress support.
Here’s what we did:
- Added magnesium support to ease cramps and muscle tension.
- Increased sodium intake (from quality salts) to support adrenal function and digestion.
- Focused on daily bowel movement support to prevent estrogen reabsorption.
- Reinforced her already-healthy habits — no extreme changes, no deprivation.
The Results (Just One Month Later): How Her Cramps Stopped
One month after starting her plan, she had already seen a huge transformation.
She wrote: “This is the first time in a long time that I didn’t have any period cramps — except when I drank coffee!”
Her cramps dropped from a 10/10 to 0, her PMS symptoms improved by 50%, and she was finally having regular, daily bowel movements. She was glowing, confident, and finally felt in control of her body again.
You see, your body doesn’t need guesswork — it needs data.
By understanding her mineral patterns and hormone interactions, we were able to pinpoint the why behind her symptoms and correct them naturally. No birth control, no band-aid solutions, just targeted support that worked (and quickly).
If you’ve been struggling with painful cramps, heavy bleeding, bloating, acne, or irregular cycles, this is your reminder that your body is trying to tell you something.
The first step in figuring out what it’s trying to say is getting the right testing.
Ready to Feel Like Yourself Again?
If you’re ready to stop guessing and finally uncover what your body needs, I would love to support you on that journey. Click here to apply to work with me.