Irregular Menstruation
Menstruation usually follows ovulation like clockwork: 14 days after releasing an egg, a woman begins bleeding. If there is any variance in this cycle, it is most often during the time after menstruation. However, to be normal, your cycle need not be exactly 28 days long; it should only be fairly regular. It is also normal for the menstrual cycle to shorten and become irregular as you approach menopause. A changeable cycle probably means a hormone imbalance. Ginseng, Siberian ginseng, motherwort, vitex, don quai and licorice can help. The Chinese have been using don quai to regulate menstruation since at least the sixth century b.c. Typically, don quai is taken during the two weeks before menstruation. Results of studies conducted in China led researchers to conclude that this herb enhances the utilization of oxygen in the liver and also that it contains small amounts of nutrients important to women: vitamins B2, B6 and E, pantothenic acid, choline and zinc. Since don quai can increase uterine bleeding, avoid it if you are pregnant or have heavy menstrual bleeding, endometriosis or uterine fibroids, unless a knowledgeable herb practitioner gives it to you as part of a formula.
Other herbs used in both Chinese and Western formulas to regulate a woman's cycle are motherwort, skullcap and ginger. They are especially useful to encourage menstruation that has been delayed by illness, stress or overexertion. Studies conducted in India showed that aloe vera juice, traditionally used there as a female tonic, also regulates menstruation. You can purchase this juice ready to drink in a natural food store.
Most of the women I know who have regulated their menstrual cycle with herbs—and there are dozens of them—do not tell very dramatic stories. They took the herbs and the herbs worked. Depending upon the situation and the severity of the problem, it took from one month to almost a year for these women to see results. Many of these women have told me that the effects of the herbs were not limited to normalizing their cycle—problems with PMS, especially the emotional ups and downs, also went away and the women experienced less cramping during menstruation.
Irregular menstrual cycles can also be a warning sign of more serious disorders, especially endometriosis and uterine fibroids and tumors. If your cycle is irregular, see your doctor to make sure these conditions do not exist. If they do, treat them first, then look to herbs to regulate your cycle.
Hormonal Tonic
1 teaspoon each vitex berries, don quai root and licorice root
½ teaspoon each motherwort leaves and Siberian ginseng root
1 quart water
Put herbs and water in an uncovered pot and bring to a boil. Turn down heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Turn off heat, cover and steep for 30 minutes. Strain out herbs. Drink 1 cup once or twice daily from the time of menstruation until ovulation. If there is no menstruation at all, drink the tonic throughout the month.
