6 Tips to Care For Your Womb on Vacation
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It is currently summertime as of this writing, but this could apply to any time you are going to be away from your normal routine, whether for a weekend or a month. It is our everyday routines that help to solidify our self-care and wellness practices.
But what happens when those practices fall by the wayside because you decide to sleep in a little bit longer, have a few more drinks than you usually do, or indulge in rich food you don’t normally eat at home?
In much the same way that our sleep, our digestive system, and even our wallet can take a hit while on vacation, so can our womb.
Because our womb is a cyclical organ that relies on routine in a way, getting off of that can wreak some havoc especially if you are on your period or dealing with constipation during your vacation.
Here are a few tips on how to care for your womb while you are on vacation to allow for ease during and a smooth transition when you get back home.
Mindful Grounding.
We go on vacation to relieve our stress, but the lead-up to a vacation can be stressful or in my case anxiety-inducing. There are so many things to do to prep beforehand: work deadlines to complete, organizing care for your pets and your home, and of course planning your itinerary.
If you are someone who is aware of how stress affects your body, you can see how it will have a direct impact on your womb as well. You may notice that either you are frequenting the bathroom more or less, the stress or anxiety may cause you to tighten the muscles in your pelvic floor even more as a way to feel more grounded or stable or your period may not arrive when it was supposed to.
Stress is inevitable and in a way also helps to keep us on our toes, so even though you are going on vacation to eliminate it, you can’t, but you can reduce it or decrease its constant prevalence in your life.
To reduce the harmful effects of stress on your womb, sit for a brief moment with support underneath and behind you and feel that support. Allow that support to hold you for a bit and take off some what you may be carrying. If you have a breathing practice, take a few deep breaths and try to breath all the way down into your low belly and feel the expansion and contraction of your belly as you soften the grip that may be present. Do this until you feel a settling or quieting of either your body or mind.
Be Prepared.
One of my recent trips was a 2 1/2-day Amtrak train ride from California to Chicago to visit my little sister, niece and nephew. This was the start of my summer break with my daughter and it was just the two of us traveling. So, the anxiety that led up to my trip caught up with me.
Knowing that I would be on a train with my luggage in the luggage hold, I only brought my backpack with me in the train car. Guess what decided to come a little early when I was not expecting it until I arrived in Chicago? My period came a day early!
Luckily it was just spotting the first day but I was not prepared, maybe my body knew that I was not prepared either. I had my period underwear in my luggage and since I do not use tampons or pads anymore, I had none with me in my backpack. Luckily I was able to talk to the train attendant and he provided me with some menstrual products to use until I arrived at my destination.
When you have something like your period arrive early or even if you are dealing with urinary leakage and you don’t have what you need or expect that it will not happen while on vacation, best to prepare for it. Again, the stress that comes with not being able to care for your body in the way you normally do can be pretty high.
So whether you are on the plane, train or bus and need support, best to find something small enough to carry along with you. When I used tampons a lot, I liked using NatraCare Organic All Cotton Tampons (affiliate link) because they were small enough to carry in my backpack and they are compact. Whatever it is that you choose to use, ensure that you are carrying something with you to ensure some safety.
Move.
If you are stuck in a middle seat on a plane for a 6-hour flight, you should ensure that you are getting some movement during that time. I know, it is annoying to ask the person next to you to get up so you can go to the bathroom or walk around, but hey, you are ensuring they get up as well!
Sitting for long periods of time is not beneficial for your pelvis and decreases the amount of blood flow into your legs and thus can affect your pelvic organs as well. With the decrease in blood flow and movement, you are more at risk for issues like swelling, constipation, and stiffness in joints. It can also just have an overall negative impact on your mood.
I also like to think about the smaller movements of the womb such as physically moving your abdominal region. The foods we eat on vacation can be richer than we are used to or just might take time for our bodies to get accustomed to.
If you find that constipation, indigestion or just an upset tummy is a regular for you, doing a simple abdominal massage can be very relieving for your belly. When the colon is unhappy, it can present issues with the uterus and other surrounding organs as well.
I like to use Earthley Wellness Good Night (affiliate link) magnesium lotion on my belly before going to bed, so I get the benefits of magnesium which helps induce relaxation for my body and I am also helping to stimulate my gut to help with better elimination the next morning. See below for a short guide on doing a belly massage.
Hydrate.
Our body is made of mostly water and is dependent on it to hydrate our cells and ensure good functioning of the many systems in our body. It is very easy to forget about drinking water when we are traveling as we may want to avoid using the bathrooms or because of a new environment.
In addition to that water, we need minerals and salts which help to provide a balance of water in our body, help move nutrients into our cells and balance our body’s pH levels. When we are dehydrated, it can lead to inflammation and that is not a great friend of the womb. This can also create some issues with the bladder thus leading to irritation of the bladder and/or urethra and again make the uterus unhappy.
I generally like using Trace Minerals (affiliate link) and adding it into my water so I can ensure that I am getting some of the necessary salts and minerals in my water. However, I do not like bringing this with me on vacation so I strive to ensure that I am getting enough electrolytes via food.
Fruits like avocado, watermelon and bananas all have good electrolytes and is an easy way of getting this in your diet regularly. Hopefully, wherever you are enjoying your summer vacation, you can also access coconut water or sea salt and just add to your water to ensure good hydration to your tissues.
Get up and go to bed at the same time.
It may feel really nice to sleep in or now that there is no set schedule you may want to stay up late, but even finding some routine with your wake and sleep schedule can make us more balanced during vacation.
If you are dealing with different time zones, sleeping in new beds or just have more downtime than usual, sticking to a routine can be helpful for your circadian rhythm.
Whether you know it or not, our circadian rhythm has a huge impact on your fertility and womb health. It plays a big role in regulating your hormones and when your circadian rhythm is off, that can put your body into more of a stressed state.
This increased stress can raise your cortisol levels, making it much harder to fall asleep and affect your glucose levels as well, thus impacting your appetite. Exposing yourself to bright light before bed and staying up on your phone may not be the best antidote for your jet lag.
Definitely go out and enjoy some nightlife while on vacation, but try not to have it be an every-night thing.
Go with the flow.
We go on vacation to chill and sometimes it can feel that we want it to be perfect and everything to align in the way that it should and guess what, sometimes it won’t.
We won’t always get that perfect dream vacation and there will always be hiccups. Hopefully they will be minor and you can easily move on from them.
When you can take the little missteps that happen during your break in stride, that leads to more resiliency and thus less headaches that can occur in your head or pelvis.
Abdominal Massage
Begin by doing an abdominal spiral with broad hands. Go in a clockwise direction (right to left) using an oil or body butter of your choice 10-15 times.
Next, move your hands so they are along the sides of your body and move them towards the belly button 10-15 times.
Lastly, bring fingers above your pubic bone and pelvic bone and move towards the belly button so you are getting the diagonal sides of your abdomen. You can do the same underneath your rib cage.
This should take anywhere from 5-10 minutes to complete.
This will help to soften any tension present in your belly.