An affective, herbal remedy to combat PMS brought on by hormonal imbalance is the Japanese tea, Chujoto. This blend contains phyto-estrogens and adaptogens that reduce cellular reactions to stress and balance hormones to alleviate PMS symptoms. Contained in Chujoto tea is a blend of cinnamon, tangerine peels, clove, ginseng, ginger, Goldthread Rhizome, Licorice, peach kernel, polyporus, rehmannia, and tree peony bark. The Cinnamon is not only added for flavor, but as a natural pain reliever for women during menstrual cycles.

Tangerine peels are used in the tea for their ability to heighten a woman’s sense of sexual pleasure—an added bonus when combating PMS. Cloves help strengthen a woman’s uterine muscles thereby relieving menstrual pains. Ginseng is a Chinese herb containing adaptogens that regulates menstruation by reducing blood flow and relaxing the uterus. Goldthread Rhizome is an ancient Chinese herb that removes toxins from the liver and stomach.  

When Goldthread is combined with other phyto-estrogens and adaptogens, hormonal balance is restored. Licorice, packed with adaptogens, removes toxins and serves as a digestive supplement. Peach kernel increases blood circulation to regulate menstruation and pain associated with PMS. Rehmannia contains catalpol, which reduces inflammation and promotes hormonal production, regulating hormonal levels and reducing PMS symptoms. Finally, tree peony bark clears stagnant blood and circulates it, reducing cramping and fatigue associated with PMS.
 

You wake up in the morning with an even complexion, smooth hair, ready to start the day. You slip into your trendy work out gear, and head to the mountains. It’s barely ten o’clock and already you’ve biked to the top. Standing on the mountains peak you look over towards your beautiful city, aware of your excellence, praising your accomplishment, thankful for your complexity. You take out your tiny pill pack and your thoughts revolve around this statement, “I am woman, hear me roar!”
 

For many women, the false sense of superiority surrounding birth control marketing sets them up for disappointment time and time again. Switching pills, switching to the ring, switching, switching, switching. The world we live in now tells us that birth control is a hassle-free, worry-free fix that rids us of all feminine worries. This is far from true and it’s important to know that when finding a birth control method, you can never quite get everything you want.
 

Birth control pills release synthetic estrogen and progestin into the body to ultimately prevent a mature egg from entering the uterus. This increase in estrogen can cause mood swings and breakouts, most commonly. We refer to the mood swings as PMS. Although birth control is meant to regulate hormonal levels and decrease these symptoms, its’ success is in the hands of the user. If pills are not taken at the same time each day, hormonal levels are destabilized and the pill is less effective, not only in preventing pregnancy but also in reducing PMS symptoms.