Constipation Before Period: Why It Happens and What Helps

Constipation before your period is common, and it often comes from the hormone progesterone. Progesterone is high in the second half of your cycle and typically promotes constipation, so hard poop can start around ovulation or a few days after.

For many people, the gut then changes again when the period starts, and poop gets looser. This guide covers why period constipation happens, whether it can cause cramps, what helps, and the signs that need a doctor.

Why do I get constipated before my period?

Your cycle has two halves. After ovulation, in the second half (the luteal phase), your progesterone level is high. Progesterone typically promotes constipation.

Your gut can move more slowly in this phase. In a small study of healthy adults, food took about twice as long to pass through the colon in women in the luteal phase as in women in the first half of the cycle, about 41 hours against 21 hours. When poop moves slowly, your colon takes too much water from it, so it becomes dry, hard and difficult to push out.

The same hormone does not act the same way in everyone. Progesterone can cause diarrhea in some people and constipation in others. In a study of 156 healthy women, 10% to 15% had constipation before or during their period, and diarrhea was more common.

You may be constipated if you poop fewer than 3 times a week or less often than usual, your poop is dry, hard or lumpy, you strain, or you feel you have not fully emptied your bowels.

Why constipation can turn into loose poop on your period

Just before your period starts, your body releases chemicals called prostaglandins. They relax the smooth muscle of your uterus so it can shed its lining, and they can have a similar effect on your bowel. This can lead to more poop, and even diarrhea.

So a common pattern is hard poop in the days before your period and then softer, more frequent poop once you start to bleed. If pooping hurts during your period, read our guide to painful bowel movements during your period.

Can constipation cause cramps?

Yes. A stomachache or cramps are common symptoms of constipation. You can also feel bloated or sick.

Before a period, this can be confusing. Cramps from your uterus can feel like they are in your stomach, so it can be hard to tell gut cramps from period cramps. Notes on when the pain comes, and whether it gets better after you poop, can help you and your doctor tell them apart.

Some painkillers can make constipation worse. Opioid painkillers such as codeine are a common cause. Ibuprofen and naproxen can also cause constipation in some people. If you take painkillers for your period and get constipated, ask a pharmacist or your doctor about it.

What helps with constipation before your period

Simple changes to your diet and routine can help, and you may notice a difference within a few days. It is easier to start them a few days before your period, when you know constipation usually comes.

• Add fiber slowly. Increase the fiber in your diet gradually, for example with oats, wheat bran or linseed. Fruits, vegetables and whole grains also help. Prunes, berries, oranges, mangos and papaya are good choices.
• Drink enough water. Drink plenty of water and other fluids, and avoid alcohol. Water and fiber work together: fiber and water together help your colon pass stool.
• Move every day. A daily walk or run can help you poop more regularly. It does not need to be much.
• Do not wait when you need to go. Do not delay if you feel the urge to poop, and give yourself plenty of time.
• Ask a pharmacist about a laxative. If these changes do not help, a pharmacist can suggest a suitable laxative. Most work within 3 days and are for short-term use. A gentle laxative or a stool softener can help when you need it.

If constipation comes back every cycle and makes life hard, talk to your doctor. For long-term constipation, prescription medicines may help. When period-related gut problems become severe, a doctor may also suggest birth control pills that make periods less frequent.

When constipation before your period can point to endometriosis

Endometriosis is tissue like the lining of the uterus growing in other places, sometimes on or near the bowel. Doctors are told to suspect endometriosis when gut symptoms are period-related or cyclical, in particular painful bowel movements.

Talk to your doctor about endometriosis if your constipation follows your cycle and comes with other signs of it, such as:

• period pain that stops you from doing your usual activities
• pain during or after sex
• pelvic pain that lasts for a long time
• pain when you poop

Our guide to bowel endometriosis symptoms covers these signs, tests and treatment in more detail. To compare your pain with usual period pain, see endometriosis pain vs. normal period pain, or try the endometriosis symptom quiz.

When to see a doctor

Constipation that comes only before your period and clears when it starts is usually not a concern. See a doctor if:

• you are regularly constipated, or constipation does not get better with treatment, including constipation that does not follow your cycle
• you notice a sudden change in how you poop
• constipation is a new problem for you, or it lasts more than 3 weeks
• you see blood in your poop
• you lose weight without trying
• you are constipated and feel tired all the time
• you have severe pain when you poop

If you have pain together with blood in your stool, see a doctor as soon as possible, even if it only happens around your period.

Track the pattern to show your doctor

A few months of notes show whether your constipation follows your cycle. Keeping a pain and symptom diary can help your talks with your doctor. Write down the day of your cycle, how often you pooped, what your poop was like, any cramps or pain, and what you ate and drank. The free printable food and symptom diary has columns for bowel movements and cycle day.

Endolog is a free download where you can log bowel and digestive symptoms, pain and bleeding, and keep a food diary in the same place. You can then show your doctor how your symptoms line up with your cycle.

Related guides

• Painful Bowel Movement During Period: Causes and Relief
• Bowel Endometriosis Symptoms: Signs, Tests and Treatment
• Endometriosis Pain vs. Normal Period Pain: Key Differences