Painful bowel movements during your period
Do you dread going to the toilet when you’re on your period? Do you feel too embarrassed to talk about it? This sign matters, though. Here’s what it can mean, when to see a doctor, and how to describe it simply.
Written by Paul, a nurse, founder of EndoQueen. This guide informs; it doesn’t replace an appointment with a health professional.
A complicated word for a simple thing
The medical word for painful bowel movements is dyschezia; when it comes back with your period, doctors call it catamenial. In practice, it can feel like:
- a sharp pain when you push;
- a pain deep in your belly, in your lower back or towards your back passage;
- a stabbing or burning feeling, during or just after;
- being afraid to go to the toilet, to the point of holding it in.
What’s common, what isn’t
During your period, prostaglandins make the womb contract, and sometimes the bowel too. Softer or more frequent stools and a few cramps are common.
Real pain when you open your bowels, coming back every cycle, isn’t something to brush aside.
Bowel pain during your period and endometriosis
The UK NICE guideline (NG73) lists period-related pain when opening your bowels among the signs that should make doctors think of endometriosis. The European ESHRE guideline (2022) says the same. See all the endometriosis symptoms.
Other possible digestive signs
Other digestive signs can follow your cycle: bloating, diarrhoea alternating with constipation, nausea and, more rarely, blood in your stools. They sometimes look like irritable bowel syndrome. The detail that helps the doctor is the link with your cycle.
Other causes exist
There are other causes: constipation, piles (haemorrhoids), a fissure, a bowel condition. Only an examination can tell them apart. Your doctor decides.
When to see a doctor
- It hurts to open your bowels during your period, cycle after cycle.
- You also have very painful periods, painful sex or pain when you urinate during your period.
- Your digestive problems follow your cycle.
- You’ve seen blood in your stools, even a little.
- You hold off going to the toilet, or avoid eating so it won’t hurt.
Emergency: call your local emergency number if you have sudden, severe pain in your belly, a fever with belly pain, a lot of blood in your stools or black stools, vomiting that won’t stop, a hard, swollen belly and you can’t pass anything, or you feel faint.
If you are having dark thoughts or feel in distress, contact a crisis line in your country or your local emergency number. You don’t have to cope alone.
Talking about it without embarrassment
For you, it’s intimate. For doctors, it’s useful information like any other.
If it’s hard to say, write it down: “It hurts when I open my bowels during my period, and has done since such-and-such a time.” Or hand over your phone with your notes. Our guide to preparing your appointment can help.
How to note it
- The point in your cycle: before, during or after your period.
- The pain out of 10 when you open your bowels.
- Your stools: normal, soft, diarrhoea, constipation. Blood: yes or no.
- Other signs: bloating, nausea, back pain.
- What you took, and the impact on your day.
Possible tests
The doctor starts by listening to you and, if you agree, examining you. They may then suggest a pelvic ultrasound scan, then, if needed, a scan by a specialist or a pelvic MRI. These tests help look for deep endometriosis. If your symptoms point to another digestive cause, they may also refer you to a gastroenterologist.
Frequently asked questions
Is it normal to have painful bowel movements during your period?
Softer stools and a few cramps are common. Real pain when opening your bowels that comes back every cycle is a sign to mention to a doctor.
Does it have to be endometriosis?
No. There are other causes. But guidelines such as NICE NG73 list this sign among those that should make doctors think of endometriosis. Your doctor decides which tests to do.
Which doctor should I see?
Your family doctor (GP), a midwife or a gynaecologist. Make it clear that the pain comes back around your period.
If it helps, EndoQueen is on iPhone and Android. A discreet journal to note your pain and digestive signs day by day, and a one-page summary for your doctor. It does not diagnose, and your journal stays on your phone. The app is currently in French; the English version arrives in November 2026. Discover the app
Read next
Sources
- NICE, Endometriosis: diagnosis and management (NG73)
- ESHRE, Guideline: endometriosis (2022)
- MSD Manual, Dysmenorrhoea, professional edition (in French)
Last reviewed: 29 October 2026.