Anyone who goes through a period knows how rough it is. You go through a week of cramps, bloating, uncontrollable emotions, all while bleeding out of your vagina. Yes, I'm getting that out there right away. This article is about periods, I'm not going to sugar-coat it. Half the population have vaginas and uteruses, so half the population goes through periods. If you are squeamish about using the proper terms for it, this article is not for you.

The week of a period for those of us that have vaginas and uteruses is very stressful and tiring. Yes, I'm not calling everyone who gets a period female, because not everyone who gets a period is strictly "female." But that's a different conversation entirely. This article is about helping you through hell-week. Here are my tips.

Pads, tampons, panty liners.

Whatever form of collecting the blood you prefer to use, you want to make sure you have them on hand, just in case mother nature decides your period comes a bit early this month. Many factors go into the menstruation cycle, and stress is number one. The more stressed you are, the more likely your cycle is too be a bit off. You want to always be prepared. Even carry at least one of these with you at all times, just in case. You never know when you-or one of your friends-may need it.

Pain-killers.

For cramps and bloating, I find that Midol is the best for me. It targets all the symptoms of a period, and not just the cramps like other pain-killers might target. Ibuprofen or acetaminophen may do the job too, but they don't target all period symptoms. There are more than just medicines to reduce pain. You can take a nice hot bath or use a warming pad or even a bottle filled with hot water against your uterus to help soothe the pain of your insides being cut up with a rusty spoon.

Cravings.

A lot of people say chocolate is what we crave during our periods, and that may be the case for some people, but I personally have go-to period snacks that just help me feel better. It's useful to always have some form of whatever you crave on hand just in case it hits you in the middle of the night and you don't want to leave your house or the nearest grocery store is closed.

Be open-minded.

Don't be afraid to let people know you're on your period. Your body is capable of producing human life, and just because your uterus is so upset with you because you didn't this month doesn't mean you should be ashamed of it. Plus if you let people know that you're currently going through your period, they will understand your behaviors-if you're moody, in pain, or just not feeling well. For some reason there seems to be a taboo against talking about your period-there should be no reason we don't shout it to the world. It's natural and a monthly occurrence. We should be able to just shout, "I AM BLEEDING AND I AM IN PAIN AND I WANT TO CURL UP INTO A BALL," without having people judge us for taking care of ourselves.

Those of us who have periods-we all know what it's like. We're all sympathetic when we find out someone is going through their period, because we all have gone through it. We support each other and help each other out in need. It's always great to hear when someone realizes they just started, and everyone searches for a pad or tampon to give them. It's a sense of community that those of us with vaginas understand.

Hopefully these tips helped you out a bit for your next period. Even though we all have our own period routines, I like hearing tips from others because it's like our own little support group. We can all make it through our periods-one month at a time.