Does your monthly visitor check in and decide to stick around for the rest of the month?

Premenstrual syndrome — known to almost all of us as PMS — affects 50 percent of women each month. The physical and emotional symptoms include breast tenderness, headaches, gastrointestinal distress, depression, and irritability. Sound familiar? These symptoms start in the first phase of the menstrual cycle as the body prepares for a monthly period. It can make you feel as if you’ve spent two miserable weeks leading up to your period, one week on your actual period, and just a few measly days with no menstrual symptoms at all. There’s got to be a better way!

The good news is that simple and easy-to-implement lifestyle changes can significantly reduce the days you spend in PMS-symptom agony each month. Light is a big one. Whether you make it a point to take a daily walk or swap out your regular light bulbs for full-spectrum ones, the increase in daily rays boosts serotonin levels in the brain, giving you a sunnier mental outlook.

As for the physical side of PMS, these solutions may not sound revolutionary, but simply getting regular exercise, eating a healthier diet, getting more sleep, and managing stress can do wonders for your spirit and lessen the physical toll on your body. Calcium — every woman’s must-have supplement — can also be a kind of kryptonite for PMS, so be sure to take yours regularly. The government recommends that women ages 19 to 50 take 1,000 mg of calcium a day and that women ages 50 to 70 consume 1,200 mg a day.