Turn your period pain off with this compact machine! 

I was very lucky to receive these products from MyLivia for me to review for my followers – Please note I received this product complimentary! After I left my review for the Pink Parcel Subscription box , a company that offers a monthly bundle of sanitary items with added beauty bonuses, the lovely folks at Livia sent me one of their Livia machines for me to try and review for you guys!

The Livia comes in a sturdy box with all the accessories you need for the machine; the Livia itself, the electrodes, two spare gel pads for the electrodes and a carry case to keep your Livia safe during storage and travel and a mini USB lead for charging the rechargeable battery inside. They recommend you change the gel pads often as they lose stickiness over time, which in turns makes the pulses harder to work.

My first impressions of the item is that it is so small! It can fit in the palm of my hand and you can choose the colour of the Livia to suit your aesthetic – if you change your mind on the colour or design then you can easily get a new colourful skin for it off their website for £10. The machine also has a handy clip so you can attach it to your jeans whilst you wear it during use.

The machine itself looks very subtle – it has only three buttons on the front with the name embossed and no other branding so unless someone asks they’d probably think it was a MP3 player clipped on. The three buttons are how you use it and programme it. The buttons are; an on/off switch, a + switch and a – switch. These are the main controls for the Livia machine. You can control the power of the machine using the + and -, to ensure you’re comfortable or to increase it if your cramps get worse or lessen the power if they’re not that bad – its offer complete control so you can adapt to how you’re feeling.

Livia’s technology is based on the “Gate Control Theory”. Livia is transmitting a pulse that is keeping the nerves “busy”. Busy nerves means that the nerve-gate is closed, therefore pain signals cannot pass through and are unfelt.

I was very worried that it would hurt using it but the pulse feels like a tingle, like when your phone vibrates but its constant, and on the low settings – you cannot feel it at all but the pain is removed! I’ve even used this machine on my shoulder after I pulled a muscle – and it worked a dream! The pulses override your brains pain signals and it suddenly makes the pain disappear!

As someone who used to have to take co-codamol to deal with the period pain due to how excruciating it was, it’s such a relief that I can now drug-free my period. It’s also discreet enough that I have worn it in work and not had anyone notice it under my blouse. It was also handy for travelling – I recently went back to Cardiff via train which is a 4 hour ride and throughout the journey I was comfortable, paracetamol free and able to control the pulses from my waistband of my jeans. No fiddling around in my bag for tablets or getting my water bottle out – just a quick tap on the + to increase the pulses and I was free from pain.

Bottom Line: I know its expensive, but when I pay at least £8 per period on tablets and pain killers and heat pads for when I’m in work, after a while this becomes an investment! I’m hot water bottle free, I’ve got my mobility back instead of laying in bed trying to get into any and all positions to alleviate the pain, and I can use it on other pains such as when I’ve pulled a muscle at the gym – to me, it’s worth it – I’ve gained the few days of the month of my life back.

Price: £149 at MyLivia.
   Currently on sale for £129

Rating: *****