Sympathy vent:
I'm in the same boat, raeanna - having my period for the first time in 3 months, and it's like I stored up 3 months worth of bitchiness and cramps. Couldn't sleep at all last night because they were so bad, till I took some Vioxx (can't take Ibuprofen overnight - burns the lining of my stomach).
Exercise does seem to help, as do orgasms, at least temporarily. Yoga is good - especially the "cat" poses where you're on all fours alternately arching and relaxing your back. The breathing helps, too.
Other than that, just know it's only a few days out of every 3 months and it'll be over soon. Get del to baby you
Re: the "4 periods a year" thing, I'm not on Seasonale, just on regular monophasic pills - the kind that have a constant hormone dose, rather than changing the hormone dose each week. I think they're the generic for ortho cyclen. They cost less than regular bc pills, and I LOVE LOVE LOVE only having a period 4 times/year, and being able to say when. I don't think the cramping is specific to this kind of extended cycle, at least for me. I've always had wicked, drop-you-to-your-knees kind of cramps, and it's actually gotten slightly better since I started skipping periods, it's just that I don't have them as often so I forget what it's like and am extra whiney about it