Acknowledge And Express Your Feelings
Allow these feelings to be there and give yourself permission to feel them.
Dont judge yourself or suppress these feelings as this can cause anger outbursts at a later time.
You have a right to experience your emotions, and maybe there are unmet needs that are trying to be expressed.
Write down how youre feeling so you can express it in some way, or use a creative approach to express these feelings.
Is Pmdd A Mental Health Problem
PMDD is commonly defined as an endocrine disorder, meaning that it is a hormone-related disorder. But as well as physical symptoms, people with PMDD also experience a range of different mental health symptoms such as depression, suicidal feelings and anxiety.
For these reasons, it is listed as a mental health problem in the DSM-5, one of the main manuals that doctors use to categorise and diagnose mental health problems.
Ultimately, it’s important to remember that how you understand your symptoms and experiences is up to you. The most important thing is that you get the support you need and deserve to help you manage the effects of PMDD on your life.
“Every month for 30 years I barely managed to come through each month intact. PMDD is not merely bad PMS. It is so much more serious than that, and is absolutely life changing.”
Hormonal Birth Control Forms
Use of certain hormonal birth control methods is a possible way to treat PMDD symptoms. Hormonal birth control pills release a steady dose of reproductive hormones in the body throughout the cycle, which makes your hormone levels more predictable and less prone to the fluctuations that trigger PMDD symptoms. It is advisable to consult your doctor before deciding whether to and which hormonal birth control to use for treatment.
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Why Do I Feel Depressed When I Have My Period
When my period comes, I feel ill and depressed. I don’t want to do anything. My period is heavy and I don’t go to school because of the cramps. It rules my life and I can’t go out at all. Please help. Vicki*
It’s normal to have the blues or feel sick before and during a period. As hormone levels rise and fall during a girl’s menstrual cycle, it can affect the way she feels, both physically and emotionally. This is known as premenstrual syndrome and it can make a girl feel like hiding in bed with the covers over her head.
Luckily, you can do a few things to ease PMS symptoms. Try eating a balanced diet with lots of fresh fruits and vegetables and cutting back on processed foods like chips and crackers. Reduce the amount of salt you eat and drink more water. Say no to caffeine and yes to foods with calcium and whole grains. And get plenty of sleep at night.
Occasionally, PMS symptoms might include feelings of extreme depression and hopelessness. If this is the case, speak with your doctor it may be a sign something else is going on.
Heavy bleeding every so often, especially at the beginning of your period, is probably nothing to worry about. But if you soak through a pad or a tampon in an hour or less, call your health care provider, who can check you out to make sure everything’s OK.
*Names have been changed to protect user privacy.
What Are The Symptoms Of Pmdd
PMDD is a mix of severe physical, emotional and behavioral symptoms that can make daily life very difficult for those who suffer from it.
Typically, PMDD symptoms show up in the second half of the menstrual cycle – around 7 to 10 days before the period, and continue up till menstruation. PMDD has been included as a depressive disorder not otherwise specified by the diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders, or DSM.
According to DSM-V manual, a person suffering from PMDD will show at least five of the following key symptoms:
- frequent and extreme mood swings feeling suddenly sad or tearful or increased sensitivity to rejection
- increased irritability, anger or relationship conflicts
- severe anxiety, tension, feelings of being constantly on edge
- difficulty in concentration
- lethargy, feeling often and easily tired
- excessive sleepiness or insomnia
- feeling overwhelmed or out of control
- other physical symptoms such as breast tenderness or swelling, joint or muscle pain, a sensation of bloating, weight gain.
Since PMDD is tied to fluctuations in reproductive hormone levels, the above symptoms should be absent for at least a week after periods for PMDD to be diagnosed. If the above symptoms are not cyclical and do not seem to clear up at any time, it may point to another form of underlying depressive disorder.
Before diagnosis, it is also important to make sure that these symptoms are not the result of taking medication or oral contraceptives.
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Anxiety Before Your Period Dont Go It Alone
As someone who suffered from anxiety, I know first hand how difficult and frustrating it can be.
I also know how challenging it sometimes is to find a doctor who will listen to you and help you find the root cause of your anxiety. Whether it be hormonal fluctuations or something else, there is usually a reason for your suffering that can be addressed.
I encourage you to seek out a mental health professional, as well as a health care provider you can partner with to get to the root of your issue.
Women who are suffering from anxiety can feel extremely lonely. Its a very isolating condition. If you know someone who is battling anxiety or depression, be patient with them. Offer support in any way you can sometimes we just need to talkand that social connection can actually increase oxytocin and help bring anxiety levels down!
Everyone is welcome in my , too. Youll find an incredibly supportive group of women there. Who knows, they may just be the exact social squad you need to help you get that oxytocin boost and banish a bout of anxiety.
Pms And How It Can Affect Your Mental Health
When do you start to feel sad?
Why do you feel sad?
How long does this last?
Does hormonal birth control help, or make it worse?
How can you manage PMS?
Alongside the monthly bleeding that we get to look forward to, another menstrual cycle side effect many often experience is PMS. For some, it only lasts a few days , and everyone experiences varying levels of PMS intensity. If the symptoms begin to negatively affect your mental health, there are steps you can take to better understand your body, and to improve it each month. Lets talk PMS…
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Tip : Get A Daily Dose Of Sunlight
Sunlight can help boost serotonin levels and improve your mood. Aim for at least 15 minutes of sunlight a day. Remove sunglasses and use sunscreen as needed.
- Take a walk on your lunch break, have your coffee outside, enjoy an al fresco meal, people-watch on a park bench, or spend time gardening.
- Double up on the benefits of sunlight by exercising outside. Try hiking, walking in a local park, or playing golf or tennis with a friend.
- Increase the amount of natural light in your home and workplace by opening blinds and drapes and sitting near windows.
- If you live somewhere with little winter sunshine, try using a light therapy box.
How Can You Manage Pms
In the throes of PMS, it can feel like youll never return to your regular mood, but its important to maintain perspective throughout the month, and know that what goes down must come up after a few days your mood will stabilise. A great way to maintain perspective is to track your period cycle, so you can identify which times of the month your PMS symptoms occur. Knowing this can help you prepare for symptoms of depression, avoid stressful situations and limit your exposure to anything that will make you more sad, irritated or anxious. Keeping track of when negative emotions appear can help you keep them in perspective. Managing PMS is different for everyone, but some other things to try are:
Remember, if your PMS symptoms feel unmanageable or have increased in their intensity, there may be options you dont yet know about. Being a woman with a period does not automatically mean we have to deal with severe depression, so dont be afraid to ask for help from your doctor or a medical professional.
What are your PMS symptoms like, and how do you manage them? Let us know over in our or drop us a note on Insta . Don’t forget that our personalised period subscription box can get organic tampons delivered easily and regularly through your letterbox. So that’s one less worry each month!
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Natural Ways To Reduce Anxiety Before Your Period
No matter what the root cause of your anxiety, there are several ways to minimize its effects while you figure out how best to treat it.
While medications like Xanax are often prescribed and effective in the short term, they can be extremely addictive and difficult to withdraw from should you choose to discontinue use. There’s no shame in leveraging medication to get relief. And at the same time, I’d encourage you to investigate why you have anxiety in the first place.
Even if you do choose to go the pharmaceutical route the following natural recommendations can help tremendously as well. And remember, always talk to your doc about your medications before changing or discontinuing them.
Can Dehydration Cause Fatigue
If you are feeling fatigued, it could be due to dehydration. Usually, you feel thirsty later than your body senses dehydration, making it hard to catch up on your water intake.
Try these tips to stay hydrated:
- Drink at least two glasses of water an hour before and an hour after vigorous physical activity.
- Sip water during your workout.
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Causes And Symptoms Of Menstrual Emotions
We should first look at the differences between a free standing depression and pms. PMS occurs in the first stage of the menstrual cycle while depression could occur at any time in the cycle.
PMS engendered depression is also known as Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder and it can be a very serious and devastating syndrome during the time preceding a womans period. So we have PMS which is a syndrome and can include PMDD and then we have clinical depression that can occur at any time and is not in any way linked to a womans cycle.
The difficulty with distinguishing between a woman who suffers from clinical depression vs. pms is that about 70% of the women who do suffer from PMS depression also suffer from clinical depression and only about 15% of women who do not have PMDD do have clinical depression. The menstrual cycle makes the tendency to clinical depression much worse. Regardless PMDD is not a variation of clinical depression. It is a separate entity entirely. The Mayo Clinic estimates that up to 75 percent of females have mild to moderate PMS symptoms, including depression, at some point in their reproductive cycle. About 10 percent suffer effects that are severe enough to be classified as PMDD. The depression is accompanied by mood swings, anxiety, tearfulness and even flu-like symptoms.
Tip : Challenge Negative Thinking
Depression puts a negative spin on everything, including the way you see yourself and your expectations for the future. When these types of thoughts overwhelm you, its important to remember that this is a symptom of your depression and these irrational, pessimistic attitudesknown as cognitive distortionsarent realistic.
Women also tend to ruminate when were depressed, perhaps spending hours trying to figure out why were feeling this way. However, rumination can maintain depression or even make it worse. You cant break out of this pessimistic mind frame by just telling yourself to think positive. Often, its part of a lifelong pattern of thinking thats become so automatic youre not even completely aware of it.
You can develop a more balanced way of thinking by identifying the type of negative thoughts that are contributing to your depression, and then learning to replace them with a more balanced way of thinking.
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Why Do You Feel Sad
PMS is thought to be linked to hormonal fluctuations occurring in the second half of your menstrual cycle. When you begin ovulating, the body releases an egg, which triggers estrogen and progesterone levels to drop, and thus serotonin levels.
Serotonin is a neurotransmitter that helps regulate mood, sleep and appetite, so when levels are lowered, things like sleep and food cravings are affected, and feelings of sadness occur.
What Causes Anxiety Before Periods
If youre experiencing anxiety before your period only then it is most likely due to the shifts in hormones that occur during the luteal phase of your cycle. Before the onset of you period, progesterone levels drop, which can trigger anxiety in some women. For others, stress hormones like cortisol, epinephrine, and norepinephrine can contribute to anxiety and a sense of overwhelm.
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You’re Extremely Irritable Anxious And Weepy
Even if you don’t have depression, you could still be a have PMDD if you are irritable, anxious, and cry easily.
The Office on Women’s Health noted that those dealing with PMDD might experience “lasting irritability or anger that may affect other people” as well as feeling very sad or very tense. It may also be hard to determine if your level of irritability is normal or not.
If your annoyance level rises to the point where you’re lashing out at your family or co-workers, you may have moved beyond PMS. And while you may be weepier than usual before your period, you shouldn’t be concerned unless you are regularly without reason.
Tip : Get Up And Get Moving
When youre depressed, just getting out of bed can seem like a daunting task, let alone working out! But exercise is a powerful depression fighterand one of the most important tools for depression recovery.
Studies show that regular exercise can be as effective as antidepressant medication at increasing energy levels and decreasing feelings of fatigue. You dont even have to hit the gym. A 30-minute walk each day will give you a much-needed boost. And if you cant manage 30 minutes, three 10-minute bursts of movement throughout the day are just as effective.
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Your Symptoms Extend Beyond Your Period
Typically, PMS symptoms become a problem the week before you get your period and abruptly subside on Day 2, said Dr. Currier.
But if the symptoms aren’t necessarily in sync with your period, generalized anxiety disorder or depression may be to blame. “If the bad stuff is going on all month long,” said Dr. Sulak, “there’s something other than PMS going on.”
Ultimately, if you have any concerns about your menstrual cycle, it’s always a great idea to see your health care provider for assistance.
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Estrogen As An Antidepressant
Estrogen treatment is widely believed to improve depressive symptoms in menopausal women,114–118 but study results are inconclusive because of large variations in study design and measures, hormonal status and diagnosis of the subjects, the estrogen compound, dose, and duration of use, and failure to find an effect greater than the placebo response.119–122
Burt et al123 identified six studies that included perimenopausal women for estrogen treatment of depressive symptoms. Only two studies were placebo-controlled only one of these showed significant improvement with estradiol compared with placebo after 4 months of treatment, but the treatment advantage over placebo was not sustained after 12 months of treatment.124 In an uncontrolled study of women judged to be depressed or not depressed on the basis of the Beck Depression Inventory, only the group that was not depressed responded to standard replacement doses of conju-gated estrogen.125 Pharmacologic doses of estradiol showed improvement greater than placebo in women diagnosed with depressive disorders126 and in a study of postmenopausal women with scores signifying mental distress .127 Conclusions cannot be drawn from the conflicting results of these studies, which are limited by designs that do not clearly identify essential variables, such as menopausal status and diagnosis of depression, and also lack comparability in the form and dose of estrogen treatment.
Depression Symptoms Worsen Before Menstruation
Women Whose Symptoms Get Worse Before Periods Have Longer Bouts of Depression
In a new study, 64% of women with major depression said their symptoms get worse five to 10 days before their period. Women whose symptoms worsened had depression for a longer duration of time than women whose depression symptoms did not change because of the onset of menstruation.
The news could help doctors evaluate, treat, and set standards for the treatment of depression. Nearly 19 million American adults have depression in any given year — about 9.5% of the population. Women experience depression about twice as often as men, says the National Institute of Mental Health .
That may be partly due to factors that are unique to women. However, men are less likely to admit depression and doctors are less likely to suspect it in their male patients, says NIMH.
Depression can strike at any age. Everything from genetics to stress can play a role. According to researchers more then 20% of women will experience depression at some time during their lifetime. But the childbearing years may be a particularly vulnerable time for women.
The study appears in the January issue of Psychological Medicine. It’s the work of researchers including Susan Kornstein, MD, of Virginia Commonwealth University .
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