So many symptoms, So few answers!
As you can see from my stories I must be in a negative mood,LOL… As I write that I am smiling, but I just get a kick out of some things I type/read.
Of course as you know by now, I live with PMDD. I am (along w/ a clinical psychiatrist) and my family doctor trying to figure out why depression has become so strong AND now for the past couple of weeks rearing its ugly head all month rather than just during my 2 wk time.
I don’t want my prozac up’ed and I don’t want more meds until someone can tell me what in the world is going on inside me.
So, of course I am doing all of my research on diff ‘diseases’ and medicines, etc… I like going in knowing what I won’t take, why I shouldn’t take, etc…
I look up stomach problems, I looked this up because I have IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome). I have had it for as long as I can remember all the way back at least as far as jr high school.
For anyone who doesn’t know, feel free to look it up, LOL… it’s really not all that exciting. I deal with not going to the bathroom for a couple of weeks and then I have major stomach cramping for an hour or so and then finally begin going to the bathroom. It is actually very painful. It reminds me every time of the beginning stages of going into labor.
IT SUCKS!
Anyway, I had a doctor ask me once about stomach problems when I was discussing PMDD with him, so I looked it up.
Well, if you look it up it lists everything I have. It even occurs worse during menstruation.
It then continues to say that 60% of women that have IBS also have some other sort of psychiatric condition, 20% live w/ severe depression.
SO… what am I supposed to think?? Do I have PMDD and IBS and depression? Do they all go together? Do medical sites just list everything with every condition?
And…now when I go to my doc again tomm, it’s like…Hmmm… okay, well I have all of these symptoms, what do you think?
Good question, we will look into that too.
GEEZ…. I don’t think anyone really knows what any of us have seeing as I also have focusing problems so do I also have ADD or ADHD or is it all from the PMDD?
I AM SO SURE!!!!!!!!!!!!! I just don’t think someone would be ‘born’ with ALL of these.
There has got to be a way to come up with one answer. Sadly enough though other than watching your calendar and keeping notes, talking to your doc is the only way you can get tested for PMDD.
(I bet if a man had PMDD, more tests would already be available!) teehee AND, NO I AM NOT A MAN BASHER! :)
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Physical Ailments of PMDD
As if the emotional roller coaster wasn’t enough, you have to live with the physical side of PMDD.
First, I guess the easiest thing is to just start with the head and move down. That is literally how many pains/aches you feel monthly.
Now, this is not to be confused with the cramping you get with regular PMS. PMDD actually makes it difficult to do day-to-day activities. Work is SO tough during this time, exercise(I’m lucky just to get the walks in) and it goes from there.
Headaches~ Unbearable migraines, constant tylenol popping, however, it just never really rids you of the migraines. This is very normal with PMDD. Of course light and ALL noises are deadly to us during this time.
Neck and back pain~ I have actually had to take pain killers to help me thru the migraines, neck and back pain. I also use heating pads on my neck, lower back and my stomach for cramping. What works really well is if you take towels and put rice in them, sew them up into a square or rectangle, depending on the size you want, and heat them in the microwave. They can be used over and over again.
I think they stink because of the hot rice, but they are GREAT heating pads. You can also buy these in some stores like this, or just a regular heating pad.
Leg aches~ I don’t always get leg aches, but they do come and go, just depending on the month. Of course any major stresses in life will make any of these much worse.
These are some of the reasons that your partner/spouse really needs to know about PMDD if you live with it. I personally feel like month in and month out, I turn into a big whiny baby. It REALLY hurts extremely bad and i have a really high pain tolerance.
But, as most of us feel, I know it has to become annoying for my husband to constantly here me moaning. He has now dealt with my PMDD for so many years and when I read new articles I tell him about them.
Massages are great during this time too.
I have heard about some women going to the chiropractor during their 2 wk time. I personally have not done this yet. Mainly because during my 2 wk time, I cannot stand for people to touch me, SO a chiro may not work well for me.
I hope this has helped some of you that may be experiencing pains monthly that come and go, maybe you didn’t know why and now you do.
Of course, PMDD isn’t going to be the answer for everyone, but if you are experiencing these symptoms, some or all, keep a calendar and if it falls right before your cycle EVERY month… Chances are you are living with PMDD and didn’t know it.
Life w/ PMDD
A hot bath is wonderful to help you get thru these tougher days too.
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response to a past comment, still helpful
Hi Melinda,
I am so glad you made your way over here. PMDD is very tough to live with. As you mentioned you don’t have ALL of the symptoms listed when you researched PMDD, but it is happening every 2 wks of every month.
We don’t all have EVERY symptom listed with PMDD, but the one thing you MUST have in order for it to be PMDD is it must occur each month 1-2 wks before your cycle. It doesn’t include mania, just manic moods and for most of us it is physically and emotionally debilitating.
Like I said before, it occurs 1-2 wks before your cycle EVERY month unlike regular PMS.
I haven’t heard of any Woman that doesn’t have sleep problems during PMDD time. A lot of us take Melatonin during this time to help sleep. You can get it at any nutrition store and I think even at Walmart.
As we get older most of us start having worse symptoms too. I am 33, and the difference in my PMDD compared to even just my 20′s is huge. It is so much worse. Some women start having PMDD from the beginning of their first cycles, this was me. Some women don’t notice until after having children. That is something that is different for all of us.
That is another marker for you to know if it’s PMDD. You don’t have any symptoms while you are pregnant.
You are dealing with so much stress right now and with PMDD you have to try SO hard during that time especially to relax or it will throw your PMDD into a whirlwind.
I feel your frustration, my children took the brunt end of it too. It then made me feel worse during my good 2 weeks because I had yelled so much during the other 2 wks. It wasn’t fair, but when you are in that ‘zone’ you physically cannot stop yourself.
I hope that your doctor knows about PMDD so that you don’t have to become more frustrated.
I will tell you, Zoloft and Prozac or Sarafem (same thing as Prozac just a prettier name) are the only 2 medications that have been studied for PMDD. Other meds say they are for PMDD, but these are the only 2 that have actually been researched.
Also, any sort of birth control, including the Yaz that says it is great for PMDD, will almost always make your PMDD 1000 times worse. Every once in a while you will read about a Woman that benefits from birth control, but for most of us, regardless of the dose or type, it will make us feel completely psycho.
I hope some of this helps. Please post back after your doc appt, I would love to trade more information with you.
One thing to keep in mind with PMDD, diet and exercise are SUPER important with this ‘illness’. Staying away from caffeine, Women with PMDD are super sensitive to caffeine and getting at least a short walk in every day. I know you are extra exhausted during this time, but if you can walk for 20 min, it will do so much for you.
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Are you in control?
It’s an easy question if you look at it like this… Do you feel like you are in a peaceful, stable place at this moment?Whether you found the perfect meds, a great exercise plan, new eating habits, or a more natural approach, has it worked?
Are you in control, or does your illness still control you?
Are you too anxious or depressed to leave your home, enjoy new projects, visit with friends, play with your pet, love your spouse/partner, garden?
If you are, you have come to the right place. If you are at a peaceful time of your life, you have come to the right place.
Offer some insight to what works for you, what doesn’t work and feel free to ask questions.
Chances are your insights will help other woman too. Let’s work together to create Healthy Women all over!
Depression & PMDD or Depression with PMDD?
I have been trying to figure out with my psych and doctor if my depression is just part of my PMDD or is it in addition to my PMDD. With PMDD you have very depressive feelings and thoughts for the 2 weeks before your cycle, I can live with that and have for 20 years. What I can’t figure out is why I have started feeling depressed (down, sluggish, sad) outside of my 2 wks now.What I have been wondering is, could the depression be out of the 2 wk time because the 2 wk time is so tough? As painful and depressing as it is during that time, it just becomes down-right exhausting. All of these symptoms can obviously lead to depression.
Not only that, but with PMDD you have outbursts of rage that are very difficult to control. So, after you are coming out of that time, you feel bad for how you have treated family and friends. This can turn into depression too.
I wonder if it is ‘chemical’ depression or if it is more of an outside factor depression. What I mean is, because of what goes on during PMDD we feel bad afterwards and we continue beating ourselves up. It’s sort of like an alcoholic, when they drink and lose it they feel bad when they sober up.
I REALLY dislike comparing the two above, but for someone who doesn’t have PMDD, or for a spouse trying to understand PMDD, this is the closest comparison I can come up with. Of course the difference is that with alcohol you have the choice not to drink or drink too much. PMDD is a chemical disorder that women cannot help, and even worse, not much research is being done to help those suffering.
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