84: Are your PMS symptoms normal?
Ever gone from happy to uncontrollable crying, moodiness and extremely irritable only to find that your period shows up a few days later? The other weekend, I was away with a few of my girlfriends and every single one of them was dealing with PMS issues. None of them had PCOS but all of them had PMS symptoms that were seriously affecting their work, relationships and just lives in general.Ever had premenstrual symptoms that are even more extreme like anxiety, hopelessness, or panic attacks, excess sleepiness, feelings of depression and dissociation?Of course with PCOS, we tend to draw the short straw. PMS (premenstrual syndrome) and the more extreme PMDD (premenstrual dysphoric disorder) are relatively common among us women with PCOS because of our hormones being absolutely all over the show. It’s hard to know what’s normal, what’s not, the difference between PMS and PMDD and whether it’s ‘bad enough’ to do anything about.The truth is, it doesn’t have to be this way. It is completely possible for your period to just arrive. No irritability. No headaches or migraines. No food cravings. No extreme waves of sadness. It is possible. As much as these symptoms are common, they aren’t normal.PMS and PMDD have been struggles for so many of my patients in The PCOS Protocol on their journey to improve their PCOS symptoms. They always felt as though that’s ‘just how things were’ and it was just something they’d have to deal with. News flash, It’s not!On today’s episode of the podcast, I’m talking all about PMS, PMDD, what’s normal, what’s not and most importantly, what you can do about feeling like a manic crying, irritable hot mess pre-period. Because no one likes feeling like an angry ball of rage at least once a month! You deserve to have a stress free period that just shows up without making a scene.This episode is for you if:You experience irritability, sadness, anxiety and agitation in the lead up to your periodPre-period headaches or migraines are common for youYou want to know the difference between PMS and PMDDPre-period insomnia gets the better of you each monthExperiencing symptoms of hopelessness and depression are common PMS symptoms of yoursYou want a stress free period that just shows up without making you feel like hot trashSome things we cover in this episode:What is PMS?What is PMDD?How do you discern between PMS and PMDD?Symptoms of PMS and PMDDCauses behind PMS and PMDDPerimenopausal effects on your moodHow to improve your PMS or PMDD symptomsHistamines role in your premenstrual moodResources and References:My Book: Getting Pregnant with PCOSLinks to our programs:The PCOS ProtocolEggducated