Life with PMDD + how I overcame it
I'm sure pretty much everyone, male or female, has heard of PMS, but very few have ever heard of PMDD. Unfortunately, this was something I struggled with unknowingly until my counselor mentioned it was a possibility and it completely opened my eyes to a whole other level of hormone complications.
My experience
Like many women, I’ve dealt with painful periods and hormone issues for many years. What set my PMDD apart was the depth of pain and hormonal mood swings that, to me, felt a lot like Bi-Polar Disorder.
In 2020 I had 3 massive challenges going on (outside of COVID crazy time) that spiked my hormones because of how stressed I was. Prior to 2020 I had pretty intense cramps and heavy flow, but with the added mental stress of my 3 personal challenges going on, everything elasticated changing my somewhat average depression, anxiety, and period pain into huge mountains that wrecked my world.
My husband and I got married August 1, 2020 and a few months after that my symptoms started rearing their head regularly:
2 weeks of “happy Madison” followed by an extremeeeeee swing into 2 weeks of “massively depressed, drowning, brain feels like it’s on fire Madison”.
I had two eating disorders and was vegan at this time so my body was starving for nutrients.
Each month my periods would leave me completely bed ridden or suffering in agony, unable to function for one or two days depending on the severity. One time I nearly blacked out in the shower from the pain. I was also pretty against taking any medication and wanted to find natural ways to remedy my issues but nothing would work. Both my body and mind were in severe agony. Even when I would bend to medication (the very rare times) they usually wouldn’t do much to alleviate my pain.
Migraines were incredibly frequent.
I had at least 5 panic attacks that felt like mini seizures and would make my mind and body feel numb. I remember my husband once asking me what I was thinking right before one and I simply had nothing. I was just that far gone mentally, that my mind would start to shut down.
Looking back I truly feel like my brain was completely on fire, the anxiety and depression I was trying to navigate, on top of the mental stress in my life was overwhelming, often driving me to near suicide.
I am SO thankful God paired me with my exact counselor, she personally dealt with PMDD as well, and was able to identify it after several sessions with me. If it wasn’t for her experience and understanding I’m sure I would have years and years to come across the right help. I didn’t realize how severe my symptoms had become, but this opened my eyes.
Once my therapist suggested I had PMDD and I realized I matched with most of the symptoms, my husband and I decided I needed to get professional help and stop trying to figure it out on my own.
I went to The Wellness Way (and PERSONALLY graduated through their Academy!! Which is where I got my certificate for coaching through) for professional guidance. I had tried fixing my problems on my own and thought I knew everything to get back on track. Unfortunately I was so overwhelmed and misguided by being plant based/oil free, I needed someone to guide me and get me out of the bottomless pit I seemed to have fallen into. My provider did testing and a range of supplements and encouraged me to add animal products and fat back into my diet.
Even with someone guiding me and the regimen she put me on, it still took several weeks/months to see results.
I don’t want to give any woman false hope (or discouragement) for their journey, but provide realistic first hand expectations. Healing, getting back on track physically, takes time.
Now is the time to get help.
If you have PMDD like I did, I KNOW the pain you’re going through. I wish I had gotten help months before I actually committed. Once my PMDD was under control, my marriage was able to breathe, my husband wasn’t stressed trying to guess my mood of the day or try to console me frequently, I was able to start participating in LIFE again, my suicidal thoughts vanished, and my periods gradually improved as I kept putting in the work.