April 8, 2025 • 54 mins
PMS can be a bit of a black box - we know we don't feel right, we know the days and weeks before our period can be sluggish, but we don't really know why because we aren't taught what's actually going on in our bodies. In today's episode, we break down the real psychology of PMS, including:
- Do you have PMS, PMDD or PME? What's the difference?
- Why we confuse PMS and depression/anxiety
- The interactions between PMS & ADHD
- The role of serotonin, estrogen and GABA
- The misconceptions about PMS and dealing with the shame
- Some of the best mental hacks for tackling PMS + more
Listen now!
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hello everybody, Welcome back to the show. Welcome back to
the podcast, new listeners, old listeners. Wherever you are in
the world, it is so great to have you here
back for another episode as we, of course break down
the psychology of your twenties. Before we get into this
endlessly fascinating episode, I wanted to briefly talk about something exciting,
(00:25):
and that is that my book is coming out on
the twenty ninth of April. As I am recording this,
that is twenty one days away, which is insane to
say out loud. Three weeks. That's just amazing to me
that in three weeks I will be a published author.
But if you didn't already know, I have written a
(00:46):
book called Person in Progress, A Roadmap to the Psychology
of your twenties, and it is exactly what the title says.
It is an intricate, psychological deep dive into everything that
you would ever want to know about this decade. How
to find your calling, how to find love, why it's
so hard to find love, friendship, breakups, taking risks, healing
(01:09):
you in a child, authenticity like I could go on
and on and on, but one day, hopefully, very soon,
you'll have the opportunity to read it yourself. And it
is my humble request today that if you enjoy this podcast,
if you have gotten something out of it, that you
preorder my book. Not only will you be getting more
(01:31):
of the content that you hopefully love, but it really
does support me. And you know, book writing is not
a money making game, Like you don't really expect to
make anything from writing a book. It's all just a bonus,
so it's not about the money. I would just be
so very grateful if you could support my work, share
(01:54):
it with a friend, hopefully pre order, but even just
read the blurb online, like any small act, any small
support of this insane endeavor would be incredible. And I
want to thank you in advance for showing up for
the book, for hopefully reading it, hopefully gifting it. And
I also want to express, like some desperate, extreme gratitude
(02:19):
for giving me this opportunity. There is no ifs orbuts
about it. I would not have written a book if
it was not for the psychology of your twenties listeners,
and that is so apparent to me every single day.
So I just want to say I'm so grateful and
I'm so excited to hear your thoughts about it, to
see what you think, and to hopefully be able to
(02:40):
provide you with even more of a roadmap to this
confusing time. Okay, with all that in mind, without further ado,
what are we talking about today? Because we're not talking
about my book. We are talking about something very, very different.
We're talking about the psychology of pre menstrual syndrome PMS.
We are talking about this black box of hormones and
(03:02):
mood swings and rage and acne and so many other
things that impact a whole lot of people, but which
I don't think I even really understood until a year ago.
You know, I've had my period since I was thirteen.
But something that I've noticed is that we actually know
very little about our bodies on an individual scale. There
(03:25):
are very few guides or times when somebody is going
to sit down with you and just say, this is
what's happening at your body at certain times of the month.
This is why you feel this way, This is what
your hormones do, this is how they influence mood, This
is what is actually happening in this vessel that you have.
(03:46):
You know, we're just expected to deal with it, even
when it impacts our well being without ever actually having
the information that could actually make it better. But today
I want to hopefully provide that guide to you around
PMS and PMDD so that you can know yourself and
know your body better and know how it interacts with
(04:09):
your psychology. Because learning this in your twenties, you know,
it's such an important time for you to start taking
these kinds of things seriously and to start really feeling
in touch with your body. And it's a great time
to be reintroduced to so many ideas and concepts that
we haven't even really spoken about since puberty better a
(04:31):
constant reality for us. So, yes, we're talking PMS, we're
talking PMDD, and we're talking periods specifically the psychology behind
why that period of time before our period takes such
a toll and what's creating that, But also how to
manage those fluctuations, the frustration, maybe even the shame we feel,
(04:52):
the mental impact, the stigma, and also some more niche
questions like should you break up with your partner during
your or lu to your phase? Probably not? Is PMS
a good defense for murder? Also? No, we've got like
so many niche things to talk about hopefully I have
you hooked. But I am going to stop rambling now
and just get into the science and the psychology of PMS.
(05:16):
Stay with us, okay, So, our bodies and hormones and
periods are so complex and seriously different for everyone. You know,
I have never met two individuals who have the same
experiences with their uteruses, so if you experience PMS, it's
(05:39):
going to be different as well. But with that in mind,
with that caveat being said, let's just start with some
really basic factual information about PMS. Now, we're not going
to go too much into the medical side of things,
because that's not my area of expertise. But the basic
explanation of PMS is this. PMS basically describes a set
(06:03):
of symptoms or changes that occur before your period. And
it's estimated that about three quarters of people who get
their period experience at least one change that would fall
under the umbrella of PMS, even if it's not noticeable
to us. So let's go through some of these changes,
(06:24):
because they are both emotional and physical and psychological. I'm
going to start with the ones that I would say
are seemingly most common. The most common ones are tension
and anxiety, are depressed mood, crying spells, bloating, acne, but
then also mood swings, irritability, appetite and craving changes, insomnia, fatigue, headaches,
(06:49):
poor concentration, change in libido, social withdrawal, just to name
a few. You know, some people even describe wanting to
break up with their partner during their luteal phase right
before their period, and they kind of attribute it to
their PMS. In fact, it's actually common for people who
(07:10):
get their periods to have more concerns about their relationship
right before they menstruate because they can be a lot
more sensitive or aware of interpersonal problems, I think, more
irritable in general, and will explain why that is, because
it's certainly not just because women are too emotional. It's
a real hormonal thing. But a recent study conducted at
(07:34):
UCLA did find that women evaluate their relationships differently at
different times in their cycle, sometimes even finding their partners
less attractive right before their period. But that doesn't necessarily
mean they want to break up with them or less committed.
(07:54):
It's just a lot more complicated than that, and it
can just create a lot of nuanced feelings and if
you're someone who has a lot of relationship anxiety, sometimes
that time right before your period, it's really important to
be aware of the fact that you are going to
experience heightened sensitivity and doubts, and how can you stay
(08:16):
neutral in the face of that, knowing that there's another
factor contributing. We're going to talk about that in a second,
But another interesting symptom that I'm sure a lot of
us are familiar with is changes in body image. Our
views towards our bodies change significantly for many women before
the period. In fact, this probably won't come as a surprise.
(08:38):
Our body image and our appraisal of our body typically
gets worse now. Studies have shown this as early as
the eighties and nineties. And it's not just because we're bloated,
obviously that's a factor. It's because body image is a
part of our self concept, and our self concept is
regulated by our brain and to an extent, our nervous
(08:59):
is and how I'm feeling. So when our nervous system
is dysregulated because of hormonal changes, our opinion of ourself
will also change. For me, I always experience this, I
always feel, you know, there's really no better word than
like disgusting, Like I feel disgusting and ugly and like
(09:21):
a monster right before my period, and every single time,
like on the dot three days before, I'll be like, wow,
I have never felt more swollen, and I've never felt uglier,
and i just feel disgusting and like I'm gonna feel
like this way forever. And then it's like, oh bam,
(09:41):
I get my period and it explains it all. And
I still I still have this issue of not being
able to put two and two together, like, really, my body,
my lack of body confidence only really comes around the
time I get my period, and it comes almost every
single month, and yet I'm still surprised when suddenly I
feel awful. I don't know if you can relate, but
(10:04):
I do feel like for many of us, we are
still shocked by the fact that our bodies and our
minds are going to react to the fact that we
go through an entire life cycle every month. And seriously,
that is what it is. When you get your period,
you are at the end of that life cycle. That's
(10:25):
how your entire reproductive system is operating. That is why
when you are about to get your period, it does
feel like a kind of death. Like it feels like
you're dying, do you know what I mean? And then
once ovulation comes back around, you know, you're practically buzzing
because that's like the prime days of your egg's life,
(10:45):
you know. And it's all a cycle of rebirth and
renewal and death and life. And hopefully this explanation makes
sense to you, but it does just show why PMS
can be so debilitating but also frustrating. It feels like
your body is almost punishing you in a real way, like, okay,
well you didn't get pregnant here, this can be your
(11:07):
punishment for not doing what we think you should be doing.
But again, it's all part of that very important cycle
of birth and death that are occurring in our bodies,
which I think is quite spectacular when you think about it.
I think that's just incredible that that is something that occurs.
So something else to knowe fun fact maybe not so fun,
(11:27):
but PMS symptoms will actually get worse the older we
get and the closer we get to menopause and perimenopause.
But once we pass over into menopause it will stop.
That approach, though, is when it's going to be and
its most intense and that makes sense because our hormones
they change the older we get, and they fluctuate more
rapidly the closer we get to menopause due to this
(11:50):
decline in ovarian function. But a lot of individuals have
spoken about this, have spoken about how the older they got,
the more they felt that there was sensitive to these
hormonal changes. Maybe that's something you can relate to. You know,
the first ten years of your getting your period, you
never noticed it, and now suddenly there are these emotional
(12:12):
parts of this process that you never had to deal
with before. Okay, so there's just some basic information about PMS.
Let's talk about something else. Let's talk about PMS's I
don't know angrier sister, pre menstrual dysphoric disorder pm DD.
(12:32):
So PMDD is basically a severe form of PMS. It
shows up a lot less in the population around you know,
estimates are two to five percent, but it is extremely debilitating.
A lot of people who have PMDD describe it as
being like a switch that gets flicked in their brain
(12:55):
and suddenly in the week or you know, two weeks
before their period, instantly, it's like their whole body has
been switched with someone else's in a second. You know,
they will go from sitting at the dinner table being
completely content and peaceful and happy one second, and then
in a click of their fingers, they feel overwhelming rage,
(13:16):
they feel paranoia, frustration, deep sadness, like anxiety that won't
go away and can't be improved, and it feels awful
and terrible, and then just as quickly as it started,
it's over. You know. I actually saw someone describe PMDD
in their case as like a temporary psychosis each month.
(13:38):
You know, it's this scary and terrifying thing for them
and for many many people, And because of that, sometimes
it can lead to a misdiagnosis, where there are cases
of people being diagnosed with very extreme mental health conditions
that they don't actually have, but the intensity of their
PMDD symptoms are such that doctors feel like there are
(14:02):
no other explanations. Nowadays, PMD is actually classified as a
psychiatric disorder in the DSM five. It's under the umbrella
of depressive disorders, so you can get a formal diagnosis
if you wish, but it is definitely a struggle identifying
whether it's PMDD or some other form of condition, and
(14:25):
a lot of individuals have explained to me that actually,
before they were diagnosed with PMDD, they were diagnosed with anxiety,
with schizophrenia, with depression, and then finally someone said do
you think it's this? And they had their answer. So
you might be thinking at this stage, well, is it
really all that different from depression or bipolar How can
(14:49):
we tell them? Do they really need a different diagnosis?
And yes, they are very very different because with PMDD
symptoms of depression, of anxiety, of BPD, of whatever other
condition of which there is a similarity, they are only
present when you are at a specific stage of your cycle,
(15:12):
but they will almost completely disappear afterwards. Yes, sometimes an
individual may be struggling with the aftermath of what occurred
during that week, and they may feel like they have
to repair some damages or they're just so tired from
how intense everything was. But that doesn't mean that their
symptoms are lasting for the entire four weeks, which means
(15:36):
that they are never really in a period of depression
or anxiety long enough if it's coming from PMDD, for
them to be classified with anything but PMDD. Now, I
want to talk about this because I think it's important
to note some people have suggested that pre menstrual dysphoric
disorder shouldn't be classified as a psychiatric justsay order, because
(16:01):
it's just pathologizing normal, normal hormonal fluctuations and it makes
women seem crazy. And when that debate was around and
coming up, there were hundreds and hundreds of letters written
by doctors, obgyns, psychiatrists, psychologists behind whether or not it
(16:23):
should or shouldn't have been included. Some of the arguments
are very valid, Like you know, some feminist scholars, they
did say it could be used to silence women, it
could feed into like a high hysteria, a traditional hysteria mindset.
Some people didn't say there wasn't enough differentiation, but you
know what, the level of hormonal fluctuations needed to occur
(16:47):
to make someone suicidal or unable to leave bed or
to keep a job is not normal. That's not pathologizing
something normal. And a diagnosis is not only validating, but
it is a way to get the help you need.
It helps people also feel seen and acknowledged by the
medical community because they have some kind of label that
(17:09):
feels respected. And if we can have a formal diagnosis,
we can actually start seeing the true prevalence of PMDD,
which also assists in increased research funding, increased awareness, which
is really really essential and given how little attention female
health gets in general, Like there are more studies done
(17:31):
on male baldness than PCOS and entremetriosis combined. Like, I
think we could do with a little bit more visibility
heat for female health concerns. PMDD and PMS, just to
say this one last time, though they are different, they
are very different, and PMDD is a lot more extreme.
So if PMS was in the DSM, I would understand
(17:53):
why people have issues, but PMDD is a serious condition.
PMS is as well, but PMDDS in particular does require
a lot of additional assistance. So I think having a
proper diagnosis means that a lot of women will no
longer have to have the experience of going to the
doctor saying this is how my life feels. It feels
(18:14):
like everything is falling apart in this cyclical way, and
people just assuming, oh, you're just pmsing, like, just push
through it, take a bath, as if PMS in itself
is something that's always going to be easily manageable. So
there's one more term I need to introduce, here that's
separate from PMS and PMDD, and it's called pre menstrual exacerbation. So,
(18:38):
if you have an existing mental health condition like depression, anxiety,
bipolar disorder, even something like ADHD, you may notice that
your symptoms or conditions get worse in the lead up
to your period compared to what you're accustomed to. Suddenly
you know your anxiety level is at a ten, You
feel empty, psychotic symptoms even worsen as well. It's not
(19:02):
that your symptoms are only occurring during that week. They're
always present, unlike PMDD. It's just that just before your
period they get so much worse and it becomes so
much harder to deal with. So now that we're across
these three distinct terms and conditions, let's go right back
(19:23):
to PMS and talk about the why. What is responsible
for the psychological changes like sudden irritation, like trouble concentrating
like anxiety, brain fog, and then the secondary impact of
shame and feeling like any kind of visible emotion will
have you taken less seriously or respected less. Where does
this come from? So there's two hormones we need to
(19:45):
be really familiar with here, and you've probably already heard
of them. Of course, estrogen and progresterone very very common.
You've probably heard of them when it comes to your
birth control. Actually, because estrogen and progresterone, well, essentially they're
primarily responsible for reproduction for you, puberty, for pregnancy, if
(20:07):
you do get pregnant, for menopause, for your period, for
your cycle, and wherever you are in your period will
determine the level of either of these hormones. So during ovulation,
estrogen is typically very high, which contributes to why your
skin is glowing, while your hair is radiant, why you
feel incredible, because more estrogen means greater chances of getting pregnant.
(20:32):
So biologically you want to attract a mate. After ovulation,
though progress strone levels rise sharply while estrogen dips, leading
to a lot of physiological neurobiological changes. So researchers have
shown that particularly less progressterone in particular, does change how
(20:56):
our brain operates and feels. Particularly, it changes how we
process and regulate levels of serotonin in the brain. Serotonin
is the happy hormone, the happy chemical, and in order
for it to be released at a proper rate and
to be received at a proper rate inside the brain,
(21:16):
a certain level of progresterone needs to be available now.
Of course, when that dips before our period, suddenly the
systems in place that are releasing serotonin, which are used
to a certain level of progresterone no longer have that level,
and so it feels like it's squeezing juice out of
an already juiced orange. Some further information and studies that
(21:37):
we need to be aware of also indicate that progresterone
influences the GABBA receptors in the brain, which are involved
in regulating anxiety and mood. So if you listen to
our anxiety episode, you'll understand what gabba is. Gabba is
an inhibitor in our brain, so it provides a calming effect.
(21:59):
But if progress desterone rises after ovulation and then steadily
drops off right before our period and naturally drops, that
means that GABBA receptors, much like serotonin receptors, aren't being
coaxed as much or activated as much, so our reception
of gabba declines, meaning that we are more anxious as
(22:23):
a result. Because glutamate, which has an exidinary effect, doesn't
have its counterbalance. Basically, we need gabba to stay calm.
But GABBA can only be read by the brain with
the help of progressterone. So when there's less, the neuro
chemicals that make us feel naturally anxious aren't being regulated
or met with as much resistance. Now, this is what
(22:48):
creates a lot of the emotional and psychological symptoms of PMS.
Something to note these hormonal changes, they're totally normal. In fact,
it's an important part of that life and death cycle
we talked about before. So why is it you might
be asking, if this is normal, why do I feel
so terrible? And why is it that some of us
(23:10):
you know, never experience PMS, but others of us have
debilidating PMDD symptoms, Like where does this variation come from? Well,
according to a study published in The Lancet back in
I think two thousand and nine, actually, women with PMS,
it's not that their hormones are changing more rapidly. It's
(23:32):
that they have an increased sensitivity to even minute hormone changes.
And because of this, what for some people would be
easily dismissed by our brain feels like an entire psychological, emotional,
neurochemical earthquake. The shift from having certain leve levels of
(23:55):
chemicals available to having just even slightly less hormones or
chemicals available. Yours a lot more magnified than certain people,
and those certain people are more likely to develop PMS
and PMDD. This was backed by another review in psycho
Neeurodoctrinology and in this journal. This paper suggested that again,
(24:15):
it's not hormonal fluctuations that cause PMS. They are just
the catalyst. It's how they're processed and how our Neuer
endocrine system reads those messages. The messages are the same,
but sometimes the part of us that is meant to
read these messages doesn't read them very well, causing those
(24:38):
emotional and physical shifts. Sometimes you know, it's just because
that's how you were born. It's the part of your
genetic blueprint that's difficult to explain. The same way that
some people need glasses, some people's new endocrine system probably
also needs glasses so that it can properly read, interpret, understand,
regulate the hormonal changes that come with you know, being
(25:02):
on your period, that come with your mental cycle. So
the biggest theory is that a large contributor to having
severe PMS symptoms or PMDD does come down to genetics,
but there's also something else involved. Circumstances like trauma can
actually trigger the emergence of PMS, both in early life
(25:24):
and later in life. So the study I'm about to
talk about blew my mind when I first read it,
and I don't think we can say that often happens
for studies about genetic irregularities and mutations, like it's pretty
much pretty boring. I don't know. Maybe you're a geneticist
and you're like, no, it's so fascinating, But in general
reading about genetic codes, it's not like going to an
(25:46):
amusement park. But this one article about PMDD, I really think,
like the explanation given in it could change lives. And
it was published in twenty twenty two, and it found
that many of us actually contain a certain genetic code
that would predispose us to PMDD, but it never gets
(26:08):
switched on in most of us. Most of us it
lays dormant, so we don't go on to develop PMDD.
But some of us are not so lucky. And what
switches on this genetic code is, well, it's trauma. The
stress and change of trauma for some reason, has this
(26:30):
impact of activating this mutation, and it's a mutation that
a lot of us have, but like I said, only
you know, I think it's less than five percent of
us in and us like it will ever be activated
five percent. And in this study they identified this gene
and they found that eighty three percent of the women
in their sample of randomly selected PMDD patients they had
(26:54):
experienced some kind of trauma, the most common being early
life trauma and emotional abuse. Now, those rates in this
circle of women with PMDD is so much higher than
the rate of trauma in the general population. You know,
they say the body keeps the score, and in this case,
(27:15):
oh my gosh, is it true. And I've seen so
many people reacting to this study who have said, I
knew it. I knew something was different about me in
the way my body worked. One individual I read an
account from she even talked about how her PMDD only
began after a particularly traumatic relationship in a car accident,
and suddenly it seemed the gene was activated. She was,
(27:38):
like she said in this recount, like I can see
a distinct before and after. And researchers are still trying
to get to the why of this all and understand
this further. But I think for a lot of people
who have experienced PMDD or extreme PMS for a long time,
sometimes this explanation is validating enough. Sometimes you can really
(28:03):
find some solace in the fact that you know it
wasn't you, that your body is behaving differently beyond your
control and from the past from something that occurred to you.
So yes, it's a combination of predisposition but also environment
that it makes PMS and PMDD specifically more likely to emerge.
(28:27):
There are some other risk factors that we should mention,
including smoking, poor physical health, but also thyroid problems because
our thyroid is responsible for the release of progressterone, and
so if it's not functioning, we may encounter problems. A
lot of this is coming back to our neuroendocrine system,
(28:48):
and you know, you do see a lot of stuff
being like it's because of your diet, and it's because
of this and that, and you're not taking the right
supplements and all these things. I think that actually it's
a lot more common plex and that, and if that
previous study had anything to say, like it links back
to so many things that happened to us rather than
(29:08):
things that we are actively doing to ourselves. So I
really don't like this narrative that blames women who have
PMS or PMDD with poor lifestyle choices and that's why
it's occurring, and you could so easily change your lifestyle
and it would all fall away for you. That's definitely
not the case. Maybe only about five ten percent of
(29:30):
truth in that statement. So hopefully this explanation makes some
kind of sense to you. It's given you more clarity
over very invisible workings in your body below the surface.
We are going to take a quick break right now,
but when we return, we are going to talk science backtips.
When in your cycle is the best time to make
decisions how to manage unhelpful feelings and thoughts associated with
(29:54):
PMS or PMDD, and so so so much more so
please stay with us. Dealing with PMS and PMDD was
described to me by a listener as Sisyphus pushing his
(30:14):
rock up the hill every month. You have to deal
with the same roller coaster every month. It feels like
you are at the behest of some hidden emotional forces,
and it's frustrating and it's exhausting, and it feels like
it will never be over and never be Okay. Sometimes
there's even an anger there, anger at your body for
(30:36):
you know, doing what it's meant to do, but being
so inconvenient about it. You know, it doesn't seem to
care about your life or your professional engagements, or your plans,
or your relationship or your mental stability, none of the above.
That coupled with the fact that you know, well, we've
spoken about this already, but the medical system in general
takes health problems typically associated with women and likes to
(30:59):
ignore them for as long as possible and be dispissive
and say you're over reacting, or have you tried exercise
or two parannals should do the trick. You know that
on top of it makes it even more tricky. There's
also this sense that if you have PMS, if you
are struggling with an emotional tidal wave, you better can
(31:20):
see all that. You better keep that way down, especially
in the workplace, especially around people who won't understand, because
you don't want to be seen as hysterical. You don't
want to be seen as weak, you don't want to
be seen as too emotional. Because our society has really
devalued specific traits that are peer associated or are associated
(31:43):
with being a woman, So that is definitely the cherry
on top that none of us asked for. With all
that in mind, though, I wanted to bring together, yes,
some of the best advice I could find for how
to help yourself psychologically and mentally for that period where
your brain feels like it has been switched with someone
else's and some wires across without you knowing, how can
(32:06):
you do more than just wait it out. A philosophy
I have in my life is that the more you know,
the less you can be misled when it comes to
our bodies. That has never been more true. Now, I
don't want you to misconstrue my words and say, like, oh,
you shouldn't get advice from a doctor like you. If
you've read twenty books about PMS, you know more than
(32:29):
a specialist like not the case. It's obviously great to
educate yourself and to know more, but we're specifically talking
about knowing your own body better. So if you have
been struggling with PMS, the best thing you can do
is start keeping a Feelings in Emotions journal or app tracker,
(32:50):
any form of I don't know, information gathering. When it
comes to your symptoms, you know that can be synced
up to your period app if you use, but also separately.
The app that I love is called mind doc, and
it's incredible. It basically offers you check ins and helps
you to identify emotional patterns in this really cool mathematical,
(33:14):
graphical visual way. So if you're a visual processor, if
having a visual map of how you're feeling on certain
days over a period of time would be helpful, that
is definitely a good option for you. But I also
find it really really validating, even just a journal about it.
And I find it validating because I'm able to say,
(33:37):
through noticing these patterns, oh okay, this is linked to
a known part of my cycle where I feel terrible.
I don't need to beat myself up over this the
way that I have been doing. I know it will pass.
I don't need to think that it's gonna last forever.
This happens every month, and I know it because here
(33:59):
is my information. You know, sometimes our lives are so
busy and hectic and over stimulating that we fall out
of sync with how our body feels. And so when
things do come up headaches, mood swings, hormonal changes, anchor,
we feel shocked and stressed by it because we haven't
(34:20):
been expecting it, because we haven't been paying attention to
where we are in the cycle of our periods, where
we are in our bodies at any given moment. So
it's really really important that if you're struggling to get
more information about the cycles presenting in your body than
you already have, my next tip is to focus on
(34:41):
sleep hygiene. So I interviewed a doctor recently for the
show Doctor Mark Hymen, and his episode is coming out
very very soon. But something he said to me that
has become a fixation point of mind in the last
however many days, is that if he have to go
back to twenty and tell himself one piece of advice, yes,
it would be to sleep more. And if you have
(35:04):
PMS or PMDD in particular, the studies have shown time
and time again, seven to nine hours every night is
not an option, it's an essential, and it's what your
body needs to be able to restore itself, and it
definitely needs that. During your lude, your phase, when your
cells and your mind and your uterus and your whole
body is under even more stress, You're probably thinking, yeah, okay, whatever,
(35:29):
great advice, I'm busy I've heard it before. I've tried that,
to which I say, please try again, because which discomfort
is worse to you, the discomfort of not having you know,
a few extra thirty minutes of screen time before bed,
or finding it harder to regulate your emotions. Sleep hygiene
(35:49):
is so important. Here are like three really simple ways
you can do that really low effort that I just
need you to try. I've tried. They work like a charm.
Number one, I need you to get an old fashioned
alarm clock. Number two, I need you to keep your
phone out of your room. Number three, don't watch TV
or movies or whatever else on your laptop, iPad phone
(36:13):
in your bed. All of these help create a distinction
between the spaces and the times when you are meant
to be awake and alert and the times when you
are meant to be RESTful and sleeping. And this change
costs you the price of an alarm clock from a
two dollars store, and it could even help you live longer,
(36:33):
if not make your PMS feel more manageable. I would
also say, try and create a soft, gentle routine for
yourself during that week or that period for you of
intense symptoms. Now what does that look like. That needs
to look like, less intense socializing, less drinking, hopefully zero drinking,
(36:59):
more working from home if you can, less genes, more leggings,
give yourself the gift of ten more minutes to get
ready in the morning, ten more minutes to slow down
at night to get places on time. Prioritize less activities
during your day. Now, this last one is huge for
me because I don't know if you can relate to this,
(37:22):
but as someone who is you know, I would say
has some high achiever perfectionist tendencies. Giving myself just a
break from a big schedule, a high load schedule is very,
very difficult. But you know, literally the other day, I
went to a pilates class and I was in such
a bad mood. I was just you know, I had
(37:45):
all these PMS symptoms and halfway through, I was just
feeling so irritated, and I left. I got up, I
said thank you to the teacher. I was like, it's
not you, it's me, and I went away. I went away,
and I went home and I just got into bed
because that's what my body was calling for me to do,
even if my mind wanted me to be more efficient
or productive. I find really that my capacity to do
(38:09):
more and even my capacity to be around others declines
right before my period. I find that I don't have
the same bandwidth to be present, to reciprocate energy wise,
to monitor others' emotions, to deal with my own frustrations.
I have less space for empathy because I'm so irritated
and there's normally a lot on my mind. Now, this
(38:31):
has nothing to do with the other person, They're just existing.
It has everything to do with me and how wired
and raw my nerves feel, which can just make me,
I'm sure, unpleasant to be around, and it makes me
feel more drained. So going slowly means subtracting rather than
adding things onto my plate during a time when I
(38:55):
know stress is going to be heightened for me, and
even sometimes avoiding things that I would typically find enjoyable
just for a few days, for some solo time. Also,
you need to be dilly dialing more. You need to
be less rushed towards certain goals or certain chores of
getting things done, especially during this period. I need you
(39:16):
to just relish the act of slowing down, of being
more present, of walking around without music in your ears,
without too many freaking what do they called tote bags
on you trying to get from one place to the other,
feeling completely overwhelmed. We are about softness, We are about
slowing down. We are about long term sustainability and self
(39:40):
sufficiency rather than burning way too bright, way too fast. Also,
another part of this is just focus on low impact exercises,
because there have been studies, including one from twenty twenty four,
that have suggested that things like kit workouts actually spike
progresstant and then cause it to, as a counterbalance, rapidly
(40:01):
decline later on, which we know will end up impacting
GABA levels and lead to more anxiety, which is already
at a low during this stage of the cycle. So
take your rest days, go for a long walk instead.
You don't need to push yourself on. Your body is
asking for rest, In fact, it's demanding rest. You've got
to lean into what each period of your cycle actually
(40:24):
calls for you to do, based on the instincts of
your body and where you're going to seek comfort. This
is also more of a behavioral tip. But don't make
any big decisions during this time. Consider them, make a
plan for them, don't act until you feel clear headed. Now,
(40:48):
this isn't to say that women are hysterical and not
to be trusted because their period makes them do crazy
hysterical things like No, that's quite a harmful narrative. I
just think on a personal level, you want to know
when your brain, specifically your emotional brain is going to
be at its best. You want to know when your
(41:08):
brain is going to be most capable and smart, and
really hone in on those times to make big decisions,
to question big things. When you're on your period or
right before, it's just going to be all wrapped up
in additional anxiety and stress and tension, and I think
it's not going to help you feel confident in the decision,
(41:30):
even if it's the right one. So know when to
trust your instincts versus understand that something is an impulse
and structure decision making and planning around those peaks and
troughs of your cycle and of your mental state. I
think handling PMS or PMDD is all about just ease
and the path of least resistance and what's going to
(41:52):
make things simpler for you when your mind and your
body is feeling chaotic. I also would suggest you think
about getting professional help and not just from your family doctor,
but someone who really knows what they're talking about. There
are so many more treatments now, you don't need to
despair over your PMS, your PMDD taking over your life.
(42:13):
There are so many more options. And just organizing a
time where you can go and learn about some of those,
hear what someone else has to say about your condition,
maybe even be validated in what you've been experiencing, is
so so important. Some final two tips. If you have
a partner, invite them to share your period app details
(42:37):
or like invite them to follow along for you. I
don't know what is it like. Join your cycle app,
join your cycle aps so they can see peaks and troughs,
understand when to bring up arguments, when to bring up
small things better for both of you, so that you're
not constantly in a state of conflict. I also sometimes
do this with my friends. You just understand each other better.
(42:59):
You know what the other person needs. You can mediate
and moderate conversation and expectations and communication and plans so
much better when you do. Just have a more in
depth understanding of what everyone's current emotional capacity and emotional
state is like, and have empathy for yourself. You know,
(43:21):
your body is so complex, Like it's one of the
most complex things to exist, and there is nobody in
the world who can possibly understand every single reaction and
thing that goes on below the surface that you are
forced to feel Like PMS dials every single tiny reaction
(43:41):
up to one hundred and has you feel them all
at once. And it's tricky and it's hard. It's also
something that others are going through and you can find
the light in it. There are so many more resources,
so many more ways and opportunities to be open in
our communication to talk about it and to make this
condition both PMS and PMDD more visible and not a weakness,
(44:08):
just an addition to our lives that we have to
navigate as expertly as possible. Okay, we're going to take
one more quick break, and then when we return, we
are going to move on to our listener questions. If
you aren't familiar with this segment of the show because
it is relatively new. A couple months ago, I started
inviting listeners to ask our own personal questions when it
(44:30):
comes to our topics, just to make sure that we
cover what people are actually interested in and some of
the more niche questions that you may have for us.
So we are going to take a quick little pause,
and when we return, we have some juicy questions, some
great questions from my lovely, lovely listeners. The listener questions
(44:54):
this week were so good, they were so amazing. I
was very intrigued to dig a little bit deeper into
what you guys want to know. We're going to start
with this question, which I found so fascinating. How would
PMS interact with ADHD? So I consulted some really interesting
(45:16):
articles about this, specifically a paper from twenty twenty three,
and what it suggested is that having ADHD and PMS
is and this is literally their words, this is a
direct quote from this article, a double whammy, whereby symptoms
of ADHD are more likely to increase when estrogen levels drop,
(45:40):
so right as your period starts in just before. In particular,
they found two things happen. There is an increase in
approach that's risk taking behaviors, but more so an increase
in avoidance and negative effect so negative mood, but also
in attention symptoms. If you're finding that your ADHD is
(46:02):
getting worse before your period, you are not mistaken it's
a real thing. And they also noted, and I'm glad
they did that. The pressure to mask your ADHD or
appear functional is also a lot more prominent and stronger
in women, and so sometimes feels that you have to
suppress or conceal two things at once. You know, you
(46:23):
have to suppress your ADHD symptoms even though you feel
more agitated and you feel like they are stronger, but
you also don't want to be seen as overly emotional,
so you have to either consciously or unconsciously ignore your
PMS symptoms as well. I know that probably paints a
very bleak picture, but I think that information is so
(46:44):
valuable to know it because you can just say to yourself,
this is not me, Like, it's not just me. It's
not because I'm too sensitive or weak or because they
lack of discipline. It's because of this so called double whammy,
this hormonal influence on my mental state and my capacity
to pay attention, to focus, to control my impulses. So
(47:06):
I would really recommend reading this article. It's called Attention
deficit slash hyperactivity disorder and the menstrual cycle Theory and
Evidence from the Journal of Hormones and Behavior it's actually
also free access as well. And if you're a psychology
student or someone who accesses a lot of academic papers,
you'll know that when something's free, when you haven't an
(47:28):
open access paper, it's like a dream come true. So
there's no excuses. Go give it a read. I think
it will be quite validating, quite eliminating as well. Okay,
the second question we got was how do I navigate
early dating during PMS. Now this is tough because we
talked about how PMS sometimes promotes, encourages, creates a lot
(47:54):
of interpersonal tension just because we are coming to the
table feeling a little bit different in ourselves, perhaps less patient,
perhaps more sensitive. And so when you first started dating someone,
sometimes you don't always want to present that version of
yourself that maybe you feel a little bit ashamed of.
You have no reason to, but maybe you're like, oh,
(48:16):
you know dating is anxiety inducing enough, then put in
my PMS or my PMDD symptoms and like it's just
a freaking hurricane of a reactivity and not knowing what's
going to happen. So I think you have two options
based on how you want to go about it. The
first path is slow and cautious. The second is all in.
(48:37):
So with the first path, we are going to consciously
take back time for ourselves during our period and not
communicate why that is with someone else. So if they're
not your partner, if it's early dating, you might not
want to let them in. You might not want them
to know what is going on because dating can be stressful.
(48:58):
PMS can be stressful, actually if you are worried about
someone's approval or judgment of it. So only engage with
this person when you feel like it. Try and pull
back a little bit for that period, just for your
own self care. But also remember that you can't say
the wrong thing to the right person. They will understand.
(49:19):
They will reciprocate or give you know, give you grace
and be generous and kind if you do tell them,
And that is option two. Option one you tell them
later down the line. You spend those first three months,
you know, managing your PMS on your own as you
have been accustomed to. Or you can just be upfront.
You can be straight up and just say, hey, I'm
(49:42):
gonna be kind of out for the count this week.
I've got really bad PMS and I don't really want
to be around people. Is that? Okay? Do you understand
it's probably a very good litmus test as well as
to whether someone will make a good partner if they
can respond positively or appropriately to you telling the about
this medical condition you have and how it makes your
(50:03):
life more difficult. Okay? Question number three, why do I
want to rage at everyone? I mentioned this a couple times,
but we didn't speak about it in depth, which is
totally an oversight for me. Because rage, anger, frustration, fury
is a huge component of PMS. Why is it this case? Well,
(50:26):
estrogen in particular plays obviously, as we know, a key
role in supporting serotonin, which is the happy hormone, also
helps stabilize our mood. So estrogen drops, serotonin drops mood, swing,
slow patient's irritability all in sew at times as well,
because progressterone induces a calming effect. When that is lower,
(50:47):
you know there is less of that anti anxiety counterbalance,
so it throws your nervous system off balance and increases
your sensitivity to stress and to frustration into small mistakes.
It to you blow up in your mind because your
brain is just dealing with a lot right now. You
may also find that your window for tolerance is a
(51:08):
lot smaller, like the little things that you would normally
look past are so frustrating and so irritating. There is
some evidences to actually suggest that the amig deala, which
is the brain's emotional alarm system, is a lot more
reactive during this time before and just as your beriod
begins as well. So it's also about interpretation. The same
(51:33):
things might be happening in your life. People may be
acting exactly the same, but everything like your interpretation of
these events and these stimulus and these situations might feel
increasingly threatening or upsetting. I do think the same tips
from before apply. Just take care of yourself, take step
step backs when you need to communicate openly with whoever
(51:56):
you feel comfortable with that this is what's going on.
Just give yourself space and time to feel agitated, but
then soothe or find a way through it through exercise,
through boxing, through creating art, through talking about it, through
some kind of movement or processing mode. Final question, does
(52:18):
PMS get better with hormonal birth control? So? Hormonal birth
control is actually one of the frontline treatment options for
PMS because most birth control contains either synthetic estrogen or
synthetic progress terrone. So when you add in more of
these hormones than what your body suddenly, suddenly or currently
(52:41):
has available, it will assist with soothing some of those
symptoms that have become uncomfortable. It does still have its
downsides and it does still have issues, as any medication does.
No medication is perfect. Definitely consult your doctor. My experience,
I found that it helped a little bit, but everything
(53:02):
that I was feeling was still there. It just felt
a little bit muffled, like it felt like I was,
you know, under the water in a pool and was
like looking up and there were all the things that
I wanted to feel, and I wasn't really able to
because for me, birth control also had some you know,
emotional blunting effects. But all in all, if that's what
(53:23):
you're after, it could be very very useful. Just talk
to your doctor see what they have to say. Okay
for rapid fire questions, we got them all done. I
hope you learned something from those. Thank you to the
brilliant listeners who contributed. I really appreciate getting to know
and understand what you guys want to hear. What is
pertinent to your life right now, So keep them coming.
(53:45):
Make sure you're following me over there at that Psychology podcast.
There's going to be so much on the new book,
so much on new episodes, asking you to vote, asking
you to contribute, so please don't miss it. I would
love to see you over there, and until next time,
stay safe, be kind, be gentle with yourself, especially if
you're having a rough time with some pmspmd D symptoms.
(54:07):
We will talk very very soon there
Hello everybody, Welcome back to the show. Welcome back to
the podcast, new listeners, old listeners. Wherever you are in
the world, it is so great to have you here
back for another episode as we, of course break down
the psychology of your twenties. Before we get into this
endlessly fascinating episode, I wanted to briefly talk about something exciting,
(00:25):
and that is that my book is coming out on
the twenty ninth of April. As I am recording this,
that is twenty one days away, which is insane to
say out loud. Three weeks. That's just amazing to me
that in three weeks I will be a published author.
But if you didn't already know, I have written a
(00:46):
book called Person in Progress, A Roadmap to the Psychology
of your twenties, and it is exactly what the title says.
It is an intricate, psychological deep dive into everything that
you would ever want to know about this decade. How
to find your calling, how to find love, why it's
so hard to find love, friendship, breakups, taking risks, healing
(01:09):
you in a child, authenticity like I could go on
and on and on, but one day, hopefully, very soon,
you'll have the opportunity to read it yourself. And it
is my humble request today that if you enjoy this podcast,
if you have gotten something out of it, that you
preorder my book. Not only will you be getting more
(01:31):
of the content that you hopefully love, but it really
does support me. And you know, book writing is not
a money making game, Like you don't really expect to
make anything from writing a book. It's all just a bonus,
so it's not about the money. I would just be
so very grateful if you could support my work, share
(01:54):
it with a friend, hopefully pre order, but even just
read the blurb online, like any small act, any small
support of this insane endeavor would be incredible. And I
want to thank you in advance for showing up for
the book, for hopefully reading it, hopefully gifting it. And
I also want to express, like some desperate, extreme gratitude
(02:19):
for giving me this opportunity. There is no ifs orbuts
about it. I would not have written a book if
it was not for the psychology of your twenties listeners,
and that is so apparent to me every single day.
So I just want to say I'm so grateful and
I'm so excited to hear your thoughts about it, to
see what you think, and to hopefully be able to
(02:40):
provide you with even more of a roadmap to this
confusing time. Okay, with all that in mind, without further ado,
what are we talking about today? Because we're not talking
about my book. We are talking about something very, very different.
We're talking about the psychology of pre menstrual syndrome PMS.
We are talking about this black box of hormones and
(03:02):
mood swings and rage and acne and so many other
things that impact a whole lot of people, but which
I don't think I even really understood until a year ago.
You know, I've had my period since I was thirteen.
But something that I've noticed is that we actually know
very little about our bodies on an individual scale. There
(03:25):
are very few guides or times when somebody is going
to sit down with you and just say, this is
what's happening at your body at certain times of the month.
This is why you feel this way, This is what
your hormones do, this is how they influence mood, This
is what is actually happening in this vessel that you have.
(03:46):
You know, we're just expected to deal with it, even
when it impacts our well being without ever actually having
the information that could actually make it better. But today
I want to hopefully provide that guide to you around
PMS and PMDD so that you can know yourself and
know your body better and know how it interacts with
(04:09):
your psychology. Because learning this in your twenties, you know,
it's such an important time for you to start taking
these kinds of things seriously and to start really feeling
in touch with your body. And it's a great time
to be reintroduced to so many ideas and concepts that
we haven't even really spoken about since puberty better a
(04:31):
constant reality for us. So, yes, we're talking PMS, we're
talking PMDD, and we're talking periods specifically the psychology behind
why that period of time before our period takes such
a toll and what's creating that, But also how to
manage those fluctuations, the frustration, maybe even the shame we feel,
(04:52):
the mental impact, the stigma, and also some more niche
questions like should you break up with your partner during
your or lu to your phase? Probably not? Is PMS
a good defense for murder? Also? No, we've got like
so many niche things to talk about hopefully I have
you hooked. But I am going to stop rambling now
and just get into the science and the psychology of PMS.
(05:16):
Stay with us, okay, So, our bodies and hormones and
periods are so complex and seriously different for everyone. You know,
I have never met two individuals who have the same
experiences with their uteruses, so if you experience PMS, it's
(05:39):
going to be different as well. But with that in mind,
with that caveat being said, let's just start with some
really basic factual information about PMS. Now, we're not going
to go too much into the medical side of things,
because that's not my area of expertise. But the basic
explanation of PMS is this. PMS basically describes a set
(06:03):
of symptoms or changes that occur before your period. And
it's estimated that about three quarters of people who get
their period experience at least one change that would fall
under the umbrella of PMS, even if it's not noticeable
to us. So let's go through some of these changes,
(06:24):
because they are both emotional and physical and psychological. I'm
going to start with the ones that I would say
are seemingly most common. The most common ones are tension
and anxiety, are depressed mood, crying spells, bloating, acne, but
then also mood swings, irritability, appetite and craving changes, insomnia, fatigue, headaches,
(06:49):
poor concentration, change in libido, social withdrawal, just to name
a few. You know, some people even describe wanting to
break up with their partner during their luteal phase right
before their period, and they kind of attribute it to
their PMS. In fact, it's actually common for people who
(07:10):
get their periods to have more concerns about their relationship
right before they menstruate because they can be a lot
more sensitive or aware of interpersonal problems, I think, more
irritable in general, and will explain why that is, because
it's certainly not just because women are too emotional. It's
a real hormonal thing. But a recent study conducted at
(07:34):
UCLA did find that women evaluate their relationships differently at
different times in their cycle, sometimes even finding their partners
less attractive right before their period. But that doesn't necessarily
mean they want to break up with them or less committed.
(07:54):
It's just a lot more complicated than that, and it
can just create a lot of nuanced feelings and if
you're someone who has a lot of relationship anxiety, sometimes
that time right before your period, it's really important to
be aware of the fact that you are going to
experience heightened sensitivity and doubts, and how can you stay
(08:16):
neutral in the face of that, knowing that there's another
factor contributing. We're going to talk about that in a second,
But another interesting symptom that I'm sure a lot of
us are familiar with is changes in body image. Our
views towards our bodies change significantly for many women before
the period. In fact, this probably won't come as a surprise.
(08:38):
Our body image and our appraisal of our body typically
gets worse now. Studies have shown this as early as
the eighties and nineties. And it's not just because we're bloated,
obviously that's a factor. It's because body image is a
part of our self concept, and our self concept is
regulated by our brain and to an extent, our nervous
(08:59):
is and how I'm feeling. So when our nervous system
is dysregulated because of hormonal changes, our opinion of ourself
will also change. For me, I always experience this, I
always feel, you know, there's really no better word than
like disgusting, Like I feel disgusting and ugly and like
(09:21):
a monster right before my period, and every single time,
like on the dot three days before, I'll be like, wow,
I have never felt more swollen, and I've never felt uglier,
and i just feel disgusting and like I'm gonna feel
like this way forever. And then it's like, oh bam,
(09:41):
I get my period and it explains it all. And
I still I still have this issue of not being
able to put two and two together, like, really, my body,
my lack of body confidence only really comes around the
time I get my period, and it comes almost every
single month, and yet I'm still surprised when suddenly I
feel awful. I don't know if you can relate, but
(10:04):
I do feel like for many of us, we are
still shocked by the fact that our bodies and our
minds are going to react to the fact that we
go through an entire life cycle every month. And seriously,
that is what it is. When you get your period,
you are at the end of that life cycle. That's
(10:25):
how your entire reproductive system is operating. That is why
when you are about to get your period, it does
feel like a kind of death. Like it feels like
you're dying, do you know what I mean? And then
once ovulation comes back around, you know, you're practically buzzing
because that's like the prime days of your egg's life,
(10:45):
you know. And it's all a cycle of rebirth and
renewal and death and life. And hopefully this explanation makes
sense to you, but it does just show why PMS
can be so debilitating but also frustrating. It feels like
your body is almost punishing you in a real way, like, okay,
well you didn't get pregnant here, this can be your
(11:07):
punishment for not doing what we think you should be doing.
But again, it's all part of that very important cycle
of birth and death that are occurring in our bodies,
which I think is quite spectacular when you think about it.
I think that's just incredible that that is something that occurs.
So something else to knowe fun fact maybe not so fun,
(11:27):
but PMS symptoms will actually get worse the older we
get and the closer we get to menopause and perimenopause.
But once we pass over into menopause it will stop.
That approach, though, is when it's going to be and
its most intense and that makes sense because our hormones
they change the older we get, and they fluctuate more
rapidly the closer we get to menopause due to this
(11:50):
decline in ovarian function. But a lot of individuals have
spoken about this, have spoken about how the older they got,
the more they felt that there was sensitive to these
hormonal changes. Maybe that's something you can relate to. You know,
the first ten years of your getting your period, you
never noticed it, and now suddenly there are these emotional
(12:12):
parts of this process that you never had to deal
with before. Okay, so there's just some basic information about PMS.
Let's talk about something else. Let's talk about PMS's I
don't know angrier sister, pre menstrual dysphoric disorder pm DD.
(12:32):
So PMDD is basically a severe form of PMS. It
shows up a lot less in the population around you know,
estimates are two to five percent, but it is extremely debilitating.
A lot of people who have PMDD describe it as
being like a switch that gets flicked in their brain
(12:55):
and suddenly in the week or you know, two weeks
before their period, instantly, it's like their whole body has
been switched with someone else's in a second. You know,
they will go from sitting at the dinner table being
completely content and peaceful and happy one second, and then
in a click of their fingers, they feel overwhelming rage,
(13:16):
they feel paranoia, frustration, deep sadness, like anxiety that won't
go away and can't be improved, and it feels awful
and terrible, and then just as quickly as it started,
it's over. You know. I actually saw someone describe PMDD
in their case as like a temporary psychosis each month.
(13:38):
You know, it's this scary and terrifying thing for them
and for many many people, And because of that, sometimes
it can lead to a misdiagnosis, where there are cases
of people being diagnosed with very extreme mental health conditions
that they don't actually have, but the intensity of their
PMDD symptoms are such that doctors feel like there are
(14:02):
no other explanations. Nowadays, PMD is actually classified as a
psychiatric disorder in the DSM five. It's under the umbrella
of depressive disorders, so you can get a formal diagnosis
if you wish, but it is definitely a struggle identifying
whether it's PMDD or some other form of condition, and
(14:25):
a lot of individuals have explained to me that actually,
before they were diagnosed with PMDD, they were diagnosed with anxiety,
with schizophrenia, with depression, and then finally someone said do
you think it's this? And they had their answer. So
you might be thinking at this stage, well, is it
really all that different from depression or bipolar How can
(14:49):
we tell them? Do they really need a different diagnosis?
And yes, they are very very different because with PMDD
symptoms of depression, of anxiety, of BPD, of whatever other
condition of which there is a similarity, they are only
present when you are at a specific stage of your cycle,
(15:12):
but they will almost completely disappear afterwards. Yes, sometimes an
individual may be struggling with the aftermath of what occurred
during that week, and they may feel like they have
to repair some damages or they're just so tired from
how intense everything was. But that doesn't mean that their
symptoms are lasting for the entire four weeks, which means
(15:36):
that they are never really in a period of depression
or anxiety long enough if it's coming from PMDD, for
them to be classified with anything but PMDD. Now, I
want to talk about this because I think it's important
to note some people have suggested that pre menstrual dysphoric
disorder shouldn't be classified as a psychiatric justsay order, because
(16:01):
it's just pathologizing normal, normal hormonal fluctuations and it makes
women seem crazy. And when that debate was around and
coming up, there were hundreds and hundreds of letters written
by doctors, obgyns, psychiatrists, psychologists behind whether or not it
(16:23):
should or shouldn't have been included. Some of the arguments
are very valid, Like you know, some feminist scholars, they
did say it could be used to silence women, it
could feed into like a high hysteria, a traditional hysteria mindset.
Some people didn't say there wasn't enough differentiation, but you
know what, the level of hormonal fluctuations needed to occur
(16:47):
to make someone suicidal or unable to leave bed or
to keep a job is not normal. That's not pathologizing
something normal. And a diagnosis is not only validating, but
it is a way to get the help you need.
It helps people also feel seen and acknowledged by the
medical community because they have some kind of label that
(17:09):
feels respected. And if we can have a formal diagnosis,
we can actually start seeing the true prevalence of PMDD,
which also assists in increased research funding, increased awareness, which
is really really essential and given how little attention female
health gets in general, Like there are more studies done
(17:31):
on male baldness than PCOS and entremetriosis combined. Like, I
think we could do with a little bit more visibility
heat for female health concerns. PMDD and PMS, just to
say this one last time, though they are different, they
are very different, and PMDD is a lot more extreme.
So if PMS was in the DSM, I would understand
(17:53):
why people have issues, but PMDD is a serious condition.
PMS is as well, but PMDDS in particular does require
a lot of additional assistance. So I think having a
proper diagnosis means that a lot of women will no
longer have to have the experience of going to the
doctor saying this is how my life feels. It feels
(18:14):
like everything is falling apart in this cyclical way, and
people just assuming, oh, you're just pmsing, like, just push
through it, take a bath, as if PMS in itself
is something that's always going to be easily manageable. So
there's one more term I need to introduce, here that's
separate from PMS and PMDD, and it's called pre menstrual exacerbation. So,
(18:38):
if you have an existing mental health condition like depression, anxiety,
bipolar disorder, even something like ADHD, you may notice that
your symptoms or conditions get worse in the lead up
to your period compared to what you're accustomed to. Suddenly
you know your anxiety level is at a ten, You
feel empty, psychotic symptoms even worsen as well. It's not
(19:02):
that your symptoms are only occurring during that week. They're
always present, unlike PMDD. It's just that just before your
period they get so much worse and it becomes so
much harder to deal with. So now that we're across
these three distinct terms and conditions, let's go right back
(19:23):
to PMS and talk about the why. What is responsible
for the psychological changes like sudden irritation, like trouble concentrating
like anxiety, brain fog, and then the secondary impact of
shame and feeling like any kind of visible emotion will
have you taken less seriously or respected less. Where does
this come from? So there's two hormones we need to
(19:45):
be really familiar with here, and you've probably already heard
of them. Of course, estrogen and progresterone very very common.
You've probably heard of them when it comes to your
birth control. Actually, because estrogen and progresterone, well, essentially they're
primarily responsible for reproduction for you, puberty, for pregnancy, if
(20:07):
you do get pregnant, for menopause, for your period, for
your cycle, and wherever you are in your period will
determine the level of either of these hormones. So during ovulation,
estrogen is typically very high, which contributes to why your
skin is glowing, while your hair is radiant, why you
feel incredible, because more estrogen means greater chances of getting pregnant.
(20:32):
So biologically you want to attract a mate. After ovulation,
though progress strone levels rise sharply while estrogen dips, leading
to a lot of physiological neurobiological changes. So researchers have
shown that particularly less progressterone in particular, does change how
(20:56):
our brain operates and feels. Particularly, it changes how we
process and regulate levels of serotonin in the brain. Serotonin
is the happy hormone, the happy chemical, and in order
for it to be released at a proper rate and
to be received at a proper rate inside the brain,
(21:16):
a certain level of progresterone needs to be available now.
Of course, when that dips before our period, suddenly the
systems in place that are releasing serotonin, which are used
to a certain level of progresterone no longer have that level,
and so it feels like it's squeezing juice out of
an already juiced orange. Some further information and studies that
(21:37):
we need to be aware of also indicate that progresterone
influences the GABBA receptors in the brain, which are involved
in regulating anxiety and mood. So if you listen to
our anxiety episode, you'll understand what gabba is. Gabba is
an inhibitor in our brain, so it provides a calming effect.
(21:59):
But if progress desterone rises after ovulation and then steadily
drops off right before our period and naturally drops, that
means that GABBA receptors, much like serotonin receptors, aren't being
coaxed as much or activated as much, so our reception
of gabba declines, meaning that we are more anxious as
(22:23):
a result. Because glutamate, which has an exidinary effect, doesn't
have its counterbalance. Basically, we need gabba to stay calm.
But GABBA can only be read by the brain with
the help of progressterone. So when there's less, the neuro
chemicals that make us feel naturally anxious aren't being regulated
or met with as much resistance. Now, this is what
(22:48):
creates a lot of the emotional and psychological symptoms of PMS.
Something to note these hormonal changes, they're totally normal. In fact,
it's an important part of that life and death cycle
we talked about before. So why is it you might
be asking, if this is normal, why do I feel
so terrible? And why is it that some of us
(23:10):
you know, never experience PMS, but others of us have
debilidating PMDD symptoms, Like where does this variation come from? Well,
according to a study published in The Lancet back in
I think two thousand and nine, actually, women with PMS,
it's not that their hormones are changing more rapidly. It's
(23:32):
that they have an increased sensitivity to even minute hormone changes.
And because of this, what for some people would be
easily dismissed by our brain feels like an entire psychological, emotional,
neurochemical earthquake. The shift from having certain leve levels of
(23:55):
chemicals available to having just even slightly less hormones or
chemicals available. Yours a lot more magnified than certain people,
and those certain people are more likely to develop PMS
and PMDD. This was backed by another review in psycho
Neeurodoctrinology and in this journal. This paper suggested that again,
(24:15):
it's not hormonal fluctuations that cause PMS. They are just
the catalyst. It's how they're processed and how our Neuer
endocrine system reads those messages. The messages are the same,
but sometimes the part of us that is meant to
read these messages doesn't read them very well, causing those
(24:38):
emotional and physical shifts. Sometimes you know, it's just because
that's how you were born. It's the part of your
genetic blueprint that's difficult to explain. The same way that
some people need glasses, some people's new endocrine system probably
also needs glasses so that it can properly read, interpret, understand,
regulate the hormonal changes that come with you know, being
(25:02):
on your period, that come with your mental cycle. So
the biggest theory is that a large contributor to having
severe PMS symptoms or PMDD does come down to genetics,
but there's also something else involved. Circumstances like trauma can
actually trigger the emergence of PMS, both in early life
(25:24):
and later in life. So the study I'm about to
talk about blew my mind when I first read it,
and I don't think we can say that often happens
for studies about genetic irregularities and mutations, like it's pretty
much pretty boring. I don't know. Maybe you're a geneticist
and you're like, no, it's so fascinating, But in general
reading about genetic codes, it's not like going to an
(25:46):
amusement park. But this one article about PMDD, I really think,
like the explanation given in it could change lives. And
it was published in twenty twenty two, and it found
that many of us actually contain a certain genetic code
that would predispose us to PMDD, but it never gets
(26:08):
switched on in most of us. Most of us it
lays dormant, so we don't go on to develop PMDD.
But some of us are not so lucky. And what
switches on this genetic code is, well, it's trauma. The
stress and change of trauma for some reason, has this
(26:30):
impact of activating this mutation, and it's a mutation that
a lot of us have, but like I said, only
you know, I think it's less than five percent of
us in and us like it will ever be activated
five percent. And in this study they identified this gene
and they found that eighty three percent of the women
in their sample of randomly selected PMDD patients they had
(26:54):
experienced some kind of trauma, the most common being early
life trauma and emotional abuse. Now, those rates in this
circle of women with PMDD is so much higher than
the rate of trauma in the general population. You know,
they say the body keeps the score, and in this case,
(27:15):
oh my gosh, is it true. And I've seen so
many people reacting to this study who have said, I
knew it. I knew something was different about me in
the way my body worked. One individual I read an
account from she even talked about how her PMDD only
began after a particularly traumatic relationship in a car accident,
and suddenly it seemed the gene was activated. She was,
(27:38):
like she said in this recount, like I can see
a distinct before and after. And researchers are still trying
to get to the why of this all and understand
this further. But I think for a lot of people
who have experienced PMDD or extreme PMS for a long time,
sometimes this explanation is validating enough. Sometimes you can really
(28:03):
find some solace in the fact that you know it
wasn't you, that your body is behaving differently beyond your
control and from the past from something that occurred to you.
So yes, it's a combination of predisposition but also environment
that it makes PMS and PMDD specifically more likely to emerge.
(28:27):
There are some other risk factors that we should mention,
including smoking, poor physical health, but also thyroid problems because
our thyroid is responsible for the release of progressterone, and
so if it's not functioning, we may encounter problems. A
lot of this is coming back to our neuroendocrine system,
(28:48):
and you know, you do see a lot of stuff
being like it's because of your diet, and it's because
of this and that, and you're not taking the right
supplements and all these things. I think that actually it's
a lot more common plex and that, and if that
previous study had anything to say, like it links back
to so many things that happened to us rather than
(29:08):
things that we are actively doing to ourselves. So I
really don't like this narrative that blames women who have
PMS or PMDD with poor lifestyle choices and that's why
it's occurring, and you could so easily change your lifestyle
and it would all fall away for you. That's definitely
not the case. Maybe only about five ten percent of
(29:30):
truth in that statement. So hopefully this explanation makes some
kind of sense to you. It's given you more clarity
over very invisible workings in your body below the surface.
We are going to take a quick break right now,
but when we return, we are going to talk science backtips.
When in your cycle is the best time to make
decisions how to manage unhelpful feelings and thoughts associated with
(29:54):
PMS or PMDD, and so so so much more so
please stay with us. Dealing with PMS and PMDD was
described to me by a listener as Sisyphus pushing his
(30:14):
rock up the hill every month. You have to deal
with the same roller coaster every month. It feels like
you are at the behest of some hidden emotional forces,
and it's frustrating and it's exhausting, and it feels like
it will never be over and never be Okay. Sometimes
there's even an anger there, anger at your body for
(30:36):
you know, doing what it's meant to do, but being
so inconvenient about it. You know, it doesn't seem to
care about your life or your professional engagements, or your plans,
or your relationship or your mental stability, none of the above.
That coupled with the fact that you know, well, we've
spoken about this already, but the medical system in general
takes health problems typically associated with women and likes to
(30:59):
ignore them for as long as possible and be dispissive
and say you're over reacting, or have you tried exercise
or two parannals should do the trick. You know that
on top of it makes it even more tricky. There's
also this sense that if you have PMS, if you
are struggling with an emotional tidal wave, you better can
(31:20):
see all that. You better keep that way down, especially
in the workplace, especially around people who won't understand, because
you don't want to be seen as hysterical. You don't
want to be seen as weak, you don't want to
be seen as too emotional. Because our society has really
devalued specific traits that are peer associated or are associated
(31:43):
with being a woman, So that is definitely the cherry
on top that none of us asked for. With all
that in mind, though, I wanted to bring together, yes,
some of the best advice I could find for how
to help yourself psychologically and mentally for that period where
your brain feels like it has been switched with someone
else's and some wires across without you knowing, how can
(32:06):
you do more than just wait it out. A philosophy
I have in my life is that the more you know,
the less you can be misled when it comes to
our bodies. That has never been more true. Now, I
don't want you to misconstrue my words and say, like, oh,
you shouldn't get advice from a doctor like you. If
you've read twenty books about PMS, you know more than
(32:29):
a specialist like not the case. It's obviously great to
educate yourself and to know more, but we're specifically talking
about knowing your own body better. So if you have
been struggling with PMS, the best thing you can do
is start keeping a Feelings in Emotions journal or app tracker,
(32:50):
any form of I don't know, information gathering. When it
comes to your symptoms, you know that can be synced
up to your period app if you use, but also separately.
The app that I love is called mind doc, and
it's incredible. It basically offers you check ins and helps
you to identify emotional patterns in this really cool mathematical,
(33:14):
graphical visual way. So if you're a visual processor, if
having a visual map of how you're feeling on certain
days over a period of time would be helpful, that
is definitely a good option for you. But I also
find it really really validating, even just a journal about it.
And I find it validating because I'm able to say,
(33:37):
through noticing these patterns, oh okay, this is linked to
a known part of my cycle where I feel terrible.
I don't need to beat myself up over this the
way that I have been doing. I know it will pass.
I don't need to think that it's gonna last forever.
This happens every month, and I know it because here
(33:59):
is my information. You know, sometimes our lives are so
busy and hectic and over stimulating that we fall out
of sync with how our body feels. And so when
things do come up headaches, mood swings, hormonal changes, anchor,
we feel shocked and stressed by it because we haven't
(34:20):
been expecting it, because we haven't been paying attention to
where we are in the cycle of our periods, where
we are in our bodies at any given moment. So
it's really really important that if you're struggling to get
more information about the cycles presenting in your body than
you already have, my next tip is to focus on
(34:41):
sleep hygiene. So I interviewed a doctor recently for the
show Doctor Mark Hymen, and his episode is coming out
very very soon. But something he said to me that
has become a fixation point of mind in the last
however many days, is that if he have to go
back to twenty and tell himself one piece of advice, yes,
it would be to sleep more. And if you have
(35:04):
PMS or PMDD in particular, the studies have shown time
and time again, seven to nine hours every night is
not an option, it's an essential, and it's what your
body needs to be able to restore itself, and it
definitely needs that. During your lude, your phase, when your
cells and your mind and your uterus and your whole
body is under even more stress, You're probably thinking, yeah, okay, whatever,
(35:29):
great advice, I'm busy I've heard it before. I've tried that,
to which I say, please try again, because which discomfort
is worse to you, the discomfort of not having you know,
a few extra thirty minutes of screen time before bed,
or finding it harder to regulate your emotions. Sleep hygiene
(35:49):
is so important. Here are like three really simple ways
you can do that really low effort that I just
need you to try. I've tried. They work like a charm.
Number one, I need you to get an old fashioned
alarm clock. Number two, I need you to keep your
phone out of your room. Number three, don't watch TV
or movies or whatever else on your laptop, iPad phone
(36:13):
in your bed. All of these help create a distinction
between the spaces and the times when you are meant
to be awake and alert and the times when you
are meant to be RESTful and sleeping. And this change
costs you the price of an alarm clock from a
two dollars store, and it could even help you live longer,
(36:33):
if not make your PMS feel more manageable. I would
also say, try and create a soft, gentle routine for
yourself during that week or that period for you of
intense symptoms. Now what does that look like. That needs
to look like, less intense socializing, less drinking, hopefully zero drinking,
(36:59):
more working from home if you can, less genes, more leggings,
give yourself the gift of ten more minutes to get
ready in the morning, ten more minutes to slow down
at night to get places on time. Prioritize less activities
during your day. Now, this last one is huge for
me because I don't know if you can relate to this,
(37:22):
but as someone who is you know, I would say
has some high achiever perfectionist tendencies. Giving myself just a
break from a big schedule, a high load schedule is very,
very difficult. But you know, literally the other day, I
went to a pilates class and I was in such
a bad mood. I was just you know, I had
(37:45):
all these PMS symptoms and halfway through, I was just
feeling so irritated, and I left. I got up, I
said thank you to the teacher. I was like, it's
not you, it's me, and I went away. I went away,
and I went home and I just got into bed
because that's what my body was calling for me to do,
even if my mind wanted me to be more efficient
or productive. I find really that my capacity to do
(38:09):
more and even my capacity to be around others declines
right before my period. I find that I don't have
the same bandwidth to be present, to reciprocate energy wise,
to monitor others' emotions, to deal with my own frustrations.
I have less space for empathy because I'm so irritated
and there's normally a lot on my mind. Now, this
(38:31):
has nothing to do with the other person, They're just existing.
It has everything to do with me and how wired
and raw my nerves feel, which can just make me,
I'm sure, unpleasant to be around, and it makes me
feel more drained. So going slowly means subtracting rather than
adding things onto my plate during a time when I
(38:55):
know stress is going to be heightened for me, and
even sometimes avoiding things that I would typically find enjoyable
just for a few days, for some solo time. Also,
you need to be dilly dialing more. You need to
be less rushed towards certain goals or certain chores of
getting things done, especially during this period. I need you
(39:16):
to just relish the act of slowing down, of being
more present, of walking around without music in your ears,
without too many freaking what do they called tote bags
on you trying to get from one place to the other,
feeling completely overwhelmed. We are about softness, We are about
slowing down. We are about long term sustainability and self
(39:40):
sufficiency rather than burning way too bright, way too fast. Also,
another part of this is just focus on low impact exercises,
because there have been studies, including one from twenty twenty four,
that have suggested that things like kit workouts actually spike
progresstant and then cause it to, as a counterbalance, rapidly
(40:01):
decline later on, which we know will end up impacting
GABA levels and lead to more anxiety, which is already
at a low during this stage of the cycle. So
take your rest days, go for a long walk instead.
You don't need to push yourself on. Your body is
asking for rest, In fact, it's demanding rest. You've got
to lean into what each period of your cycle actually
(40:24):
calls for you to do, based on the instincts of
your body and where you're going to seek comfort. This
is also more of a behavioral tip. But don't make
any big decisions during this time. Consider them, make a
plan for them, don't act until you feel clear headed. Now,
(40:48):
this isn't to say that women are hysterical and not
to be trusted because their period makes them do crazy
hysterical things like No, that's quite a harmful narrative. I
just think on a personal level, you want to know
when your brain, specifically your emotional brain is going to
be at its best. You want to know when your
(41:08):
brain is going to be most capable and smart, and
really hone in on those times to make big decisions,
to question big things. When you're on your period or
right before, it's just going to be all wrapped up
in additional anxiety and stress and tension, and I think
it's not going to help you feel confident in the decision,
(41:30):
even if it's the right one. So know when to
trust your instincts versus understand that something is an impulse
and structure decision making and planning around those peaks and
troughs of your cycle and of your mental state. I
think handling PMS or PMDD is all about just ease
and the path of least resistance and what's going to
(41:52):
make things simpler for you when your mind and your
body is feeling chaotic. I also would suggest you think
about getting professional help and not just from your family doctor,
but someone who really knows what they're talking about. There
are so many more treatments now, you don't need to
despair over your PMS, your PMDD taking over your life.
(42:13):
There are so many more options. And just organizing a
time where you can go and learn about some of those,
hear what someone else has to say about your condition,
maybe even be validated in what you've been experiencing, is
so so important. Some final two tips. If you have
a partner, invite them to share your period app details
(42:37):
or like invite them to follow along for you. I
don't know what is it like. Join your cycle app,
join your cycle aps so they can see peaks and troughs,
understand when to bring up arguments, when to bring up
small things better for both of you, so that you're
not constantly in a state of conflict. I also sometimes
do this with my friends. You just understand each other better.
(42:59):
You know what the other person needs. You can mediate
and moderate conversation and expectations and communication and plans so
much better when you do. Just have a more in
depth understanding of what everyone's current emotional capacity and emotional
state is like, and have empathy for yourself. You know,
(43:21):
your body is so complex, Like it's one of the
most complex things to exist, and there is nobody in
the world who can possibly understand every single reaction and
thing that goes on below the surface that you are
forced to feel Like PMS dials every single tiny reaction
(43:41):
up to one hundred and has you feel them all
at once. And it's tricky and it's hard. It's also
something that others are going through and you can find
the light in it. There are so many more resources,
so many more ways and opportunities to be open in
our communication to talk about it and to make this
condition both PMS and PMDD more visible and not a weakness,
(44:08):
just an addition to our lives that we have to
navigate as expertly as possible. Okay, we're going to take
one more quick break, and then when we return, we
are going to move on to our listener questions. If
you aren't familiar with this segment of the show because
it is relatively new. A couple months ago, I started
inviting listeners to ask our own personal questions when it
(44:30):
comes to our topics, just to make sure that we
cover what people are actually interested in and some of
the more niche questions that you may have for us.
So we are going to take a quick little pause,
and when we return, we have some juicy questions, some
great questions from my lovely, lovely listeners. The listener questions
(44:54):
this week were so good, they were so amazing. I
was very intrigued to dig a little bit deeper into
what you guys want to know. We're going to start
with this question, which I found so fascinating. How would
PMS interact with ADHD? So I consulted some really interesting
(45:16):
articles about this, specifically a paper from twenty twenty three,
and what it suggested is that having ADHD and PMS
is and this is literally their words, this is a
direct quote from this article, a double whammy, whereby symptoms
of ADHD are more likely to increase when estrogen levels drop,
(45:40):
so right as your period starts in just before. In particular,
they found two things happen. There is an increase in
approach that's risk taking behaviors, but more so an increase
in avoidance and negative effect so negative mood, but also
in attention symptoms. If you're finding that your ADHD is
(46:02):
getting worse before your period, you are not mistaken it's
a real thing. And they also noted, and I'm glad
they did that. The pressure to mask your ADHD or
appear functional is also a lot more prominent and stronger
in women, and so sometimes feels that you have to
suppress or conceal two things at once. You know, you
(46:23):
have to suppress your ADHD symptoms even though you feel
more agitated and you feel like they are stronger, but
you also don't want to be seen as overly emotional,
so you have to either consciously or unconsciously ignore your
PMS symptoms as well. I know that probably paints a
very bleak picture, but I think that information is so
(46:44):
valuable to know it because you can just say to yourself,
this is not me, Like, it's not just me. It's
not because I'm too sensitive or weak or because they
lack of discipline. It's because of this so called double whammy,
this hormonal influence on my mental state and my capacity
to pay attention, to focus, to control my impulses. So
(47:06):
I would really recommend reading this article. It's called Attention
deficit slash hyperactivity disorder and the menstrual cycle Theory and
Evidence from the Journal of Hormones and Behavior it's actually
also free access as well. And if you're a psychology
student or someone who accesses a lot of academic papers,
you'll know that when something's free, when you haven't an
(47:28):
open access paper, it's like a dream come true. So
there's no excuses. Go give it a read. I think
it will be quite validating, quite eliminating as well. Okay,
the second question we got was how do I navigate
early dating during PMS. Now this is tough because we
talked about how PMS sometimes promotes, encourages, creates a lot
(47:54):
of interpersonal tension just because we are coming to the
table feeling a little bit different in ourselves, perhaps less patient,
perhaps more sensitive. And so when you first started dating someone,
sometimes you don't always want to present that version of
yourself that maybe you feel a little bit ashamed of.
You have no reason to, but maybe you're like, oh,
(48:16):
you know dating is anxiety inducing enough, then put in
my PMS or my PMDD symptoms and like it's just
a freaking hurricane of a reactivity and not knowing what's
going to happen. So I think you have two options
based on how you want to go about it. The
first path is slow and cautious. The second is all in.
(48:37):
So with the first path, we are going to consciously
take back time for ourselves during our period and not
communicate why that is with someone else. So if they're
not your partner, if it's early dating, you might not
want to let them in. You might not want them
to know what is going on because dating can be stressful.
(48:58):
PMS can be stressful, actually if you are worried about
someone's approval or judgment of it. So only engage with
this person when you feel like it. Try and pull
back a little bit for that period, just for your
own self care. But also remember that you can't say
the wrong thing to the right person. They will understand.
(49:19):
They will reciprocate or give you know, give you grace
and be generous and kind if you do tell them,
And that is option two. Option one you tell them
later down the line. You spend those first three months,
you know, managing your PMS on your own as you
have been accustomed to. Or you can just be upfront.
You can be straight up and just say, hey, I'm
(49:42):
gonna be kind of out for the count this week.
I've got really bad PMS and I don't really want
to be around people. Is that? Okay? Do you understand
it's probably a very good litmus test as well as
to whether someone will make a good partner if they
can respond positively or appropriately to you telling the about
this medical condition you have and how it makes your
(50:03):
life more difficult. Okay? Question number three, why do I
want to rage at everyone? I mentioned this a couple times,
but we didn't speak about it in depth, which is
totally an oversight for me. Because rage, anger, frustration, fury
is a huge component of PMS. Why is it this case? Well,
(50:26):
estrogen in particular plays obviously, as we know, a key
role in supporting serotonin, which is the happy hormone, also
helps stabilize our mood. So estrogen drops, serotonin drops mood, swing,
slow patient's irritability all in sew at times as well,
because progressterone induces a calming effect. When that is lower,
(50:47):
you know there is less of that anti anxiety counterbalance,
so it throws your nervous system off balance and increases
your sensitivity to stress and to frustration into small mistakes.
It to you blow up in your mind because your
brain is just dealing with a lot right now. You
may also find that your window for tolerance is a
(51:08):
lot smaller, like the little things that you would normally
look past are so frustrating and so irritating. There is
some evidences to actually suggest that the amig deala, which
is the brain's emotional alarm system, is a lot more
reactive during this time before and just as your beriod
begins as well. So it's also about interpretation. The same
(51:33):
things might be happening in your life. People may be
acting exactly the same, but everything like your interpretation of
these events and these stimulus and these situations might feel
increasingly threatening or upsetting. I do think the same tips
from before apply. Just take care of yourself, take step
step backs when you need to communicate openly with whoever
(51:56):
you feel comfortable with that this is what's going on.
Just give yourself space and time to feel agitated, but
then soothe or find a way through it through exercise,
through boxing, through creating art, through talking about it, through
some kind of movement or processing mode. Final question, does
(52:18):
PMS get better with hormonal birth control? So? Hormonal birth
control is actually one of the frontline treatment options for
PMS because most birth control contains either synthetic estrogen or
synthetic progress terrone. So when you add in more of
these hormones than what your body suddenly, suddenly or currently
(52:41):
has available, it will assist with soothing some of those
symptoms that have become uncomfortable. It does still have its
downsides and it does still have issues, as any medication does.
No medication is perfect. Definitely consult your doctor. My experience,
I found that it helped a little bit, but everything
(53:02):
that I was feeling was still there. It just felt
a little bit muffled, like it felt like I was,
you know, under the water in a pool and was
like looking up and there were all the things that
I wanted to feel, and I wasn't really able to
because for me, birth control also had some you know,
emotional blunting effects. But all in all, if that's what
(53:23):
you're after, it could be very very useful. Just talk
to your doctor see what they have to say. Okay
for rapid fire questions, we got them all done. I
hope you learned something from those. Thank you to the
brilliant listeners who contributed. I really appreciate getting to know
and understand what you guys want to hear. What is
pertinent to your life right now, So keep them coming.
(53:45):
Make sure you're following me over there at that Psychology podcast.
There's going to be so much on the new book,
so much on new episodes, asking you to vote, asking
you to contribute, so please don't miss it. I would
love to see you over there, and until next time,
stay safe, be kind, be gentle with yourself, especially if
you're having a rough time with some pmspmd D symptoms.
(54:07):
We will talk very very soon there
Host
Jemma Sbeghen
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