Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS)/ Premenstrual Tension (PMT)

Does anyone else find that PMS/PMT has a big impact on the level of depression you are feeling and the frequency of suicidal thoughts?

I think that PMS/PMT has got alot to do with my mood taking a turn for the worst sometimes and I wondered if there is anything that can be done to help ease problem.

Durning these times I am so much more irritable and can sometimes find myself angry at my loved ones when they haven't done anything wrong. At the time it seems perfectly reasonable then afterwards I'm to embarrased to say sorry. I find myself alot more tearful than usual and very negative during these times. Afterwards I can see clearly and it seems so obvious that there was nothing to get upset about but at the time it seems very real and very serious.


I'd like to hear your experiences with PMS/PMT & Depression so I can compare how I'm feeling and see if it's normal to be this effected as their might be something that the doctors can do to help!


Thanks

:reub:

 

Yes PMS can increase one depression due to hormonal imbalances. Some Pdoc actually treat some women who are depressed with hormone replacements estrogen progesterone it depends what is happening with the symptoms

 

Wow, I never noticed it before, but I just asked my husband as I was reading this and he said that yes, I do tend to get more depressed around the time of my period every month.

 

I've found that around that time is usually when I tend to think about suicide. So yeah I see my depression get worse when it does come.

 

I used to write an arrow on my calendar at the end of each day. An up arrow for being up, and a down arrow for being down. I used an = sign for okay days. There were some days that got two or three down arrows.

I also kept track of the days of my cycles on this calendar.

Turns out those double down arrows happened on the 16th day of my cycle (sometimes the 17th). The triple down arrow occurred if my husbands pay day occurred on the 16th day of my cycle.

After discovering this, I realized I wasn't crazy, but hormonally challenged. I began to keep the day before, of, and after clear of obligations and I fixed easy to make suppers and I took extra naps.

Doing so made it easier on the whole family.

 

yes, i feel the same. my mood spirals out of control around these times too. i kept a mood diary for 4 months and found the week before my period is due my mood starts to dip, but the week i have my period it goes out of control and i cannot seem to do anything to stop it. i feel as if im constantly battling with this as it then takes me so long to try pick it back up it seems pointless as it then starts to dip again. its a vicious circle.

 

I no longer suffer from premenstrual tension, my wife divorced me. :Leiaha:

 

sorry if that was meant to be funny, its not.

 

Just a bit of dark humour...........thats all......... it is a subject i know well and it affected me deeply.
You know me well enough taken control to know i meant no harm.
Peace.

 

:hug: pete ....and yes pms can be awful. When i did have periods i suffered with it terribly but i dont have them because of the pcos now ...

 

Yes, yes and yes again!

My problems started about 6 months before my periods started as a teenager and have continued ever since. I kept a diary and noticed that my lowest points were running up to my period. I become irrational, crying, feelings of worthlessness - I'm sure all of you on here know the feelings I am describing?

I also have a whole host of physical symptoms which I won't go into but they just make me feel worse mentally and emotionally. When I kept my diary I always noticed that the times I attempted coincided with my PMT - it's like it took away that thread I was hanging onto.

I tried to explain this to many T's and Pdocs and other health professionals and the general opinion was that my depression made my PMT worse but depression was the underlying issue, actually some even made me feel like I was using PMT as an excuse. I think it may be the other way around - I think that being constantly dragged down by these feelings for two weeks of every month has had it's effect and although I know I do suffer with depression I think that the PMT is the greater problem. I went onto a POP contraceptive pill a few months ago (progesterone only pill) and although I had a period the firdt month they stopped after that. Unfortunately due to supply problems where I live due to the bad weather at the start of the year I was unable to get my next 3 month prescription so had to stop taking them and wait for the 1st day of my next period to start again. It can take a while for periods to come back with this pill but I know mine is on it's way! I didn't realise while I was on it but I didn't have the major downs that I associate with PMT. For the first time in ages I'm starting to feel like I can't cope again and having those awful thoughts - I can't wait for it to start so I can get back on them!

Don't get me wrong I know that I suffer with depression but I can cope much better when I'm not being poisoned once a month by my own hormones!

Sorry for rambling on and on............just so relieved to read that I'm not imagining things.

Oh and another thing look up PMDD ~ it makes for some interesting reading.