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Hope

bright-side-pmdd-blowing-emotions-away

The Bright Side of PMDD

Even when PMDD makes me feel an infinite sadness, I turn to the skills I’ve learned that work for me to survive – and through it all, I have even found a bright side.

Loving Yourself & Acceptance

Completely Loving Myself by Accepting PMDD

“No more shame! No more fear! No more self-doubt!” After 10 years of coping with my depression, past trauma and alcohol addiction, it is time to come forward with my story. As a sexual assault survivor and Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD) warrior, I am breaking the stigma associated with mental illness in hope that my wisdom will encourage others to confidently reach out for help.

pmdd-love-uncondionally

Loving Your PMDD Unconditionally

When I realized I was suffering from a cycle of depression caused by my hormones, I could not have felt more broken. I had experienced a spell of depression in my teenage years, so it was easy to recognize the symptoms when they resurfaced. This time, however, my circumstances had changed a bit. This depression was not like the one I had experienced before – it was cyclical. Every week or two before my period I was buckling up for depression once again.

Mindfulness

One good thing that PMDD has taught me is mindfulness and self care. I recently had to take some classes on meditation and mindfulness for a requirement. In class, we learned how to be more conscious of our bodies and our surroundings. We often did an exercise called a full body scan: we would lay still and scan our bodies to become aware of the sensations. We would also train ourselves to feel the feelings and pain without letting them consume us.

pmdd-mindfulness

Finding Balance with PMDD

Since I was in my teens, I noticed that I’d have periods of depression or anxiety. I could never figure out that these feelings peaked a week or two before my period. A year or two ago I wouldn’t have been able to feel this shift. I want to share some things that have been working for me.

Im Not PMSing

I’m Not PMSing

PMS and PMDD are quite different. However, they are often described in the books as PMS and then PMDD, a more severe form of PMS. This is partially true, but this analogy can create a lot of confusion and harm to all of us. Here is a little synopsis of what we all know so well: