To me, PMDD is a delicate dance between mental states of an overwhelmed, damaged self to a reflective, conscious self. The most challenging piece to this disorder is reaching a state of awareness while submerged in the storm of the lost, debilitated self…
“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.
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.
It’s only taken nearly 20 years for a medical professional to remotely acknowledge that PMDD exists and that is my likely diagnosis, a young psychiatric nurse at that. After visiting several health professionals over the years about what mother nature does, “just PMT” they said.
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.
Getting away from your triggers, be they at work or home, the people who irritate you are normally amplified on bad days. How can you walk away from your life? Your home? Your job The only way that I have been able to describe it and come close is in two ways with two examples.
Today they told me I have PMDD. It was no surprise really. I didn’t know whether to feel relieved or distressed. Would knowing make me feel these emotions more intensely? Sometimes being less self-aware might be a blessing, but the truth is, I’m the opposite.
Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD) “makes my life an endless dance with depression and anxiety to the beat of my menstrual cycle,” and more.
In 2009, my female GP formally diagnosed me with Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD). I had never heard of this disorder, but I had definitely suffered from it. So, for the past ten years, I’ve been in a mad frenzy to discover all I can about this disorder and have learned even more about myself in the process.
By Pam My name is Pam, and I have PMDD. I am turning 50 years old this week, on Friday, and I Read More
