Am I going crazy or is it PMDD?

I am writing to find out if I am the only one out there that goes through this hell. I have literally one week a month of sanity if you can call it that. The week after my period. Then it starts, mood swings, irritability, sadness(bouts of crying for no reason), sometimes you feel angry, to the point that you wake up angry and don't know why. Bloating, breast swelling and tenderness, headaches, acne. The part that bothers me the most is that I tend to not realize that I am taking things out on the people I love the most. I snap at my kids when they really aren't doing anything bad at the moment but because they did earlier and I'm still stewing on it. If my partner says "Honey are you pmsing?" in nice way , asking out of concern or just states I think you might be pmsing. WOW! I lose it. I guess it's a partial denial on my part. I know every month it will happen but once it's gone I forget about it. I don;t want to see it or hear about it again. Maybe if I don;t hear it or think about it it will go away is how I've been processing it. Well it doesn't work! Here's the kicker, I have Epilepsy also, that means I can not use any anti depressants or hormones of any sort to help me through this. Go figure,? So, I have been researching and researching and found a lot of sites that show Evening Primrose Oil is an excellent source of help for PMS, PMDD, Menopause and other female problems. So ladies if there is anyone out there like me that can not take other meds and are going through this alone I have found this info. I am getting the Primrose tomorrow. I will post weekly to let you know if I see any difference or not I will also have the help of my partner letting me know her input. Please feel free to email me or contact me. I would love to hear from someone else that goes through this also.

I'm not going through what you're going through. What I go through is the moodiness, breast tenderness, feeling s**tty for about a week or ten days before I actually start my period and for a couple of days after I finish.

What I'm currently going through is having 4 ovarian cysts. The biggest one is bigger than my right ovary. The other 3 are small. I'm scared. I'm having surgery to have the right ovary removed next month, on the 23rd. Yes, 2 days before Christmas. I feel in one way that I'm going to lose part of my femininity. I'm dazed and confused about the whole thing. I don't know if any other one is going through this or has. I'd like some feedback on this.

I do sympathize with you a lot. I have had a cyst before and they hurt and mine burst. I did not have to have my ovary removed though. I do know people that have had one removed to keep their hormones. They didn't have any problems keeping that I know of. Doing it 2 days beofre Christmas doesn't sound like a great time. I wish you the best of luck, If you symptoms are still there after the surgery, two weeks before your period I would tell the Gyn. Maybe you do have pmdd pr are starting peri menopause. I do not know your age, but it is possible to start at 35 and sometimes younger.

I'm 47. I think I've started peri menopause. I've been having some hot flashes as well as cold flashes. I think I've driven my hubby crazy over it.. I'm not completely crazy about the date of my surgery, but I think it's a lot better than dealing with the pain from the cysts. I also think I've driven my hubby crazy about me being in pain so much and for as long as I have. I don't do pain well.

I know what your talking about and I have been diagnosed with PMDD in the past. Usually the week after my period i'm "sane" just like you said, then i start to get depressed, often dangerously self destructive depressed, and then when i start my period again I get manic for a few days. The doctors now know that i don't have PMDD but just Bipolar that is exasberated by my period hormones. What i'm trying to say is that if your not diagnosed with Bipolar you could very well have PMDD. I know exactly what your going through. Its drives me crazy...literally. Hope this helps...just to know that your not alone always helps me.

I have experienced very similar to what you're describing prior to getting on a contraceptive pill called Yasmin. Personally I was able to go on this pill because I wanted to be on a contraceptive pill to begin with and I found the pill helped my symptoms greatly. I can imagine what it would be like without it and I know how that is. As you said it is like going throug hell.

I have heard that Vitamin B6 helps as well as a herbal remedy called chasteberry. Hope you will find something that helps. I know PMDD can cause a havoc in a persons life and of course it will affect the people they care about.

For me before I realized what this was I felt like I was going crazy. By the way, I'm a mental health nurse so I knew the symptoms I had almost mimicked that of major depression and that scared me. This only happened though when I was a week to 10 days before my period and then it resolved right after my period.

Now since I've been on Yasmin I may have one or two days before my period where I feel down and a litle anxous or irritable but it is nothing compared to how it was before I got on the pill. Again, I can not imagine what I would do if I wasn't able to be on this pill.

Although, just being aware of what is happening and doing what you can to help is a big step. There was a time when I didn't know what PMDD was and I kept swiching different pills. I wasn't sure what was going on. I know there are many women out there that are suffering but don't know what is happening.

Anyway, hope you'll find something that helps.

I wish I could take a hormone pill and make it in a sense "go away" nearly. I have read about chasteberry and B6 as well as Evening Primrose oil and Black Cohosh. I can not take Black Cohosh and do not know that I would if I could. I currently take a multi vitamin, B Complex, and Potassium. I will be starting the Primrose next month, due to I will be getting the wonderful monthly friend this month. WHOO freaking HOO! Can you see I excited? Although I will have my sane week after that. I do have to say this month has been the mildest in a long time. Only food cravings, crying bouts and being over sensitive, slightly irritated not much though, I'm not even snapping at the kids. Which is AMAZING and they are both out of school this week so we will see how it goes. Peri menopause has a play in this too. Hot flashes occasionally, vaginal dryness. When do we ever get a break?

Hi there. I do have a PMDD diagnosis and in the past have used birth control pills and anti-depressants to try to help, with some success (FYI, I also have seasonal affective disorder, or SAD). Most recently, I was taking Celexa and Wellbutrin, both in relatively small doses, as I am very sensitive to medication. Wellbutrin was exacerbating my migraines, so I decided to discontinue it; en I came off of it, I decided to come off of the Celexa as well, since it didn't seem to be helping much anymore. Instead, I have started an amino acids regimen, which seems to be helping quite a bit. I have been learning from the books of Daniel G. Amen, MD (Change Your Brain, Change Your Life) and Julia Ross (The Mood Cure).

- I subbed 500 mg L-tyrosine for the Wellbutrin, which works well to activate me and get me going in the morning, which for me is pretty critical during the winter months.

-To help minimize depression, I take 1300 mg cod liver oil (which contains omegas and Vitamin D) in the winter, and just regular fish oil in the summer. It's good for your heart, skin, and a number of other things, too.

-For PMDD specifically, I take 1000 mg of evening primrose oil during the luteal phase of my cycle and it helps level out the mood swings.

-I take GABA sublingual dissolving tablets 2-3 times a day to help diminish my anxiety, help me focus, and curb my food cravings.

Most of the supplements listed above can be used safely alongside medications, but make sure you let your doctor stays informed of everything you are taking, supplements included. Fish oil, for instance, can be a blood thinner, which is a good thing, but not necessarily if you are already on a pharmaceutical blood thinner.

Speaking of food, diet makes a huge difference. The Cycle Diet http://www.cyclediet.com/ is an excellent guide; cut out smoking, drinking, caffeine, artificial sweeteners, fried foods, and reduce sugar and fat intake and you will feel a lot better! (No, really - you will.) Also, 30 minutes of walking a day and drinking water both help. For support, there is an online community called Life with PMDD that is decent; the women there are friendly, I have found.

FYI, I also use a full-spectrum lamp to help address SAD.

Good luck - it's no fun, that is for sure. I have to say that I think that nutritional supplementation and diet and exercise have made the hugest difference for me thus far.

-KP

I finally started taking EPO in October and my last 2 periods have FINALLY been very "normal". I also took Passion Flower during November so I don't know if that might have helped as well.

It's weird - the science thus far doesn't support EPO as a remedy, but it really has made a huge difference for me. That's great that it is working for you!

The "science" is often paid for by those hoping to profit from something they can patent may have something to do with it.

I hear you - I'm merely saying that the evidence from the few studies that have been conducted has been inconclusive, which is too bad.

For me it was very obvious that EPO made a significant difference, so I have made a point to spread the word about it as much as possible. The friends to whom I have recommended it have benefited as well.

I wish you continued well-being!

I wish that I had listened to people like you a year ago when I first heard of EPO. Thanks for sharing your success!