Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder

Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder

Chasity Wambles

Lakes High School

Psychology P1

Mrs. Morgan

April 10, 2017

ABSTRACT: Today, in the 21st century, periods are one of the most taboo subjects. Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder often goes unnoticed because of this taboo and its similarities to Premenstrual Syndrome. About 3% of women suffer from PMDD. PMDD can be described as a mix of many other psychological disorders, which can lead to a lot of different symptoms.  However, PMDD is easily treatable with herbs and prescriptions. This essay will discuss the symptoms, treatments, changes of PMDD as well as life with PMDD.

Every woman has a period, but the topic is still considered taboo. More than half of the world’s population has a monthly menstrual cycle, 85% of them deal with Premenstrual Syndrome, and only 3-8% have Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder (Florida Hospital, PMDD). With such little recognition, and tons of taboo on the topic, PMDD can be hard to identify as more than just “PMSing.”

The symptoms of PMDD can be hard to catch because they’re not just similar to PMS symptoms, they’re almost identical. Both issues have the tell-tell signs of irritability, anxiety, depression, etc., but there’s a line that, once crossed, can be considered detrimental. Detrimental to the person’s social life, relationships, and themselves. Once the symptoms start to affect a person’s everyday life, the diagnosis is considered PMDD. Symptoms including those stated above as well as decreased interest in usual activities, feeling hopeless, difficulty concentrating, easily tired, change in appetite, change in sleeping pattern, feeling overwhelmed/out of control, and some physical pains. These symptoms are so extreme that this premenstrual phase has been considered by some a risk period for suicide (DSM-5 Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fifth edition).

PMDD is kind of like a mix of many other mental illnesses such as major depressive disorder, panic disorder, general anxiety disorder, even personality disorder. However, PMDD is not a day to day issues, it’s more like rollercoaster. There are good days and there are bad days. Within the final week of menses, which is basically just the act of bleeding out of a vagina, symptoms of PMDD start to make themselves known. Then, it starts to improve within a few days after menses, and becomes very minimal post-menses (DSM-5 Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, fifth edition). For the average female, there is one month in between each menstrual cycle, and sometimes it can be less. One month may seem like a fairly long time, but if the week before and after menstruation experiences symptoms, then that is only about one normal week. Only one week to not feel hopeless, anxious, irritable, and suicidal, and sometimes it can be less than one week. 

Living with PMDD is a challenge, and should not be taken lightly. A woman named Melanie knows all about PMDD; she struggled with it for most of her life. PMDD has only recently been added to medical journals and studies, even PMS is a fairly new medical illness whereas it used to be just a concept. Melanie’s symptoms were so severe that she could barely go outside without her PMDD sneaking up on her. The ‘happy’ week was getting shorter and shorter for her while her symptoms only got worse. Throughout a long list of doctors, Melanie continued to face subpar tests and diagnosis until Dr. David Edelberg saw her. Instantly, Dr. Edelberg sensed what was wrong. After running a few tests, Melanie started therapy. Diet and medicinal strategies were used to help Melanie combat her PMDD, and they seem to have been working great. According to Dr. Edelberg, Melanie had to reduce her intake of sugar, white-flour products, and meats high in saturated fats, increasing lean protein, including complex carbohydrates and all fruits and vegetables as well as oatmeal in the morning and kidney beans or brown rice at other meals. Regular exercise and being in the sunlight was said to bump up her ‘feel-good’ serotonin. Then, two herbs could be taken to aid her in recovery: Vitex to help balance hormones and St. Johns to help bring up her serotonin. However, Vitex usually takes awhile to begin its process, so Melanie used progesterone cream everyday unless on her period. Within three months, Melanie felt great and a lot happier (Case Study: Melanie's PMS Hell).

        Some studies have suggested that PMDD can be hereditary. Even though there is no clear cause for PMDD, the one thing that most diagnosis have in common is there genetic heritage. Roughly seventy percent of the women with PMS, or PMDD, have female family members with that have struggled with the condition. Family heritage has not only been linked to PMDD, but to many other psychological disorders such as depression, anxiety, addiction, etc. A history of depression is also very common in families of those diagnosed with PMDD because depression and PMDD are quite similar. Depression and PMDD both have symptoms of hypersensitivity, hypersomnia, depressed mood, ad carbohydrate craving. However, those with PMDD do not have most depression symptoms, so, it is not seen as more than a modification of a depressive disorder (Diagnosis and Treatment of Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder).