PMDD

After the latest round of random Russian spammers, I contacted LJ Abuse and they handed the maintainership of this comm over to me, since the original maintainer is no longer around. I've added a user icon, as I find it makes my friends page more readable, and changed the community settings so that membership is now moderated. Hopefully this should keep out the spammers, and it's a quiet community, after all. I haven't bothered to update the profile, it seems to do the job well enough. Any questions, or shall we continue to let this community amble peacefully on as it is?

ETA: I've now set the community up so that all posts will appear as members-only by default. If you want to join this community, just click on the link on the profile page, and I'll get to your application as soon as I can. You're unlikely to be refused. If your profile looks suspiciously empty, for instance if you have set up a secondary account due to not wanting to discuss intimate matters under your usual name, then please contact me by private message, telling me a bit about yourself, so that I know that you are a real person with PMDD and not a spammer.

Hi y'all!

So, many moons ago, I had a Mirena, and I actually liked it, but had a tough first 6 months with it-- not just the cramps and bleeding but an allergic reaction to the levonorgesterel, (full body rash, including my face, hands and feet! Which thankfully went away after 3 days and a lot of Zyrtec, but it was very, very scary) -- and a much harder time when the hormone ran out (I didn't get it removed right away, then did not have it replaced.)

It was, however, good for the PMS/PMDD sort of things, I believe. Still, I'm not sure I"m ready to take the leap back to getting another one.

I started some hormone testing, and my levels spike and drop way off the charts. I was on some bio-identical hormones, but my insurance won't pay for it. My cycle never got super regular (24-27 days), but it seemed to help somewhat (evening out about 26 days). (The nice big new boobs were a bonus, too! haha. They then lowered the estrogen dose and they went back to normal. Feh.)

Anyway, It seems like the main thing I need to do is get my hormones to even out throughout the cycle.

I'm interested in trying a progesterone-only pill to try to mimic the effects of the mirena. I'd tried Jolivette (norethindrone) a while back, and it seemed to help at first, then not at all or possible make depression worse.

Is there a big difference between a norethindrone pill and a levonorgestrel pill? Is a levonorgestrel pill even available?

Anyone have experience with this?

I have depression/anxiety which is GREATLY exacerbated by my cycle. Which is 24 days long. Ugh. When the PMS is better, my dep/anx is better, too.

Thanks!

I wonder about people without this problem. How often do they get irritable, irrational, anxious, sad. What is "normal" in the realm of emotions?

I have been on Lupron injections for 2 months. The menopause symptoms have been horrible so the doctor added a small dose of estrogen. For the past week or so I have not been crying all the time, isolating from my family, feeling hateful toward my family, severely anxious. If this lasts the plan is to have a hysterectomy and then do estrogen replacement to combat the menopausal symptoms. It scares me to have the surgery but after years and years of pmdd symptoms which have led me down the path of utter misery and near suicide it is probably not a bad choice. I am sure that unaffected people cannot begin to understand the severity of pmdd. No money goes into research on it so doctors are grasping at straws to know what meds to try. I have felt like a guinea pig for years with all these "experiments" with medications. I do know what helps me (exercise, eating less sugar and crap, relaxation,) but when I am in a severe state I cannot get myself to do anything. I am  paralyzed.
The thought of living the rest of my life with these mood swings and extremes of sadness, anxiety, anger,..is unacceptable. So, I keep taking the meds offered, read lots of books, pray, and ask my family for forgivenses when the days are really shitty. I think that my biggest sadnees is that my kids have had to watch this monster in me come and go and that despite my explanations to them I know it must be very unpleasant and sad for them.. Happy to feel stable today!

I am on my journey with new medication and feeling hopeful. Month 3 of Lupron injections and day 2 of added estrogen. Not sad, depressed, tearful, angry or irritable for 4 consecutive days. Feels so good to feel normal, hope it will last.

I've been reading about hormone imbalances and menopause recently. Mostly because my monthly craziness/mood swings/energy has been getting worse and got worse since July when I lost weight cos I was in a warm tropical climate and my body started to function properly being at a more suitable temperature. D'oh.

Anyway, along the way I came upon this webpage.

And these 2 paragraphs sprung out at me...'That's definitely me', I said

"
1. Progesterone is a primary precursor in the biosynthesis of the adrenal corticosteroids. Without adequate progesterone, synthesis of the cortisones is impaired and the body turns to alternate pathways. These alternate pathways have masculine-producing side effects such as long facial hairs and thinning of scalp hair. Further impaired corticosteroid production results in a decrease in the ability to handle stress, e.g., surgery, trauma or emotional stress.
2. Many peri- or post-menopausal women with clinical signs of hypothyroidism, such as fatigue, lack of energy, intolerance to cold, are actually suffering from unrecognized estrogen dominance and will benefit from supplementation with natural progesterone."

I hope other people can perhaps find some answers to their monthly changes beyond the 'normal' in similar info or websites. I've perhaps had this imbalance or deficiency for most of my adult life. But not every month has been bad PMT, but I can never predict. And of course, you're on the inside and the experience is always different for the ppl around you.

Keep learning, keep searching. best wishes all.

Hi Ladies,

I'm 37 and I've had PMDD since I was a teenager. My mother and her sisters have it, too. Severe dysphoria -- suicidal ideation, not being able to go to work, crying for hours at a time, despair, anger, the works.

Many things help, or keep it from getting out of control. SSRIs like Prozac or Celexa, and taking the birth control pill. HOWEVER, some pills, the ones that contain Norithendrone (like Ortho-Novum 1/35 or 7/7/7 or Ortho-Tri-Cyclin) make it WORSE. DANGEROUSLY worse. And even on birth control pills that don't make me crazy, I feel pretty rotten a few days before my period.

Exercise works, but you have to do it all cycle long. It doesn't pull me out of the PMDD state, but it prevents it from happening.

Another good method has been to take the pill continuously so I just go as many weeks as possible without having a period. I usually use Desogen (also sold as Apri) or Levlen for this. But now I'm finding in my older age, these pills are giving me more other symptoms I don't like, like trouble with my skin, and more facial hair (not a lot, just enough that I want carry tweezers everywhere I go).

Has anyone tried Yaz? I'm terrified to try it since some pills make me beter, and some pills make me worse. But it seems promising since Yaz has a progestin related to spironolactone, which lowers testosterone and other androgens.

Has anyone gotten worse on Yaz?

Hi everyone, I just joined out of exasperation. I'm recovering from a particularly bad PMDD spell and I feel like I have nobody to go to, so I decided I should join this community and get my feelings out.
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Anyway, now that I got all that out (phew!), here's my list of bizarre PMDD symptoms I get along with the bout of depression, moodiness and exhaustion:

• Super itchy. I have a tattoo on my back that raises during this time, not because of scratching it but my skin just feels like it's really sensitive. I get really terrible, noticeable rashes if anything my skin doesn't like touches it.
  
• Spaciness and disassociation. I don't feel like I'm in touch with reality, I feel like I'm floating through life and have no connection to myself. I am very forgetful as well. I don't touch recreational drugs because I'm scared of making these symptoms worse.
  
• Cold sores. They come out along with the acne, and no makeup will help me hide it. I do have a Zovirax prescription though, which is a godsend.
  
• Complete lack of motivation. I don't want to do anything. The only "chore" I like is being massaged by a hot shower until the warm water runs out.

I have found these PMS Balance tablets to be helpful. Herbs of Gold are an Australian company but can probably send wherever.

 My period is due any day now. I've been in so much pain and so dizzy it feels like the room is spinning. I've been feeling so weak that I don't want to get out of bed. I slept all day today and missed a test. I had to skip two days of school because of this. If I miss tomorrow, I'll get an incomplete in my course. I started taking vitamins not too long ago so there isn't anything I can do there. The economy has hit me so hard lately that I can't afford to go to the doctor that diagnosed me with the PMDD, but I could go to the emergency room. 

I had to be rushed to the hospital once before when my period started because I fainted. The nurse told me it sounds like I have endometriosis, but I really think it's just the PMDD because I was actually diagnosed with it a few years ago.

Should I try to go to the emergency room tomorrow before my class if I still this way? Is there anything I can take to help me? Anything you can suggest would be helpful. I'm really worried.

Thanks.