Can PMDD involve horrendous anxiety rather than depression?

[panickyawfulnight]

I'm wondering about this. I'm about 9 or 10 days away from my period and since last night having a really rough time with anxiety. I have constant low grade anxiety all the time, but normally far better at managing it. Usually it's more background noise with flashpoints (ie something worrying happens with my mum's care) that I can take care of, put to one side, and find solution.

Last night I cried a lot from the sheer anxiety around my mum being ill, did calm down enough to sleep but this morning spent a couple of hours whiteknuckling through feeling terrified again. Complete sense of impending doom in a non specific way - just that everything is terrifying and bad and nothing will ever be ok again. Wrapped in a blanket on my couch with a cup of tea, nothing helping.

Suddenly remembered that I'm in the luteal phase of my cycle and wondering if this could have something to do with it? Could it be a variation of PMDD?

Have resolved to try acupuncture and see if it might be helpful, so will be booking a session this week.

Anyway wondered if anyone experiences anything similar?

Please read up on signs of sepsis and check if they apply to you.

Sepsis? Sorry was that meant for my thread? I will google sepsis but don't think I have any infection?

Ok I've googled sepsis and anxiety, and getting stuff about people suffering from post-sepsis syndrome where they get really bad anxiety. Which totally makes sense of course, as sepsis is so serious and life threatening.

Yes my anxiety levels increase too. Definitely noticed my tolerance wains prior.

Sense of impending doom is a big symptom of sepsis. That and a sore shoulder is all FIL had to be honest, but he got treated quickly.

If it isn't that, then I think your first stop should be the GP, it's important to work out of it's physical or psychological, then look at strategies. Nobody here can help with your specifics, they can't do blood tests for one thing!

I suffer from really bad Pre menstrual anxiety, verging on Paranoia at its worst. I just reach a point in my cycle when i wake up in the morning with butterflies in my stomach and feeling like their is a weight pressing down on me. I just had to learn to rationalise it and talk myself down from acting on any of my anxiety during the 10 days before/during my period. If it coinsides with something genuinely stressful in my life it is horrible (Gynaecologist appointment was a recent example, the Doctor commented on how nervous/anxious i appeared, I just couldn't hide it).

@MRex

Sense of impending doom is a big symptom of sepsis. That and a sore shoulder is all FIL had to be honest, but he got treated quickly.

If it isn't that, then I think your first stop should be the GP, it's important to work out of it's physical or psychological, then look at strategies. Nobody here can help with your specifics, they can't do blood tests for one thing!

Oh, I'm sorry to hear about your FIL. Glad he got help quickly.

Yes I know nobody can give a definitive answer about my personal situation, but I was interested to see whether any other women notice a correlation in anxiety episodes going up when they are premenstrual.

I have always suffered much more from anxiety than depression (post partum ocd, crippling health anxiety at one point etc) and yes, this correlates to my menstrual cycle too. 3 days pre period you have to scrape me off the ceiling in a bad month.

I also get some bloody weird physical reactions when I am anxious including the feeling of doom. It was so odd and recurrent that I had some investigation into whether this was a type of epilepsy or not - came back with a 'we think it's panic but we are not 100% sure' outcome.

So very much agree with the rest re drs as a first step as it could be a few things.

If it helps mine is manageable - I sort of recognise it and ride the wave if you like which in turn makes it less acute.

@Cyw2018

I suffer from really bad Pre menstrual anxiety, verging on Paranoia at its worst. I just reach a point in my cycle when i wake up in the morning with butterflies in my stomach and feeling like their is a weight pressing down on me. I just had to learn to rationalise it and talk myself down from acting on any of my anxiety during the 10 days before/during my period. If it coinsides with something genuinely stressful in my life it is horrible (Gynaecologist appointment was a recent example, the Doctor commented on how nervous/anxious i appeared, I just couldn't hide it).

This sounds like how I was. The knots in my stomach were unbelievable.

How did you learn to rationalise it? I think I need to go back to yoga as I wonder if it was actually helping me a lot with this kind of thing, but I just didn't realise how beneficial it was.

Come join the yoga thread!

I found similar, the regular yoga has helped even me out a tad

I just keep telling myself, "it isn't real, it is just hormones, and it will pass" or simply "f*k off hormones!!", and not act on any anxieties during that time, I tell myself that if it really is a problem (in marriage, at work etc) it will still be there in 2 weeks and i can tackle it then, this stops me f*king things up as I have been known to do in previous relationships as a result of getting so anxious.

It can be handy to write things down or write an email/letter and not send it, just to get things off your chest. I also stick my headphones on and go for a good walk (stomp) and allow myself to wallow in self pity for a while, and get myself to the point of tears and I find this can provide some relief for a while.

It can be handy to start a mood diary, just score your anxiety out of 10, 3 times a day every day, so that you better understand how you cycle is effecting you.

Yes I did get this when I had periods. I used to take the BCP which helped to some extent but when I came off it at 30 I felt better. Still had to address the anxiety etc. I found yoga and starflower oil helped but it can be really debilitating and lots of GPS still don’t understand it well.

Yep, it’s caused by the hormones lowering. Sympathies - it helps hugely to be aware of it. I can always tell when my period is due by the stab of random panic 10 days prior.

I usually have a hellish day a week or so before I'm due on. It's terrifying, literally nothing is right and I'm so sad.

I don't know what can be done - it usually passes after 24 hours but I've if I can work out when it's likely to happen I'm going to work from home on those days as everyone seems to notice in the office and I really can't even smile.

It struck me last time that its perhaps a small insight into how depression might feel.

Oh, just realised. I know what does help or did. Fresh air and long walks and reducing stress. Easier said than done but I used to read/watch tv and stay home more just self care really. When I had them aromatherapy massage with eg blue chamomile oil also really helped.

I used to get this. I couldn’t rationalise it even tho I knew why I was feeling that way, I still felt anxious, like I was terrible and useless at everything, and that something bad was going to happen. I take Angus castus every day now, and I genuinely feel that it helps me. I don’t have the reference, but there is a paper which shows benefit in a study.

pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29063202/