Are PMS/PMDD and Anxiety related?…is there any treatment?
I have been on Effexor for well over 10 yrs for anxiety, I have also sought CBT to help with the other areas of anxiety so I am no strain gerto the dynamics of having a panic attack and all the fun stuff that goes with it. However, in the past 5 yrs I have noticed an EXTREME change in my behavior and physical changes during the 7 days preceding my cycle…then I am not the "same" until about 7 days after my cycle, which leaves me with about 1 week of sanity per month. During which time I am usually anxious and worrying about how bad it is going to be when it starts up again! AHHH! During the time of PMS I am literally sitting on the edge of my seat just waiting to explode into a million pieces…until something or someone irritates me and I am real irrational in my response, then I feel bad and cry. Needless to say I am an emotional roller coaster and get no real sleep since I am busy waking up in night sweats and having hot flashes (power surges). Wow, it is exhausting just thinking about all this. If anyone can relate and give good advise I am open! Is it possible that I could have pmdd?
Thanks~
Em
Filed under: anxiety treatment
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Yes, it’s certainly possible that you have PMDD. In fact, that’s what it sounds like. The hormones produced by the ovaries–primarily estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone–all act as neurotransmitters. There are estrogen receptors in the brain, and estrogen stimulates production of serotonin, which at best makes you feel energetic, positive and confident, and at worse makes you an anxious, nervous bundle of nerves. Progesterone exerts a calming influence in the brain, being involved in producing relaxing neurotransmitters like GABA. At best, you feel relaxed, calm, and soothed. At worst, you feel depressed and like you want to die. Estrogen and progesterone work together, and they need to be in balance with one another or you’ll have some of those bad effects when you’ve got too much of one and not enough of another. That’s likely what you are experiencing. A book that could be helpful to you in understanding this is Women’s Moods, by Deborah Sichel and Jeanne Watson Driscoll: http://www.amazon.com/Womens-Moods-Hormones-Emotional-Health/dp/0380728524/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1243864326&sr=8-1
Another possibility is that the Effexor is becoming ineffective. It’s like "Prozac Poopout"–when after a long period of time taking one antidepressant, you need a higher dose.
If it IS your hormones (are you in your late 30s to late 40s?–you could be experiencing perimenopause, the hormonal changes that occur up to 10 years before actual menopause), then treatment might be birth control pills to keep your hormones more regular, or supplementation of hormones in some way. Or dietary changes (see Master your Metabolism: http://www.amazon.com/Master-Your-Metabolism-Naturally-Balancing/dp/0307450732/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1243864876&sr=1-1 )
(A caveat: Do NOT accept any answer from someone who tells you that you are bipolar. I, random person on the internet who has never met you, obviously have no idea about whether you’re bipolar or not–but I’ve met a lot of women who have these same mood issues, and many are erroneously diagnosed with bipolar disorder; it’s a fashionable diagnosis right now. But bipolars cycle from mania to depression in patterns that do not replicate a monthly cycle, so my point is that it’s worth examining this from a monthly cycle perspective rather than a bipolar perspective, to see what role your ovarian hormones play, BEFORE examining the bipolar route. Also, bipolar people tend not to realize this about themselves, but you DO realize, which in my experience is more common with women with estrogen&progesterone issues. Hopefully no one will suggest bipolar and this warning won’t even be an issue.)