PMDD: Treatment

My first approach to treatment for PMDD was a more natural one. Being a psychology major, and knowing what I do about pharmaceutical drugs and their lasting effects, I was not keen on them. I tried several variations of vitamin therapy. St. John's Wort, commonly recommended to treat PMS, did nothing for me. I couldn't tell you if 5-HTP really helped at all or not. If it did, the impact wasn't enough for me to take notice of it. I still take Vitamin D, C, B6, E, Fish Oil, Magnesium, maca root, and a Prenatal Vitamin daily. I do think these help take the edge off my symptoms. The days I forget them are somewhat worse.

After struggling with PMDD for over a year, I tried Sarafem, which is a low dose of Prozac. If you happen to Google this, you'll likely find some articles touting PMDD's authenticity, and claiming it's a made-up disorder that Bayer drummed up in order to brand Prozac as Sarafem before their patent ran out. Additionally, they were able to increase their profits a great deal too. Many doctors, for years now, don't believe PMDD is real. Many others still don't even know what it is. This is unacceptable. I don't work for Bayer. I couldn't tell you if there was or wasn't a master plan involved in their branding of Sarafem. What I do want to say is this: Even if their motives were misaligned, that doesn't mean PMDD isn't real. Why would they have to make up a disorder to rebrand Prozac? That seems more risky and less likely to be approved than finding a real disorder Prozac can treat. I believe that is mostly likely what happened. Are they profiting off of PMDD? Sure! Just like pharmaceutical companies are profiting off of Benzos, mood stabilizers, and everything else. It's hogwash. I don't care how much money they make if people are being helped. Likewise, bad publicity is good publicity. If articles bashing Bayer for their practices got PMDD on the Web and in the news than so be it. Get the damn word out any way you can!

That being said, Sarafem did nothing for me but make me sleepy.

Treatment for PMDD is very much trial and error. What works for one woman may not for you, and vice versa. We don't know why this is yet. Don't give up if something doesn't work for you; that doesn't mean nothing will.Many women find the first 3, 4 or more anti-depressants they try don't work and then the next one does. They are not all the same just because they're all anti-depressants. Don't assume they are. For me, I veered away from anti-depressants all together. It's just a personal preference regarding the way I view drugs and the life I want for myself. They may have a totally different effect on you, and you and I might not think the same about drugs. Don't write them off.

After months of Sarafem, I went off and started exercising. This only helped a little, because I was so out of control and confused about my symptoms. It's very hard to look at PMDD and what it does to you in a clear way if you're own mind isn't clear. When you leave it untreated in all aspects, it wears you down. You spend two weeks in luteal phase going through it, then another week or so getting over the damage you did to yourself, your life, and others during luteal, and then you prepare for it to strike again. It's a horrible cycle with no reprieve.

Around two years ago, I started taking Yaz. Within a month, things were better. Prior to Yaz, my symptoms always started on Day 13/14 of my cycle and lasted thru the 28 days and into the first 4 days of my next cycle. The longer I was on Yaz, the better it got, for the first year or so. It got to where my symptoms didn't really show up until Day 22 - 24, and were gone by Day 2-3 of the next cycle. Additionally, the symptoms weren't as severe. The physical ones decreased some, but headaches were more common. The breast tenderness was worse at first, but then got much better. The emotional flare-ups, rages, mood swings, were less frequent, and easier to dampen and control a bit while in the moment. Not always, but sometimes was definitely better than never!

I took my last month of Yaz recently. If I stay busy, I have less time to fret, ponder, let the negative thoughts seep in... I know though, this can be hard, because sometimes all you can do is muster up the strength to lay around! In case you're wondering- I'm not going off Yaz for any bad reason. We're hoping to get pregnant next year. I was planning to go off in January anyway to give myself some time between that and pregnancy to clear out my system of hormones. My prescription just happened to run out in November, so we decided to do it now. Yaz cleared up my skin. It also has a diuretic in it so the bloating wasn't as bad and went away faster. It didn't help with mental clarity, concentration, anxiety, or forgetfulness, but I wouldn't expect it to. The downside: I think it's responsible for my gaining 15lbs in the past two years and being unable to lose it. Progesterone will do that to many women. I'm hopeful that I can lose it now being off of it- post-holidays of course! LOL

Watching your diet and knowing what effects you most will help you to avoid bad foods when you can. Processed carbs will often make my moods flare up, but sometimes that is the only thing in the house that sounds even remotely good :(

Removal of the ovaries is an option for some women, but I've found it's very hard to find 1) insurance to cover it and, 2) a doctor willing to do it only because of PMDD. Hysterectomies without ovary removal will not guarantee an end to your PMDD. Some women take medication to put them into medical menopause. I am personally not open to this option because, despite what the pharm community says, I fear it could impact fertility long-term, and we're not done having kids. Some other birth control options work for other women now too- the IUD/Coil, patches, etc. There are lots of options to explore so don't give up hope.

I am currently researching Inositol, Ashwagandha, Kava Kava, GABA, Dandelion (diuretic properties), and L-glutamine, but have not taken any of such yet. This month, I plan to add more exercise into my life, force myself to get out and about more, and start meditating. I am also looking for a good acupuncturist. That's where I'm at right now.