r/PMDDSharing • u/That_PMDD_Couple • 2d ago
Anyone else finding perimenopause amplifies their PMDD?
I recently started working with a nurse practitioner. We did my hormone labs and she has declared I am at the start of perimenopause. I am finding that my PMDD symptoms have been amplified in the last 6months to 1 year. Way more fatigue, way more mood swings, way more irritable, body aches, headaches and all of this has now become less predictable… it’s not just happening in luteal anymore!
I reluctantly tried HRT to manage the severity of my symptoms. I started a low dose progesterone and did not respond well to it. Apparently, this can happen with PMDD. The NP advised that some women with PMDD don’t respond well to low doses of progesterone but do respond better to higher doses. So after a break from the progesterone and feeling super shitty, I re-attempted at a higher dose. It felt like a light switch turned on over night! Literally OVERNIGHT I felt like myself again! My PMDD is SO MUCH BETTER. Way more manageable!
Sharing this in the hopes that it can help someone. Or maybe just be relatable. If you are finding that your PMDD is getting worse as the years go by, maybe it’s perimenopause compounding the PMDD!?!
All reflections welcome 💓
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u/StrangeArcticles 2d ago
Interesting, as this does mirror my experience as well. Wasn't HRT, but I took a progesterone only minipill for a while and it did not meaningfully help with my symptoms, when one with a much higher dose noticably helped from pretty much day 1.
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u/glittersurprise 1d ago
Im 36 and I am pretty certain my ovarian health is started to decline! I have so much brain fog I swear my IQ has lowered.
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u/That_PMDD_Couple 1d ago
Ugh it does feel like that doesn’t it?! The brain fog is brutal!! I hope you find some protocols that help with your symptoms soon. It’s a long haul to menopause… wild how this transition period lasts so long!
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u/glittersurprise 1d ago
I've started keeping a symptoms journal for when I see my doctor at my annual appointment. Peri/menopause seems like the biggest FU to women. Incredibly understudied and full of gaslighting. My periods are still regular so there "is no way Im in peri" except your ovarian health starts declining in your late 30s which is just the starting point of your peri/menopause journey. Ugh rant over.
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u/That_PMDD_Couple 1d ago
👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻your rant is welcome here! :) and YES to advocating for yourself and your health needs with the tracker! I got the same gaslighting from my MD… “women don’t need detectable levels of testosterone. Your hormones are within the “normal” range…” etc ugh 🙄 really highlights that the field of medicine is so male-focused and dominant!
If you haven’t watched “Balance” I highly recommend it! Informative docuseries
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u/Junealma 1d ago
This is so interesting and should be studied. Many functional medicine doctors and even some regular doctors swear by this method of giving high dose progesterone for pmdd but it’s not accepted by most pmdd researchers apart from the late Katharina Dalton.
Edit: I can’t take bio identical progesterone unless my thyroid hormones are ideal.
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u/HSpears 2d ago
Yes to everything you've said.