Premenstrual Syndrome
Premenstrual syndrome (PMS) is the name used for a variety of physical and/or emotional problems that may occur prior to a woman’s menstrual period. At the same phase of each menstrual cycle, women with PMS may experience tension, depression, anxiety panic attacks, irritability, crying for no reason, fatigue, for-getfulness or mental confusion, clumsiness, and cravings for sweets, carbohydrates, salty foods, or alcohol. Other symptoms are: water retention, headaches, backaches, acne, cold sores, sinus problems, asthmatic attacks, and seizures. A woman may have only one symptom of PMS or she may have many.
Up to 90 percent of all women who menstruate have premenstrual syndrome to some degree. Approximately 10 to 12 percent of the affected women need medical treatment; 3 percent may be debilitated. For most, PMS is not too severe, but for some 20 to 30 percent, it is severe enough to cause serious disruption of their daily lives.
Women with PMS typically experience the feeling of being out of control. Tension from PMS may cause them to lash out at those around them with feelings of anger, bitterness, or resentment.
While as many as a hundred symptoms may be associated with PMS, no one symptom is unique to the syndrome. The key to determining whether or not a symptom indicates PMS is if it occurs primarily during the two-week period before the menstrual period begins. Keeping a daily calendar not only during menstruation, but for the entire cycle, is the simplest way to diagnose PMS.
No one knows exactiy what causes PMS or why some women have severe symptoms while others have mild or no symptoms. Some researchers believe PMS may result from an imbalance during the last half of the menstrual cycle between the hormones estrogen and progesterone. Others think that nutritional factors may play a role. It seems probable that PMS has a variety of causes, which may explain the variety of symptoms and the fact that women experience PMS differently. PMS can appear in menstruating women of any age. It is most common during the later twenties and thirties. Some women first experience PMS after pregnancy or after they stop taking birth control pills.
PMS is not a character disorder. The symptoms that occur with PMS do not mean that a woman is weak or unstable or that she has lost touch with God. These symptoms are a result of physical changes, not an emotional or spiritual weakness. It is important for women to realize that PMS is not a sign that their body is abnormal but evidence that the hormones in their body are working.
Becoming aware of your own body and its unique reactions to your monthly cycle is the first step in dealing with PMS. Use this knowledge to effectively handle your emotions during menstruation. Understanding your body and how your hormones, diet, exercise, emotions, and spiritual life are interconnected helps reduce the stress associated with PMS. The importance of nonmedical treatment for PMS—limiting salt, sugar, caffeine; increasing exercise; and using certain vitamins regularly—should also be carefully considered. New research has shown that women who have four or more cups of a caffeinated drink per day may have five times the PMS symptoms. Making changes in your lifestyle is fundamental to reducing PMS symptoms. If these changes in diet and exercise fail to bring relief, there are some medications that may help.
Taking a prostaglandin inhibitor, such as ibuprofen, one or two days before your period may reduce some symptoms. Natural progesterones have also been recommended for many women with PMS. Oral micronized progesterone is now available, as well. The usual dose of micronized progesterone is 100 milligrams a day but it can be increased to 300 milligrams a day or more if necessary. Progesterone produces a sedative effect, which may be its major contribution in helping PMS symptoms. There are a host of other medications that are being used to reduce symptoms, so check with your obstetrician/gynecologist for recommendations.
Following the recommendations outlined above and incorporating them into your lifestyle will be the start to living effectively with PMS and to maintaining better health in general.
Posted in Understanding the Basics
To Ed Wheat Sr. and Gladys Gibson Wheat, whose commitment, devotion, warmth, generosity, and integrity stood for fifty years as a beautiful picture of genuine agape love.