Sailing the stormy seas of hormones together
In the days leading up to my menstrual period, I often feel like Medusa herself, and I will admit I sometimes wish I could give men a glimpse of my wrath and turn them to stone. After all, they`ll never truly understand the agony of dealing with the dreaded premenstrual syndrome.
An estimated 75% of women from the age of 15 to 45 experience premenstrual symptoms (PMS) ranging from very mild to very severe. On top of that, 3 to 8 percent of women experience PMS severe enough to disturb their daily function and meet the criteria for premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) which is a more severe form of PMS.
And don’t even get me started on the physical symptoms. The constant bloating, cramps and headaches added to my breasts growing into the size of two giant watermelons and even the slightest touch will send an agonising pain down my spine.
The more complicated issues however, are the mental symptoms which come with bad PMS. Bearing in mind that symptoms of PMS can differ from person to person, I think a lot of women can relate to how PMS can have an enormous impact on mental health, leading up to the red wedding.
More specifically, your body decides to turn your brain into a full-on roller coaster ride. Despite these changes improving when you get the long-awaited visit from Aunt Flo, we`re talking a few days, if not a week of pure torture and identity crisis.
Personally, my borderline concerning but also impressive mood swings are bearable as they don’t really affect me, just basically everyone else.
However, it’s like I’m constantly winning a lottery of emotions as I feel down, anxious or irritable most days. On top of that, my face deciding to transform into a Picasso painting of spots and dryness doesn’t really help my already broken self-confidence.
Truth is, PMS can be a challenging time for women and dealing with it while being in a relationship can add another layer of complexity to an already delicate situation.
Despite my pms making me extremely needy and me expecting love and care all hours of the day from my significant other, I can’t help but feel incredibly guilty for having him put up with my demon self.
3 to 8 percent of women experience PMS severe enough to disturb their daily function.
And on the bad days, it gets really bad.
“Did he really go to the shops or was he meeting up with his side thing knowing full well I wouldn’t find out whilst laid in bed with a heating pad, which is giving me second-degree burns, wrapped around my belly?”
I’m convinced that he is cheating even though in reality he is on his way to the shops, a trek I convinced him to take to buy me Pringles and Haribo sweets whilst messaging his mum asking how her tennis match went.
The list goes on and on. One second I feel like myself, I’m laughing and my mind is at ease, the next second he is scrolling through Instagram, a picture of Dua Lipa pops up and for a second he stops scrolling. Day ruined. Tears are streaming down my face and my headache has made its long-awaited return.
Never in a million years would I think my struggles with PMS would have an affect on anyone else but myself. But as with any other potential problems, you learn to work through them together.
Yes, there are still times when my PMS will get the best of me, but through communication and being honest about things that at times I feel I have no control over, both myself and my boyfriend have figured out ways to tackle them together and not let it get the best of me.
He also knows not to open Instagram in front of me the week before Aunt Flo makes a visit.