Welcome to the NAPMDD Conference, Where The Real You Is Welcome

Two weeks ago today in Colorado, the first ever National Organization for PMDD (NAPMDD) Conference and Expo ended amid hugs, kisses, smiles, laughter, and tears...many, many tears.  Tears of hope, tears of joy, tears of relief, renewal, exhaustion, and—for the first time in what I would venture to say almost every attendees' life—tears of pure recognition and acceptance. 

For Acceptance—in addition to Hope—was the overall theme, message, and atmosphere of our time together in Denver.

While leading up to the conference many jokes were made in the PMDD community about what could happen in a room full of angry women with PMDD, the opposite was our reality.  There was no need to be angry because we had all "been there."  
Empathy was the reigning emotion of the weekend, because we understood each other—all too well.  Not just our emotions, but the process and pitfalls, jargon and results of the disorder.  I'm in Day 5.  Day 15 here.  I've been on six different drugs in ten years.  I'm on progesterone therapy.  I'm getting a divorce.  I'm thinking of getting a hysterectomy.  I hate my family.  I'm taking (name your medication).  I've been diagnosed as bipolar.  I think about suicide every month.  My doctor told me to "Just go shopping."

And where else could you go and tell a group of strangers about the color and condition of your cervix?  Better yet, splash pictures of it onscreen, then ask if anybody has questions?

I loved the openness of the conference.  Information was shared with total professionalism and respect, but also with a dash of humor when warranted.  The program provided by the speakers was invaluable.  The sessions sparked conversations about subjects such as nutrition, detoxification, inflammation, self-care, self-love, wellness, and healing.  Learning to live your cycle rather than fight it; learning to work with it rather than against it.       

So many options; so many choices.  But all with the same goal of wellness.  For that alone the conference was huge success.  (I'm just writing about it now, because I took a two week vacation to travel out West afterward.)  Kudos all around go out to Amanda and Melanie and Elizabeth and their well-organized team of volunteers. 

But what struck me most about the event—in addition to the great food, hotel, conversation, and stellar line up of speakers—was how much love and acceptance everyone shared. 

Yes, people cried throughout the weekend, in the audience, in corners, in hallways, on couches, and at the podium—but that was okay.  For the first time in history, women with PMDD (and their partners) were allowed the safe space to "be ourselves" in public.  Nobody had to go back to their room and suffer alone.  Nobody had to hide in the bathroom to cry.  Nobody had to excuse themselves because they made other people uncomfortable with their messy emotions.  Our tears and fears were welcome.  Our conversations were real.  Our hopes, dreams, sadness, and anxieties were out there for everyone to see.

And it was wonderful.  Freeing.  Empowering.

I'm sure the energy of welcoming acceptance that flowed throughout the conference will help to sustain attendees for many months to come.

And that is what NAPMDD is all about.

Support.  Encouragement. Acceptance. 

Hope.

In sum, all I can say is while the educational information received at the conference was by far the bargain of the year, the warmth, friendship, and empathy I experienced at the NAPMDD conference was...

Priceless.

*For those who were unable to attend the conference, please check the NAPMDD site for links to free videos of the speaker sessions. 

Reader Question - PMDD

A question has arisen that I can not answer:  Has anyone been diagnosed with PMDD during marriage counseling?  If so, and if you are are willing, please leave a comment or answer me privately at info (at) livingwithpmdd (dot) com.  Thanks so much!

PMDD and Relationships

On sale now for Kindle at Amazon.  Click on the cover to take you to the link. Also available in print at Amazon. Over 220 pages of understanding what it's like to be in a relationship when you have PMDD.

PMDD doesn't do normal, but every woman who lives the monthly nightmare that is Pre-Menstrual Dysphoric Disorder deserves to have strong, true, and lasting relationships, just like her non-PMDD enduring friends.  Based on the most-read posts in the blog Living on a Prayer, Living with PMDD, this book is for people in difficult relationships and focuses on how to deal with a loved one's PMDD.

Written with chapters for both the woman trying to cope with her PMDD, and her partner, PMDD and Relationships fills a need for understanding and hope.  Understanding of this often debilitating disorder that affects 3 - 8% of menstruating women, and hope for a normal life with friends and family.

Topics include how to develop a network of support and encouragement, and how to enjoy deep and abiding relationships in the midst of hormonal chaos.  You are not alone, and there is no reason for you to stay alone unless you choose to.  Even then, PMDD and Relationships can help you to deal with your PMDD and the world around you in a way that brings renewed joy into the life you were meant to live.

Living with PMDD: Why Every Woman Should Be Practicing Hormonal Self-Awareness

Recently I stumbled across this gem of an article in Elephant Journal on hormonal self-awareness, written by Vironika Tugaleva, life coach, inspirational speaker, and award winning author of The Love Mindset.
One line that caught my eye was:  What a hormone surge does is it gets rid of a woman's ability to numb herself to the quality of her environment. 
With their permission, I have reposted the beginning of the article.  If the opening intrigues you, please click on the link to finish reading the article. Well worth your time.

Why Every Woman Should Be Practicing Hormonal Self-Awareness

by Vironika Tugaleva

I had a client once whose boss insisted on using positive-only language in the workplace. So, when giving feedback about mistakes and areas for improvement, he’d say, “You have a great opportunity to practice your communication and organization skills here” instead of “You’re awkward and messy.”

I thought that was just brilliant.

So, for me, around the same time every month, the opportunity comes to do some very deep self-awareness work.

The more I’ve become aware of the effects of hormones on my mind and body, the more amazed I’ve been that there was a point when I was not at all aware of these effects. There was a time when I would spend a week alternating between bitchy and depressed, thinking that the reason was whatever my mind told me was the reason.

Whether or not you’re a woman, stick out for this one, because if you are, then this is absolutely something you must know about yourself, and if you’re not, this will give you incredible insight into the behaviour of women in your life.  Read more here:

To Moms Everywhere...

With thanks to Brandi-Lee Davis, a belated Mother's Day guest post just for you...

This is to the mom
Who forgot to eat today
This is to the mom
Who has barely slept
This is to the mom
Who wanted to just give up
This is to the mom
Who spent all day cleaning
This is to the mom
Who begged for sleep
This is to the mom
Who cried to herself while everyone slept
This is to the mom
Who makes sure everyone has what they need
This is to the mom
Who feels unnoticed
This is to the mom
Who feels unappreciated
This is to the mom
Who feels like she's failing
This is to the mom
Who feels she's alone
I see you, I appreciate you
You're doing great and you're not alone

Author: Brandi-Lee Davis

PMDD Doesn't Do Normal

A guest post from a reader who understands her PMDD well, but didn't always...didn't understand it at all for more than two decades...  I am posting this because she could be any one of us...  Any one of us at all.  

Living amongst demons.…

I THOUGHT I suffered depression for years and the depression was like a rollercoaster sometimes out of control and sometimes more manageable but always there in the corner like an unwanted house guest. 

I THOUGHT I “just” had bad PMS and could get enraged at the drop of a hat.

I THOUGHT that was just my way of life now—I was unhappy in my marriage but accredited that to my issues with ‘depression’.

I THOUGHT about all the symptoms I had and how some didn’t quite fit in the depression tick list and how I couldn’t even fit depression correctly.

I THOUGHT pills were a way of life but why did they never really resolve anything?  I would up my dosage until I couldn’t anymore...only to find the rollercoaster was now an even wilder ride than before.

Then, just over 2 years ago, after receiving counselling for a childhood issue, I found the courage to leave my unhappy marriage. I spent some time alone and the plan going forward was to concentrate on me and my children and this ‘depression’ that had blighted my life…

...only life doesn’t go to plan and instead I ended up meeting and falling in love with the man who was to change my life in so many ways, including discovering PMDD.

The unveiling of a Monster….

Through a series of unrelated events I met my PMDD.

So here I was, deliriously happy, in love for the first time in what felt like an eternity…

An innocent joke made by a friend:  “You may be happy now but has he seen you at that time of the month, kicking cupboards, punching walls, and slapping him?  That love at first sight feeling may drain then, eh?”

I laughed, and said, “I never hit my ex—always punched objects or throwable items only.  Kicked a few doors through.ˮ

My friend realized I was being serious and asked, “Are you serious?”

“Yes.  Every woman does for a couple of weeks before their period, don't they?”

“Er, no.”

Silence.

Growing up, periods and “embarrassing” women’s problems were not talked about in my house.  At all. I wasn’t told what periods are. I instead have an horrifying memory of blood trickling down my leg in the school changing rooms and me sprinting all the way home, crying, thinking I was dying. My mother ran through a textbook version of This is why and don’t talk about it...

...So I didn’t.

Until a joke about periods made me wonder.

Isnʼt it NORMAL? Doesn’t every woman have extreme rage over silly things? And I don’t mean get a bit moody (although that is in abundance also) but no… rage, like a bubbling anger inside you, a pressure cooker just waiting to explode at the most unexpected time?

Isnʼt it NORMAL?  Doesn’t everyone bleed so a packet of Always can be polished off in a day?  Doesn't everyone have to wear two pads at a time and it still ruins clothes and underwear?

Isnʼt it NORMAL? Doesn’t everyone have a migraine about two weeks before the big day? Not just any old migraine, but a crippling, debilitating, every-sound-is-magnified-and-echoes-around-your-head-like-tiny-hammers migraine, where your strongest painkiller that usually packs your headache away in minutes won’t touch this baby—in fact, it reduces you to tears every month?

Isn’t it NORMAL that your stomach swells to the size of three large melons for a couple of weeks a month, so that none of your clothes fit anymore?

Isn't it NORMAL that cravings take over, where every carbohydrate becomes your best friend and worst enemy all rolled into one?

Isn’t it NORMAL that anxiety reaches climaxes that debilitate you, where day-to-day tasks feel like a high endurance challenge you haven’t the energy to even think about, let alone complete? Where facing people in any situation makes your heart feel like it is going to pound out of your chest?

Isn’t it NORMAL that depression pushes you deep into a pit where you feel complete despair but don’t really understand why, and nothing positive can be included in your world right now because no positivity exists anymore and the world is a dark hell?

Isnʼt it NORMAL to experience so much pain during your period you feel you should be in a hospital, and not on a couch with a hot water bottle?

Isn’t it NORMAL to not be able to look in the mirror because you are so unhappy with this person vacantly staring back at you?

I started to suspect maybe not, maybe this isn’t NORMAL after all...

...then came the Eureka moment, the grand unveiling of my PMDD.

This came from being in so madly in love that one second away from this man made my heart ache…

then suddenly…

I am looking at this man and wondering Why am I with you?

I don’t fancy you.

I definitely don’t love you.

My man protests. “Whatʼs wrong?  You do love me, darling.  Look at all these texts, these photos, these little love videos we sent to each other!ˮ

And then he says:  “Why does this keep coming up every now and then? I don’t understand!ˮ

So I look at these texts, these videos, these photos of a happy couple—but it’s not real.  It isn’t me.  That can’t be me.  Not the real me.  I can’t just “imagineˮ all of these negative feelings I am feeling now, in this moment, not to be real.

“No! Youʼre lying!ˮ

Now I am angry at you.  “Don’t lie! I wouldn’t love you!ˮ

Now youʼre clicking my pressure cooker rage on. I DON’T FANCY YOU, NEVER HAVE, NEVER WILL, AND NEVER WILL LOVE YOU….

Then my period comes and I am awash with love for my man, my beautiful man.

I am now full of another feeling—guilt—guilt that I have treated my beloved like a stranger, and an incompetent, unattractive, unlovable stranger at that. I feel like I was featured in an episode of Supernatural and was being possessed by a demon.

I could see what the demon was doing but had no control until the period exorcised it from my body and mind.

So now it was clear… The reason it wasn’t crystal clear to me for the 20 years previously was my unhappy marriage.  It is easy to blame depression and complete lack of insight regarding a woman’s cycle, but now I have found my soul mate and for two weeks a month we have a relationship that people find sickeningly sweet, the kind where “You put the phone down first, I love you,ˮ “No, you, I love you more…” so WHY, WHY would that change?

EUREKA! 

PMDD!

So for the last two years I have been researching this demon, liaising with my doctors, checking, comparing, having ovulation tests, making notes, diary entries...

...and the conclusion is this monster lives in a closet in my head until it’s time for its centre stage moment.

What have I learned?

PMDD is like a chameleon that can adapt and change to capture its enemy and inflict the most damage.

For example: it goes for my relationship feelings, every month, but my partner is amazing.  We adapt better, we know when it is coming.  I get a mist, literally a mist, I look around and it is like the room has suddenly become foggy. This is my sign it is here, the monster has arrived....

So we don’t panic anymore. We go to PMDD mode.  I give the heads up to my partner.  Instead of sloppy love texts, just four words set in place a temporary change in our relationship.

“the mist has arrived”

From this moment on we are now buddies, just good friends, no attempt at affection because he knows I no longer love him, he knows when what he is saying or doing is setting the pressure cooker switch to on so he backs off, allows me to explode in a safe way or just allows the hurtful words to roll off him.

I am lucky. I have a partner who can help me get through another month, survive another cycle.

BUT…

PMDD is clever.  As I said, it adapts. So now it knows I am getting good at battling my demons. So now it changes... now it cranks my anxiety up to uncontrollable levels where I am panicking about everything and anything... I worry my children will fall down stairs, will choke when cleaning their teeth, my partner is going to be killed in a car crash, have an electric shock from the toaster… and bigger and bigger, more extreme thoughts, thoughts that don’t stop….

It throws me into a pit of depression where I can’t leave my bed for days. Everything anyone says around me sounds loud and doesn’t make sense. 

Why doesn’t anyone understand this hell I am in?

There is no way out… the world seems a dark place… I am broken….

So far I haven’t found anything that pulls me out of this pit of despair.  For now PMDD has won yet another round.  I will let it have its minor victory until I can adapt, until I can change, until I can throw up a quick ladder out of the pit, until I can press pause on the vortex of negative thoughts that engulf me…

And so it is… My cycles have now become rounds in a boxing match… Some I will lose, and some I will fight, and will come out battered…exhausted…bruised… and a little more clued up to this hidden enemy.

But for once, I fit a symptom tick list…

I now KNOW what I am dealing with.  And that PMDD is not NORMAL.

And that makes all the difference. 

Until the next round, PMDD.

I will be waiting.

~K

The Monster I Am Living With: PMDD

Crushing weight sinks deep into my fragile chest. Insomnia, I'm already weary but have no hope of finding rest.

Switch in my brain has flipped, can't hold back as the monster inside bursts free. Losing all control, wreaking devastation wherever I go, it's then that I know, that as sure as gravity on earth I am back in its throes.

Depressive Tsunami overtakes me, washing clean away all of my self worth. Tormented woman desperate to stop it... Defeated despite the hard fight put forth. It's like a psychotic carnival ride, can't stop going around and around in my broken mind.

Anxiety and fear no one can understand brings salted tears ʼtil I am virtually blind. How can this damn life be so unkind??

Misery is embodied in me, taking away my hope for good life, hatred for the man who loves me most taking away my hope to be a good wife.

Migraines. Body aches. Sensitivity. Short fuses. Darkness. Hysteria. Forever on edge, pushing me to LOSE it.

I mean really how many times can my kids hear mommy's having a bad day, before they too feel abandoned and pushed away?

We stand on opposite sides of the same door secretly pleading: I've done nothing wrong why do I still have to pay?

Heartbreaking.

I hide out in my restroom cuz it's the only place I can truly be alone, keeping everyone safe from me, staring into a mirror and seeing nothing but the monster I am living with: PMDD.
~Carrian Troxler