I retrained as a menstrual cycle coach because when I was suffering with extreme premenstrual anxiety, there was no support. I'd been struggling with my menstrual moods every month and felt totally out of control. I'd be fine one minute and then next feeling like I was going mad, because I'd be so upset that I couldn't think straight. I remember one time running out of a hotel in floods of tears to run away - then I caught sight of myself in a shop window and stopped still: 'what the hell is going on?! I felt so trapped.
How was I going to get out of this monthly turmoil? Did anyone else feel like this or was it just me? At this point I knew it was happening right before my period, the day or two before but I was still totally lost for what to do. Apart from prescribing antidepressants, doctors had nothing. Nobody had even heard of PMDD.
Menstrual cycle awareness is what saved me and changed everything. There is one tip I teach people that makes them stand up and listen: to remember that through your symptoms, your cycle is talking to you. And if you are suffering a lot, you are actually in possession of so much power. As Alexandra Pope says: "The stronger the symptom, the louder the roar."
For more on this check out the Rebel's Guide to PMDD I wrote for The Red Rebel Collective.
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