PMS changes to body, mind, and spirit

  • Thread starter Thread starter Giggly_Giraffe
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
G

Giggly_Giraffe

Guest
Giggly_Giraffe said:
focusonthefamily.com/campaign/splash-1-nomatch.aspx?returnpath=%2fpopups%2fmedia_player.aspx%3fMediaId%3d%257BEF583BE2-2642-427B-B313-CEA31B664C47%257D

I came across this podcast about how women will go through PMS 500 times in her normal life. We have found many ways to tame the physical, and emotional effects but have done little to tame the spiritual effects. Have you ever thought about how PMS changes your spirit and how to stay focused on God during this? If so, what are your tips?
Click to expand...
Yes, as I and my sister suffered terrible degrees of PMS. And this is not just a simple poor mood for a couple of days. We are talking severe depression, agitation, cramping, headaches, bloating and even anger, sensitivity to sound and noise. We used to start taking medication for cramps and bloating prior to the start of our cycle (at least 3 days early), tried to get extra sleep, avoided chocolate (very hard to do), coffee and salty foods.

I also used to eat lots of fish, (I discovered it helped cravings.) I also stayed away from shopping, activities outside of work and pretty much withdrew for a few days. In some ways this was necessary as I and my sister also had cramps bad enough to cause fainting and vomiting for 3 -5 days of our cycle which lasted 7 - 10 days. Let’s just say the only reason we put up with it was the off chance that we might have children one day. By the time I was 20 I wanted a hysterectomy to stop the suffering.

Oh, and drink plenty of water, and don’t drink alcoholic beverages. Diet can help a great deal.
 
Cricket2 said:
Yes, as I and my sister suffered terrible degrees of PMS. And this is not just a simple poor mood for a couple of days. We are talking severe depression, agitation, cramping, headaches, bloating and even anger, sensitivity to sound and noise.
Click to expand...
This sounds more like PMDD than PMS, my dear! I have had PMDD for years, and for years I went along to confession once a month to ask forgiveness for things said and done in the anger and irritability which came with it. Utter misery. 😦

Three things helped me.

First; I started taking Agnus Castus. It dials my symptoms down from a 10 to a 7 or so; just enough to manage on, as I cannot take hormonal treatments.

Second; my confessor advised me on a ‘point of view’ meditation of the Stations of the Cross. I became irritable with the people I cared for and coped by becoming withdrawn for a few days; both disastrous options! My confessor told me that I conveyed my feelings with a look; I didn’t have to speak and told me how, when Peter denied Jesus, Jesus ‘looked upon him with great love’. I have meditated upon being a denouncer at Jesus’ ‘trial’, upon helping to crucify him. These meditation have reduced me to sobs; so vivid were they! As awful a cure as this is; it helps enormously. Above all; do not fear to go to your priest for help with ‘Wimmin Bother’. 😉

Third; Prayer. I didn’t pray for a cure but for time. 🙂 Literally, the Grace of One Moment between needing to say something short or abrupt and actually saying it. This wasn’t instantaneous but, over time and praying and dwelling on this throughout my cycle; it worked. Yes; I’m still irritable, in pain and miserable; no, my family don’t come along for the ride every month. Thank God!

I hope this helps. I’ve struggled with this for years and only recently have found relief. I’m sure wiser heads than mine can advise upon meditations and spiritual exercises to help you but don’t doubt the power of prayer. The Agnus Castus helps too.

The best of luck to you, my dear!

Jenny x
 
mrsjennymulhall said:
This sounds more like PMDD than PMS, my dear! I have had PMDD for years, and for years I went along to confession once a month to ask forgiveness for things said and done in the anger and irritability which came with it. Utter misery. 😦

Three things helped me.

First; I started taking Agnus Castus. It dials my symptoms down from a 10 to a 7 or so; just enough to manage on, as I cannot take hormonal treatments.

Second; my confessor advised me on a ‘point of view’ meditation of the Stations of the Cross. I became irritable with the people I cared for and coped by becoming withdrawn for a few days; both disastrous options! My confessor told me that I conveyed my feelings with a look; I didn’t have to speak and told me how, when Peter denied Jesus, Jesus ‘looked upon him with great love’. I have meditated upon being a denouncer at Jesus’ ‘trial’, upon helping to crucify him. These meditation have reduced me to sobs; so vivid were they! As awful a cure as this is; it helps enormously. Above all; do not fear to go to your priest for help with ‘Wimmin Bother’. 😉

Third; Prayer. I didn’t pray for a cure but for time. 🙂 Literally, the Grace of One Moment between needing to say something short or abrupt and actually saying it. This wasn’t instantaneous but, over time and praying and dwelling on this throughout my cycle; it worked. Yes; I’m still irritable, in pain and miserable; no, my family don’t come along for the ride every month. Thank God!

I hope this helps. I’ve struggled with this for years and only recently have found relief. I’m sure wiser heads than mine can advise upon meditations and spiritual exercises to help you but don’t doubt the power of prayer. The Agnus Castus helps too.

The best of luck to you, my dear!

Jenny x
Click to expand...
Thankfully my suffering with this ended with a hysterectomy at the age of 38 and same for my sister. I landed up needing one as a result of fibrous growths; one of which was the size of “a regulation football.” I literally looked 10 months pregnant. In addition to the one I had 9 more that were the size of large grapefruits. There was no saving the uterus and as sick as I had been over the years I was not unhappy with the surgery.

Both my sister and I had endometiosis as well. It is a miserable situation, and I am sure added to our misery. I always found being to myself and having plenty of quiet time and rest to help the best when it was a problem.
 
My pms is sooooo bad I suspect it is PMDD, and I will go and see a doctor about it 😦

During crazy time I offer my suffering to Jesus, I put it at his cross. I also try and remember that whatever I am feeling/thinking is not real, and ask God to help me. Some months I feel like I am possessed and need to pray a lot to keep sane.
 
I hope my PMS doesn’t get too crazy. Following NFP (kinda) at least gives me and my husband a clue. This podcast shed light for me about how satan will tempt the greatest when we are weak due to estrogine/testosterone drops. I always have a hard time figuring out if I’m heightened emotions due to body changes, emotional lows, or the devil. I know we are to be held accountable regardless of the cause (physical, mental, or spiritual) . . . But in the middle of it all.

I also love the advice the podcast gives to dad’s with daughters going through PMS.🙂
 
Contra_Mundum said:
My pms is sooooo bad I suspect it is PMDD, and I will go and see a doctor about it 😦

During crazy time I offer my suffering to Jesus, I put it at his cross. I also try and remember that whatever I am feeling/thinking is not real, and ask God to help me. Some months I feel like I am possessed and need to pray a lot to keep sane.
Click to expand...
What’s the difference between PMS & PMDD?
 
Giggly_Giraffe said:
What’s the difference between PMS & PMDD?
Click to expand...
From what I have read, PMDD is extreme PMS. It lasts longer (for me 8-10 days), the symptoms are much stronger and there are some that don’t feature in regular PMS. For example, I get terrible pain in my legs, and sometimes I have difficulty walking. That is not common in normal PMS.
 
After my hysterectomy at 46, I wonder if my PMS was PMDD or at least close to it. I had issues with anxiety and terrible anger. Although some of you ladies are describing even more symptoms I didn’t have. Spiritually, it was a trial, that’s for sure. But with the anxiety it may have helped me learn to lean on God for strength, because my own strength wasn’t much to speak of. The anger sent me to the confessional in its aftermath, where I received graces. But it would’ve been nice not to have gotten angry in the first place.

But I strongly recommend to all suffering to this degree to pursue solutions with your healthcare provider - I didn’t realize it was hormones doing so much to me until after the hormones were no longer there. It was like being a fish that doesn’t realize the stuff she’s swimming in is called water. :o

And those issues of anxiety and anger still crop up from time to time in the post-hysterectomy me - nothing is a magic cure-all. But not having to go through those horrible times every month like clockwork is a blessing.
 
My biggest problem is not pre … But post … Follicular phase: m
is dark brown, dizzy, vomit, leg/chest/back pain,next day feel like I’ve had a stroke ( numb, tired, hard time speaking).

2008 at church, ambulance took me to hospital — asking " Are you pregnant - A: No, I’m menesteating. EKG, no findings.
2013 again, went to urgent care, they sent me to hospital, EKG, ultra sound, MRI, & only finding small kindney stones ( too small to be bother). A few months later, again went to doctor. They did EKG & nothing. Doctor said I need to lose weight & prescribed diet pill. Saw OBGYN and took blood tests. OBGYN said iron was good ( could cause some of this ) … Said
She could perscrib BCP; We are still open to kids … No resolve. Lost 15 lbs, and saw primary doc. Said thank you for weight loss, but still having problems with end of period. He said try BCP. Ahhh. These are increasing with occurrence.

Last night while lying on floor, again, dizzy ( can’t even sit on toilet ) , major head Ache ( migraine ?) , dry mouth, leg pain … Wondering where to go, who to see … Do I go back to OB/primary/ find new doc ( how to find new doc???). Again, not PMS, but post. Any suggestions??? I don’t get how to communicate with docs … I read Sirack: 38 & hope to find a doc that can help. Gosh it’s super hard to make doctors visits with two toddlers , a husband who works too much overtime.
 
For me it’s more of MS (the actual menstrual period) rather than PMS. Although my MS isn’t bad at all. I have had acquaintances and friends who were used to taking painkillers for abdominal pains during their periods. One said that the meds don’t work anymore. Sometimes my period is uncomfortable too, and I experience cramps from time to time, as well as the discomfort of heavy flow. I don’t take painkillers because I don’t want to get used to them, so I have no choice but to bear the pain. Other than that it seems okay.

I couldn’t say that I’m crankier during my period. Lately I’ve been cranky, angry, and irritable about a lot of things dealing with problems.
 
Goodness, I just had one. I’ve been under a lot of personal stress lately, and my church has gotten sort of strange and stressful as well. I walked into daily mass and had a severe mood swing, including crying spells, anger, and other weird behavior. I decided to leave mass early because I realized that I was out of sorts, and when I got home I realized it was related to a particularly severe case of PMS. I’ve had this in the past. For example, I once had a severe wish to commit suicide, then I realized within 10 minutes, I was PMS-ing, and that realization helped me ignore the mood swing. My doctor has also recommended some things in the past that I should take that I don’t have right now due to finances.

This was a real wake-up call for me that I still have this problem. Do I owe an apology to my church or any sort of explanation?
 
marylauravicuna said:
Goodness, I just had one. I’ve been under a lot of personal stress lately, and my church has gotten sort of strange and stressful as well. I walked into daily mass and had a severe mood swing, including crying spells, anger, and other weird behavior. I decided to leave mass early because I realized that I was out of sorts, and when I got home I realized it was related to a particularly severe case of PMS. I’ve had this in the past. For example, I once had a severe wish to commit suicide, then I realized within 10 minutes, I was PMS-ing, and that realization helped me ignore the mood swing. My doctor has also recommended some things in the past that I should take that I don’t have right now due to finances.

This was a real wake-up call for me that I still have this problem. Do I owe an apology to my church or any sort of explanation?
Click to expand...
I don’t believe you owe the church any apology or explanation but you could mention it in confession if you’re worried?

I, too was prescribed different things for PMDD but they weren’t suitable. I am doing well now on the herbal supplement Agnus Castus, charting my moods to become aware of my difficult times and prayer and meditation. The Agnus Castus takes a few weeks to work but takes the edge off my mood swings just enough to be in control.

Good luck! x
 
Thanks! It makes sense to speak over it with a priest to see what my responsibility is in this situation.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top