PMS vs PMDD

Premenstrual syndrome Vs Premenstrual dysphoric disorder.

Why "It's Just Hormones" Never Sat Right With Me....

After weaning, finishing uni, and moving house, all in one breath, my hormones went haywire...

A darkness would roll in like clockwork in the weeks before my period.

Rage. Despair. A version of me I didn't recognise.

I knew, somewhere underneath the chaos, that my hormones and my nervous system were both unravelling at once. What I didn't have yet was the language for what was actually happening in my body.

That language turned out to matter a lot. Because there's a real difference between PMS and PMDD, and understanding which one you're dealing with changes everything about how you support yourself.

Two Very Different Experiences

PMS is the hormonal shift that happens in the days before your period. Bloating, mood changes, cravings, a shorter fuse than usual. It's uncomfortable, but for most women it's manageable and passes quickly.

PMDD is something else entirely. It can last for weeks, not days, and it isn't simply a hormone drop. It's a heightened sensitivity in the brain's neurotransmitters to those normal hormonal changes. Same shift, completely different internal response.

Whats actually happening

In the lead up to your period, oestrogen and progesterone naturally decline. For some women, the brain is particularly sensitive to that shift, and it can trigger a crash in serotonin and dopamine. Mood, motivation and emotional resilience can fall away almost overnight.

It's not in your head. It's in your biology, and there's more to that biology than hormones alone.

This is where neuroinflammation and gut health tend to get left out of the conversation, and I think that's a mistake. Inflammation in the brain may heighten the nervous system's sensitivity to hormonal fluctuation, which can help explain why some women feel a mild dip while others are floored by it.

And because a large portion of the body's serotonin is produced in the gut, ongoing gut inflammation may also disrupt the raw materials your brain needs to regulate mood in the first place.

Hormones, gut health and brain chemistry aren't separate systems working in isolation.

They're in constant conversation with each other, and when one is under strain, the others tend to feel it too.

The Quick Fix Temptation

When you feel that bad, you want relief, fast. I understand that completely, I've lived it.

But a bandaid in one place tends to create a problem somewhere else.

Real, lasting change comes from supporting the root cause, not just quietening the symptom in front of you.

The Three Month Reality

It generally takes three months or more to start seeing genuine hormonal shifts.

That's roughly the life cycle of an immature follicle developing into an egg, and it's also about how long it takes your body to respond to change at a cellular level.

Three months isn't a delay. It's just how the body works.

Healing The Root Cause

A holistic approach tends to look simple on paper, even though it takes real commitment to follow through.

It usually involves lifestyle and nervous system support (yes, that includes doing things for you), targeted supplementation, using food as medicine, and giving the process patience and consistency.

If This Sounds Familiar

I want you to know a few things.

You are not too far gone.

You are not broken.

Your body is simply waiting for the right support to reach it.

If you're ready to give it three months and work on this from the inside out, I'm right here with you.

15% off all consults and packages ends July 31st - use code 'health'. Book here.

And for the first FIVE people I am doubling the discount on my 6 session renew pacakge upfront - use code 'birthday' for 30% off upfront payment here.

This information is general in nature and is not a substitute for individualised advice. Please always work with a qualified healthcare practitioner alongside any GP or specialist care.