anxiety and menstruation

O.K. ladies - have any of you with anxiety issues noticed any difference in your anxiety levels just before and the first day or so of your period? I had been doing good lately and had a bad day yesterday. I got my period today (a few days early) and thought maybe there was some connection.....any thoughts or experiences?

Yes, i have noticed a spike in my anxiety levels during menstruation (and during PMS). I tend to feel shaky, I have nervous energy, and in general I feel an irrational fear. I don't know what the connection is exactly - maybe an offshoot of PMDD?

Yes, if you are anxiety prone, problems tend to peak during/as a part of/PMS. This is due to hormonal changes making you more emotional in general and intensifying your anxiety. It is biochemical.

I hate my period!

Yes, This is what's happening to me. On the first day of my period I begin having weird anxious feelings. For the next 2 days these feeling increase and the next 2 days the feelings begin to decrease. By my 5th day, I feel great with no anxious feeling at all. Does anyone else have these anxious feelings. I hate the way they make feel.

This is exactly what has happened to me i noticed it last month and this month im due i feel anxious and very vulnerable...i cant stand it!!!

Yes, this happens to me too. Emily's explanation of her situation is almost exactly like my own. Prior to Effexor I NEVER had this happen.

I thought I was the only one but obviously I'm not. My anxiety began after a miscarriage has anyone else experienced this also.I had to have a dnc and from then on 2-3 days before my period I began having panic attacks and really painful periods. So painful it feels like my uterus is going to fall out! I don't know of any other way to describe it. There needs to be more research on this subject and less talk about medication. You shouldn't have to take crazy meds that make you feel even worse.

I also get anxiety before and after my period, but generally not during - what is going on?? I feel panicky and nervous and have to talk myself out of bed!! I hate pre- and post- menstrual!!

i get the same, way anxiety before and after my period.

THAN GOD for u all! I have bee doing the samething and thought something must be wrong with me! I have been having anxiety attacks 2-4 days before my period:( Im so shakey right now. Atleast I know now Im not the only one. I'll try Nd calm down now.

I have terrible anxiety 5 days prior to my period. Been diagnosed with pmdd and was given zoloft, YUCK! made me feel worse. Therapy on these days don't help either.=) As soon as my period arrives though I'm the happiest person on earth and anxiety is all gone.

Oh my gosh..I do experience those it feels like I am going crazy. What can be done??????

I suffer from Severe Anxiety/Panic disorder and I find that 3-4 days up to a week before the onset of my period my anxiety/panic gets pretty extreme such as: I feel dizzy, heart palpatations,bad headaches, feel of doom, tightness in chest, etc.. Then the first day of my period its pretty bad but after that it goes away.. I've even gone to the ER for the above reasons as I truly thought I was dying just to be told its severe anxiety and my period coming on with hormones makes it worse.. I hate it and the older I get the worse it seems to be.. Oh, and also out of the blue crying and sadness.. Sheesh, I wish it would just go away forever.

Today I felt compelled to look further into this because I am truly going nuts and I found this site!! I am taking Cymbalta now for about three months, having gone off of Lexapro after gaining 50 pounds and hating it. It's the first day of my period, and I am wide awake at midnight going over every single conversation I had today, paranoid that I said something wrong, offensive, or worse. Panic attacks and fear overwhelm me and I feel like I should stay home on days like this. I feel like I can't go in public because I am someone else, hyped up, easily engaged in destructive conversations, louder and less socially acceptable, so I, too, know it's getting worse with age. I can almost feel the adrenaline releasing to cause this distress and I want it to stop. What may seem minor to someone else is monstrous to me and it is consuming my thoughts. This is generally the worst on the first day of my period, but builds up to that about 4 days prior. Is this different than that clinical definition of PMDD? Has anyone found anything that works?

MichelleS wrote:

Today I felt compelled to look further into this because I am truly going nuts and I found this site!! I am taking Cymbalta now for about three months, having gone off of Lexapro after gaining 50 pounds and hating it. It's the first day of my period, and I am wide awake at midnight going over every single conversation I had today, paranoid that I said something wrong, offensive, or worse. Panic attacks and fear overwhelm me and I feel like I should stay home on days like this. I feel like I can't go in public because I am someone else, hyped up, easily engaged in destructive conversations, louder and less socially acceptable, so I, too, know it's getting worse with age. I can almost feel the adrenaline releasing to cause this distress and I want it to stop. What may seem minor to someone else is monstrous to me and it is consuming my thoughts. This is generally the worst on the first day of my period, but builds up to that about 4 days prior. Is this different than that clinical definition of PMDD? Has anyone found anything that works?

I just went to my doctor because I was feeling so run down and having those consuming thoughts, you described, every night. I was on Lexapro too, for several years, but it just stopped working. I was depressed, extremely tired but even more so before I started my period. I am in the perimenopause phase of life and it stinks. The doctor prescribed Effexor XR 75mg for me and it is like a switch has been flipped. I have more energy and those horrible feelings are gone. When I had my period I didn't have night sweats, barely had any cramps and my mood was very level. It was wonderful. Reading the negative posts about effexor is worrisome but I do not plan on stopping it because it is working so well for me.

Hi,
Thanks for posting these things everyone, I feel exactly the same! It usually happens for a couple of days before I am due on, and then has gone by the third day, but it's a whole week every month that is taken by feeling anxious and lonely!
I guess now that I know a lot of other people are going through it too, it will make it a little easier.
Thanks everyone.

This is the same thing that started it for me. Just before my period I really start feeling anxious when this first started I really thought I was dieing. I am wondering if anyone has gotten their hormones checked to find they are hypothyroid/hyperthyroid??

jesse wrote:

This is the same thing that started it for me. Just before my period I really start feeling anxious when this first started I really thought I was dieing. I am wondering if anyone has gotten their hormones checked to find they are hypothyroid/hyperthyroid??

The doctor did check my hormones and he told me I am on the high side of normal for my thyroid and I am to be rechecked in 4-6 weeks. He also told me that several of the symptoms I had could be also associated with hypothyroidism. So, now I am wondering....maybe it is my thyroid after all. Losing weight is hard for me but I also know that I stuff lots of food in my mouth and could exercise more. I am doing better on that issue though. Plus I am 42 so...it is part of life. I am not extremly overweight but I could stand to lose 20 lbs. Ah, the joys of being a woman.

Hi there,
It's great to read all your posts and know that I'm not alone. I've noticed that during my periods I have irrational feelings of doom, overwhelming thoughts of dread, etc, but recently, I have been getting anxiety/panic attacks during my period as well. I do have hypothyroidism and am treated with Levoxyl. My levels are on the low side(which works for me), but I wonder if during my period that changes. Maybe I need more thyroid medicine during those days? I also have an Ovarian cyst, which will be rechecked this week. I know that can cause depression as well. I just wondered if anyone with hypothyroidism has ever had their levels checked during menstruation as well as other times of month? I'd be curious how levels change. Thanks for listening.