PMS or premenstrual syndrome can affect as many as 75% of women in the week leading up to their period and is a well-accepted cause of mood swings, bloating, cramps and skin irritation.
Post menstrual syndrome is a much less known (and less understood) reason why women may continue to feel negative symptoms in the week following their period.
Anecdotally Post menstrual syndrome is thought to affect less women, perhaps around 10% and symptoms tend to be more psychological in nature such as feelings of depression, anxiety, experienceing sleep disruption and irritability.
The cause of post menstrual syndrome is less well understood however it is thought that women with post menstrual syndrome may be more sensitive to the subtle changes in hormone levels at this time of their cycle.
If you feel that this may be affecting you one thing to do is to record your monthly cycle and any symptoms you have to see whether they are consistent month to month or just a one off, or occasional challenge. As you see differences in the symptoms you experience you may also notice how your hormonal symptoms vary depending on certain lifestyle factors at the time such as emotional stress, levels of exercise and quality of your nutrition or alcohol.
I always consider hormonal balance an important part of the daily choices we make. There are certain habits that you can adopt in order to optimise your hormonal balance – but these are also the daily habits we can adopt for optimal overall health!
Bringing a balance to the neuro-physical body with therapies such as chiropractic and acupuncture have anecdotally been helpful for some women. Getting adequate sleep is easier if your body is in balance both physically and nutritionally. Foods like sugar and alcohol disrupt your blood sugar which in turn has knock effects to other hormones.
Gut health is known to be essential for hormonal health including the production of serotonin (our feel good hormone) which is thought could be low in women with post menstrual syndrome. Exercise is also essential for the normal production of hormones that make us feel energised and happy.
The modern western diet can also be way out of balance when it comes to essential fatty acids so a nutritional supplement can be very helpful here. I am happy to make a recommendation and I also explain a little more about this during our monthly nutrition intro. Please let me know if you would like more info.
You can find out more about using our 30 days to healthy living program to balance your hormonal health here