New and Scared
Hello :)
I (22F) have just been diagnosed with PMDD after a long and hard struggle and honestly I feel like crying. I’m pretty desperate for advice and direction because all the information and fear feels daunting.
For background, I was diagnosed with ADHD and Anxiety(GAD) about 5 years ago and 4 years ago, I started birth control. I was on various forms (the patch and the ring) for about 2 years before quitting because I couldn’t handle the side effects. I think this is what fully triggered my PMDD into action. I’ve been off all birth control since then because of how awful I felt and I’m not sure I really recovered from it.
I moved cities about a year ago and found a few doctors who started taking me seriously. Several times they’ve offered to give me an SSRI for the symptoms but I’ve been worried since I had a poor reaction to birth control and, honestly, don’t want to risk my sex life. After some research, I decided on escitalopram (Lexapro) however my doctor decided that fluoxetine (Prozac) or sertraline (Zoloft) would be better. They sprung this on me at my last appointment and I feel like the rug has been pulled out from under me.
At this point, I don’t know if I even want medication. I’m just exhausted and tired of being treated like I don’t know what’s going on in my body.
I’ve made every lifestyle change (eating better, cutting caffeine, adhd meds, yoga) and I’ve been journaling to track my mood and symptoms. I’m fine most of the time but my luteal phase is getting worse and worse.
I really need advice or success stories or something to give me hope that there’s a solution.