PMS/PMDD is it a condition or an excuse?

Yes ladies you know it. Two weeks or a week prior before you wear the adult diaper for about a week you get your signs. Bloating, weight gain, swore breasts, fevers, chills, anxiety, anger, and the list goes on. When you lash out on people some people (especially women) are empathetic because of course they go through the same thing. Others (usually men) say its an excuse, but is PMS really an excuse? I went to webmd.com for my answers.
According to webmd.com PMS is defined as the following:

PMS is women can occur as early as their teenage years throughout the few years before menopause. PMS or Premenstrual Syndrome takes place within the days or weeks before your actual period. PMS comes from the hormonal changes within the body. For many doctors, PMS is a mystery. Well doctors are supposed to know everything right? Wrong. They do not fully understand why a woman would have PMS (besides the hormones) , or why some women have more severe symptoms than others. What the doctors do know that PMS is genetic. SO if someone in your family sufferers from PMS they is a more likely chance you will as well.

Now I know you ladies know the symptoms of PMS but here is the list of the symptoms:

• Acne
  
• Bloating
  
• Tender breasts
• Food Cravings
  
• Cramps
  
• Headache
  
• Low Back Pain
  
• Anxiety
  
• Less Alert
  
• Wanting to be aloof
• Hostility
  

Now I know there are some ladies that think you may not have PMS at all. If you suffer from any of those of those symptoms you MAY have PMS. You can do what is recommended by doctors and keep track of your PMS with a journal. If you really think you have it, the journal would help doctors diagnose it. Now if you symptoms are more severe such as this list:

• suicidal,
  
• Despair, anxiety
• Diarrhea
• Mood Swings, Crying
• Lasting anger or irritability, unable to see the pain you put others due to outbursts
• Apathy in relationships, and daily activities
  
• fatigue
• binge eating/food cravings
  
• Insomnia/Hyperinsomia (Over tired a lot of sleep)

• physical symptoms: bloating, heart palpitations, breast tenderness, headaches, joint or muscle pain, swollen face
• Increased need of emotional closeness

You may have PMDD or Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder. PMDD is the severe case of PMS. It is a rarity among women. Only 3%-8% of women have this disorder. These symptoms may also appear in women who simply have PMS, but what makes PMS and PMDD different is the ability to carry on with life. With PMDD the symptoms are so debilitating, that women with the disorder can not carry out their normal life activities for up to two weeks before their initial bleeding. These symptoms goes away usually the day before of the the day of bleeding.

How do you treat PMS or PMDD? Many doctors suggest a change of diet, such as no caffeine and sugars, may help with the severity of the symptoms. Doctors also suggest to get adequate exercise, and also to take B6 Vitamin, calcium, and magnesium pills to help with the symptoms. For PMS sufferers medications may be given to you. Doctors may give you anti-depressant, or birth control to help with your PMS symptoms. The anti-depressant will help with your mental state while you menstruate, and the birth control will help with the horomones that are released while ovulating and menstruating. For PMDD sufferers however, doctors tend to give you the same treatments as they would for the PMS patients. Many of these treatments may not work for everyone. You should pick a treatment that is suitable for you. In fact, the vitamins that doctors suggest, yes your B6, calcium, and magnesisum vitamins, are not even linked to helping with PMS or PMDD symptoms. So why even suggest it? They are doctors, and they just love giving you an excuse to pop pills.

So ladies the next time you go bonkers on your friends, family, and significant others you can actually say "IT'S NOT AN EXCUSE ITS A TRUE CONDITION." For men do not say its an excuse because if you look it up it has its own section in the medicine books and medicine websites.

For more info check out:
http://www.webmd.com/mental-health/premenstrual-dysphoric-disorder
http://women.webmd.com/guide/premenstrual-syndrome