Struggling with PMS or PMDD?
PMS & PMDD Support
Living with PMS or PMDD doesn’t have to be your normal
If the days before your period leave you anxious, exhausted, rageful, or barely able to function I want you to know that’s it doesn’t need to be this way, even if you’ve been told this is “just part of being a woman”.
I’m Dr Fionnuala Barton, a GP and accredited Menopause Specialist. I see this pattern often: women who are high-functioning, switched-on, and still left wondering why a week (or two) of every month feels unbearable. The honest answer is that PMS and PMDD are under-recognised and under-treated, even within medicine. Our approach is to take your symptoms seriously, investigate properly, and build a plan around your hormones, your history, and your life.
What is PMS vs PMDD?
Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS) refers to the physical and emotional symptoms such as bloating, breast tenderness, low mood, irritability, fatigue that appear in the luteal phase (the one to two weeks before your period) and ease once bleeding starts.
Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD) is a more severe, cyclical mood disorder. It’s driven by an abnormal sensitivity to normal hormonal fluctuations, particularly progesterone, rather than abnormal hormone levels themselves. Symptoms can include intense anxiety, depression, rage, suicidal thoughts, and a real sense of losing yourself. Often, these symptoms can get so severe they disrupt work, relationships, and daily life particularly around perimenopause.
Our approach: holistic, individualised, evidence-led
There’s no single fix for PMS or PMDD, and like in so many areas of women’s health the funding for research is lacking and the guidelines can feel reductive. At The Menopause Medic, we take a nuanced approach built around you.
You’ll never be handed a leaflet, told to just “put up with it” or have your difficulties dismissed. Every plan is built with you, reviewed with you, and adjusted as your body and life change.
Our Specialist Doctor and Nurse consultations include:
Detailed history and symptom mapping. Tracking the timing, pattern, and severity of symptoms across your cycle to confirm a diagnosis.
Ongoing review, because what works in your 20s may not work in your 30s or as you enter perimenopause so your plan should evolve with you.
Is this you?
Marking your calendar in dread of the week before your period
Feeling like a different person: anxious, low, or enraged for days at a time
Being told your bloods are “normal” while you feel anything but
Relationships or work suffering on a predictable monthly cycle
Wondering if this could be PMDD, but unsure where to get a proper assessment
If any of this sounds familiar, you deserve a clinician who will listen properly and dig deeper.
Start with a full assessment with one of our Specialist Doctors, where we’ll map your symptoms, discuss hormonal and non-hormonal options, and build a plan together around your goals.
Online Doctor Appointment
In-Clinic Doctor Appointment
Nurse Consultation
FAQ
What’s the difference between PMS and PMDD?
PMS involves uncomfortable physical and emotional symptoms before a period. PMDD is a more severe condition involving significant mood disturbance; including anxiety, depression, or rage, that meaningfully disrupts daily functioning, driven by sensitivity to hormonal changes rather than hormone levels themselves.
Can hormones help with PMDD?
Yes, for many women, suppressing ovulation hormonally (so the cyclical hormone fluctuation stops happening) and optimising oestrogen can significantly reduce or resolve symptoms. This is one of several options we discuss based on your individual case.
Do I need a diagnosis of PMDD to get help?
No. If your premenstrual symptoms are affecting your quality of life, that’s reason enough to seek support, whether or not they meet full diagnostic criteria.
Is PMDD just “bad PMS”?
No. PMDD is a distinct, recognised condition with a much greater impact on mental health and functioning, and it often requires a different treatment approach than standard PMS.
Book Your Consultation
Dr Fionnuala Barton offers holistic, individualised hormonal and non-hormonal care.
Not Sure Where To Start?
Start with our hormone and nutritional health blood test panel.