You could have regular levels of anxiety all the time or none at all. But when PMS occurs, you typically get a little more on edge and feel those anxious effects. That said, if you have PMDD, you will feel significantly more anxiety. In some cases, you could even start to have full-blown panic attacks, when outside of the period PMDD hits, you rarely, if ever, experience them at all.
If anxiety is only slightly on your radar, but you experience the most severe forms of the condition at the same time every month, PMDD may be to blame.
3. Hulking out
PMS makes you irritable, but PMDD causes you to feel rage so hot that you could feel like you’re dangerously close to transforming into the Hulk. The anger in PMDD is usually over more minor, less significant annoyances like someone getting your order wrong at Starbucks or your spouse leaving their socks on the floor beside the laundry basket—again.
If you experience feelings of anger so strong that they cause issues with those around you, and it only happens during the luteal phase of your cycle, PMDD could be driving it.
4. Routines go out the window
Because of the high levels of depression, anxiety, and irritability, your routine may be disrupted during the PMDD phase. You detach from your typical day-to-day because those severe mental changes force you to. It isn’t just calling in sick one day because you just can’t deal with work. It’s more like you couldn’t care less about your job. The lack of routine also applies to your hobbies and social engagements.
