Dr Janelle Sinclair
PMDD Treatment Strategies: a comprehensive natural medicine approach that you MUST hear!
Interested in resolving depression and anxiety naturally?
Check out Dr Janelle’s online course Real Relief Foundations. https://www.drjanellesinclair.com/ecourse.
PMDD Treatment Strategies: a comprehensive natural medicine approach.
I had a few viewers reach out to me, and ask whether I could create a video on how to treat PMDD (premenstrual dysphoric disorder) and PMS (premenstrual syndrome). These are conditions that are related to a women's menstrual cycle, and often have anxiety or depression associated with them.
I will discuss PMS and PMDD symptoms briefly in this video. The topic of this video is to discuss what causes PMDD and pmdd natural treatment. There are 4 different inter-related causes of PMDD that are discussed in the scientific literature. After discussing these I go on to provide a functional and natural medicine treatment approach for these underlying imbalances (pmdd cure, pmdd diet, pmdd supplements, natural remedies for pmdd, pms remedies and how to balance hormones naturally). PMS symptoms and symptoms of pmdd can be debilitating. I hope that you will find some pms natural therapies that will give you relief for your severe PMS.
Dr Janelle Sinclair is a biochemist (PhD) and natural medicine practitioner specialising in mental health. Her YouTube channel discusses natural remedies for depression and anxiety.
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*Dr Janelle Sinclair received her PhD in biochemistry from the University of Basel, Switzerland in 2003. Her use of “doctor” or “Dr.” in relation to herself solely refers to that degree. Dr Janelle is a licensed natural health practitioner in New Zealand. The content contained in this video is strictly the opinion of Dr Janelle Sinclair, and is for informational and educational purposes only. It is not intended to provide medical advice or to take the place of medical advice or treatment from a personal physician. It does not create a doctor-patient relationship between Dr Sinclair and you. Dr Janelle nor Conscious Health Ltd are not liable or responsible for any possible health consequences of any person or persons reading or following the information in this educational content. All viewers of this content should seek advice from a physician or qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition or interactions of supplements with medications. This description may contain affiliate links.
I had a few viewers reach out to me, and ask whether I could create a video on PMS and PMDD. These are conditions that are related to a
women's hormones and her menstrual cycle, and often have anxiety or depression associated with them. So today we're going to discuss causes and treatment options for PMS and PMDD. Make sure you stick around to the end because I've got some ideas on future video topics that I would like to get your feedback on. If you haven't met me before, I'm Dr Janelle
Sinclair, I've got a PhD in biochemistry and I'm a natural medicine practitioner who specialises
in mental health. And on this YouTube channel, you'll find practical
videos discussing effective and safe natural remedies for depression and anxiety. And although most of my videos aren't focus
specifically on PMDD, the strategies discussed will be relevant to you if your moods are
affected by your hormones. So if you're new here, consider subscribing and hit that bell button so that you're notified about our weekly videos. So let's get into it. So let's quickly start with what PMS and PMDD
actually is. Most of you will know what PMS or premenstrual
syndrome is. It refers to physical and emotional symptoms
that occur one to two weeks before a woman's period. Symptoms include acne, tender breasts, bloating,
feeling tired, irritability, and mood changes, and these symptoms resolve around the start
of bleeding, PMDD or premenstrual dysphoric disorder is
a severe form of PMS and women with this condition will often experience debilitating symptoms
such as depression, anxiety, feelings of ‘loss of control', and severe fatigue for 2 weeks
of the month. Like PMS, PMDD follows a predictable, cyclic
pattern. For simplicity throughout this video I'm going
to refer to PMDD as it's the more severe premenstrual disorder, however keep in mind that the causes
and strategies I discuss are just as relevant to PMS. What I'd like to cover in this video today,
is 4 different inter-related causes of PMDD that are discussed in the scientific literature. What I'm going to do, is provide a functional
medicine treatment approach for these underlying imbalances. There's very few studies on PMDD and supplements,
so keep in mind that not all of these strategies have been studied in clinical trials specifically
for PMDD. But I wanted to show you that there is a lot
of natural strategies for treating PMDD. Let's discuss 4 natural treatment strategies
for PMDD. PMDD Treatment Strategy #1: Balance progesterone
and estrogen levels Now this PMDD treatment strategy is based
on the theory that this condition results from problems with progesterone and estrogen
levels or their activity in the body. Progesterone and estrogen are the hormones
involved in female puberty, fertility and pregnancy. They also help regulate our menstrual cycle. During a women's monthly menstrual cycle progesterone
and estrogen levels go up and down, controlling our periods, and also impacting our mood. Next weeks video is going to discuss how the
menstrual cycle impacts our mood, as well as give you more of an understanding of progesterone
and estrogen, so look out for that, and I'll link it up here once it becomes available. But for now, you can think of PMDD and PMS
being caused by a progesterone deficiency and estrogen dominance – and this occurs 1-2
weeks before your period. So the treatment strategy to rectify this
is to increase progesterone and decrease estrogen. To increase progesterone there's a couple
of options: Firstly the herb Chasteberry or Vitex Agnus
Castus. This is a herb that has been studied clinically
for PMDD, and studies show that it can reduce breast-tenderness, swelling, depression, and
irritability. Dosages can depend on the preparation of the
herb but are normally 200-1000mg once a day at breakfast. It can be either taken every day of the month,
or just from ovulation until the onset of your period.It can be either taken throughout
the month, or just from ovulation until the onset of your period. The other way to increase progesterone is
to use bioidentical progesterone cream or capsules. When I'm talking about bioidentical progesterone
I am not talking about the synthetic progestins found in the oral contraceptive pill, Bioidentical
progesterone is the natural progesterone that is an exact copy of the progesterone found
in the body. The synthetic progestins normally make people
with PMDD feel worse, whereas natural progesterone can be very helpful. Standard doses of progesterone cream are 20mg
once or twice a day, but the cream is not applied every day. it's just applied for 1 or 2 weeks of the
month between ovulation and your period. Let's now discuss lowering high estrogen levels:
There's a few good supplement options and they include the calcium D glucarate, and
Di-indolylmethane (DIM)- standard doses are 500-1000mg one to three times daily and 100mg
one to three times daily. Exercise, a dairy free diet and coffee enemas
are also very helpful at balancing out estrogen. Also make sure that you are having a bowel
motion at least once a day. If your bowels aren't moving then it affects
the ability of the body to remove excess estrogens. PMDD Treatment Strategy #2: Increase serotonin
levels One of the other theories about what causes
PMDD is that serotonin activity is reduced in the brain during the second half of the
menstrual for those affected by PMDD. Serotonin is a calming happy neurotransmitter
in the brain. Most people are familiar with the theory that
low serotonin is the cause of depression, and it's very similar in PMDD. The mainstream treatment for PMDD is an antidepressant
that increases serotonin in the brain, the SSRI medications. A natural option to increase serotonin in
the brain is 5-HTP or 5-hydroxytryptophan. 5HTP is naturally produced by the body, and
is made from the amino acid tryptophan. 5HTP easily converts into serotonin, and in
small studies the 5HTP supplement has been found to be as effective as SSRI antidepressants
for the treatment of depression. The standard dosage range for 5HTP for depression
is 50-100mg three times per day. I have a video on that so check it out for
more details on dosage, side-effects and interactions with medications. Now before I move on to discuss strategy #3,
I wanted to get your feedback about a few videos that I was thinking of creating. In my research for this video I came across
some novel treatment strategies that have less scientific evidence. I'm thinking about creating a video on natural
supplements for PMDD, and maybe one on diet. What do you think? Let me know in the comment section below if
you think that video would be worth doing? PMDD Treatment Strategy #3: Support adrenal
function Another theory of the cause of PMDD is adrenal
dysfunction. The adrenal glands are most well-known for
its role in the fight and flight response, making cortisol, adrenaline and noradrenaline. What's less well known is that the adrenal
glands also help regulate mineral balance (like sodium and potassium) in the body. When the adrenal glands aren't functioning
properly it can result in fatigue, low mood, anxiety, and fluid retention. Another poorly recognized function of the
adrenal glands is it's role in making sex hormones such as estrogen and progesterone. I'm planning on discussing the interaction
of the adrenals, sex hormones and PMS in the future, so keep a look out for that video. In the meantime, let me discuss quickly some
strategies for supporting your adrenal glands and therefore reducing PMDD symptoms. #1: Take adrenal support supplements, this
could include adaptogenic herbs, vitamin B5, vitamin C, adrenal glandulars and phosphatidylserine. Check my video out on that topic. #2: Balance your blood sugars. This will help support the adrenal glands,
as well as reduce anxiety, low mood and fatigue. Check my video out on that topic here. #3: Diaphragm breathing every day, is another
great approach for supporting the adrenal glands, indirectly improving progesterone
levels, and reducing anxiety. So make sure that you do that too. PMDD Treatment Strategy #4: Improve GABA in
the brain Now this is the last strategy I wanted to
discuss today. One of the causes of PMDD may be the reduced
level of GABA in the brain. GABA or gamma-Aminobutyric acid is a key inhibitory
neurotransmitter. That means it calms the brain and the nervous
system down, and it balances out other stimulatory neurotransmitters. It is so critical for relaxation. If there's not enough GABA you can have increased
anxiety, agitation, poor sleep, hyperventilation, restlessness, short temper and impulsivity. In some countries around the world you can
buy GABA as a supplement. Standard dosages are not well defined but
are around 150-500mg once or twice a day. Take this product between meals. L-theanine and adaptogenic herb ashwagandha
are other supplements that can also improve GABA levels in the body. And if you're on any medications talk to your
doctor about any potential interactions with these supplements, and anything else we've
discussed today. And if you liked this video, give me a thumbs
up and subscribe. And be sure to check out the playlist on PMDD
which includes the blood sugar, and adrenal supplement videos. Thanks for watching and I'll see you in the
next video.
#PMDD #Treatment #Strategies #comprehensive #natural #medicine #approach #hear
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Have you ever tried a natural approach for PMDD? What has worked for you? Let me know you have any specific questions or topics you'd like me to cover in future videos.
I’ve never had a doctor. Explain it so well. doctors wanna throw you on depression medicine and automatically assume you have depression or throw you on birth control without finding the underlining causes could be unbalanced hormones and they don’t even wanna treat it. This explains it thoroughly.
Vitex- 1000mg am
Bio identical progesterone- 20mg 1-2x daily, applied from ovulation to bleed
Calcium d glucoronate- 500-1000mg
Exercise- balance estrogen
Coffee enema- balance estrogen
Bowl movements daily- balance estrogen
5 HTP- 50- 100mg three times day, increase serotonin
B complex, c, adrenal glandular , phosphotylserine, adaptogens, balance blood sugar, diaphragm breathing- Support adrenal function
GABA – 150-500mg 1-2 x daily between meals improve gaba in brain to clam brain and nervous system, regulate short temper. L theanine can improve GABA levels.
So while I appreciate all this information my problem is natural or synthetic supplementation is that have we ever truly wondered why? Our body is an intelligent machine..finding out the why?? And adressing it.. could have many benefits not just the searched health problem but many other that perhaps we do not even see connection to regarding..
I have a question, i feel these symptoms mostly when my period starts getting delayed. Is that pmdd or some sorta else?
She didn’t link the progesterone cream she mentioned. Anybody get the natural type she’s talking about?
I think i have intolerance to my biological progesteron in my body .
After ovulation i feelinng awful until i getting period.
Hi there I’ve been going through menopause since I was 32 now 49 and I’ve been taking hrt since 32 but i really really struggle with progesterone as I’m extremely sensitive to it wanting to take my own life ever time I take it it’s the devil hormone for me 😢
‼️ Supplement called DIM’s Amazon changed my life, all natural derived from cruciferous vegetables that balance estrogen and progesterone
I personally take blackhosh, iron, and magnesium glycinate to help with my symptoms 😢
Surprisingly it helps.
I was with you until you said coffee enemas.
Dr. Janelle, I hope you see this comment and respond, I just discovered your videos. I have been experiencing many of the symptoms of anxiety, racing thoughts, irritability ever since giving birth. So I am ordering the vitamins you are recommending. My question is, can all these supplements be taken together or what is the best recommendation? Thank you so much for your information and helping us women get through this! ❤
I literally just found this video I haven't watched it all just the beginning and let me tell you I suffer from pmdd all through my thirties I'm 45 years old right now and in 2020 October ish I found a formula that was saved my life from the horrible pmdd which consisted of crying anger insomnia with anger feelings of analyzing myself severe depression irritability so much more cramps heavy bleeding just the worst. And let me tell you this really helped my mood. Vitamin B6 vitamin e calcium and magnesium it doesn't matter the type I just bought what I found on Amazon and started taking them every day and oh my goodness it helped I cried tears of joy because it helped and when I forgot a month the pmdd came back like a monster I also bought chastberry supplements but I really didn't need them now that I'm going to perimenopause I do take them and I take saffron because it acts like an antidepressant without the side effects there has been case studies I would take ashwagandha however I have hashimoto's disease and it's autoimmune disease. But if you could take it definitely take it it's amazing. I also drink decaffeinated green tea hot chamomile tea can I make my saffron in the form of tea. I don't add milk or sugar but of course you guys can. I also have these super greens powder that I got on Amazon I used to get the chocolate kind but I got the unflavored and it tastes like matcha so I put that in with my green tea a scoop of it and also has collagen and it's the super Greens Plus collagen. But for the pmdd vitamin B6 vitamin e calcium and magnesium and if you need the chastberry you can add it and the saffron. I will check with the pharmacy or your doctor. And if you're going into perimenopause I take black cohosh for hot flashes I wish I could take ashwagandha but I can't but I do recommend it also I recommend saffron for people that are PMSing or perimenopause. I've also been looking up Gabba I don't know about the side effects and interactions with medication so be very careful but the vitamins work for me with pmdd I hope this helps and I hope you tell every woman are young ladies that you know suffers from PMS or pmdd it is very severe and it's not talked about enough things got so dark for me I was scared and I felt like a crazy person. Sending big hugs and lots of love❤❤❤❤ You are NOT alone!!!!!!!!
Anyone here try acupuncture for PMDD? To help balance hormones? Did it work? I started it this week, acupuncturist seemed very educated and well-versed in women’s health issues so I am going to go for it.
Question for you Dr Janelle. Can you combine all these treatments at once or is that too many supplements / too hard on the liver? For example, should I take Vitex + progesterone cream + DIM + CDG + 5HTP + GABA… PLUS I am wanting to start HydroxoB12 + Folinic Acid + PS100 + others (B6 + Iron + Zinc + Magnesium +Vitamin C) for methylation purposes based on your slow COMT / MTHF videos.
It's related to inflammation. My wife has suffered with pmdd for 14 years and I tirelessly researched everything. I started thinking about going the holistic route and was referred to Dr Achina Stein. She has a video called "what if it's not depression" on YouTube and after I watched it, everything started to make sense. The majority of autoimmune and depression issues are related to our gut health, trauma and serious illness. My wife has returned to her self for the last 2 months after being bedridden for the previous 9 months, and I am so thankful I found this information.
i've been doing a lot of "youtube research" this week after being told I need to start an SSRI for PMDD (which has gone undiagnosed for maybe over 15 yrs?). I was given a progesterone cream at around age 35 when i was RAGING like a lunatic, which helped a lot. But life happened and I'm not sure why I stopped. Now instead, I have the black cloud syndrome that makes me the other side-weepy and wanting to not live. Your videos have been such a God-send – the best I've found yet for real answers. I have taken copious notes and will be starting everything you're recommending. I hope to have a great update in a few weeks.
THANK YOU SO MUCH!
Do you recommend taking the DIM and calcium supplement only on the days/week leading up to your period or daily?
I suffer from pms abd I'm in the perimenopause, I've got the mireena dr told me to go on biomedical hormones UTRAGESTRAN, I GET SEVERE SLEEP ANXIETY ESPECIALLY B4 MY PERIODS ❤
But I have low oestrogen…
Just a fair warning to any other women with PMDD who are interested in trying serotonin supplements or prozac for PMDD: If you have bipolar 1 or undiagnosed bipolar, the serotonin supplements/meds can cause you to become manic and extremely irritable. Speaking as a woman with PMDD and Bipolar 1, it is extremely hard to manage and I must warn you about these risks..
Is it more recent that PMDD is believed to be an abnormal reaction of the brain to the normal fluctuations of hormones?
My tools to help are good diet, light exercise (walking), and ginger tea during luteal phase
The latest video on my channel is about real crime documentaries. I'm confident it's an interesting piece. Share your thoughts after watching!
A lot of women are having success with using Annas Wild Yam cream, can you do a video on that please?
I wish I could just stay in a retreat for a week every month. Away from everyone and just have someone take care of me
So do we take these supplements for the rest of our lives? Daily? Partial part of the month?
Is it safe to take chaste berry while you have the mirena IUD?
Dear Dr. Sinclair, I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart to your highly informative video. I was watching your video bed-ridden plagued with fatigue. Somehow I pushed myself up to buy 5-HTP and DIM from Popeye's Supplements — I kid you not, I am transformed within a day. Have a fabulous day xxx
Mother Nature's always knows best use food as medicine. My late elderly Mum had it and I have had it. My PMDD slowly reduced after my children. Thankfully Chastberry is good for Pre-Menopause too also. Try homemade Smoothies and Mediterranean foods have helped me. Codliver Oil in Orange juice. Healthy Fibre intake is good also, having a massage, Oily fish such as mackerel, tuna, salmon and other. Green leavy foods, exercise have all reduced my PMDD. There's quite alot you can do
I’ve always had extreme PMS but this past year it’s lasting much longer and more severe. I get bad mood swings, anxiety, depression, and even paranoia. Where before I never used to get paranoid. It feels like I’m losing my mind but I know it’s related to my hormones. Just don’t feel like myself for most of the month. Never heard of PMDD before which just shows how little society is aware of it.
Is this medication good bijuva
Thank you so much for you video(s) – I had a naturopath suggest I might have MTHFR a few years ago but the test was out of my price range & the vitamins didn't help much & now I believe that was b/c I was severely malnourished & had other issues.
In my mid 20's I found out I have
HLA-B27 positivity with scoliosis in multiple parts of back, partial neck fusion & DJD (I saw a rheumatologist who denied me any testing into ankylosis despite symptoms but did say I had fibromyalgia)
Severe & multiple food allergies (one of my BIGGEST struggles)
Severely low iron & vit D levels
Lifelong issues of
horrible menstrual cycle (honestly gave up tracking it because it would literally change from the beggining of the month to the middle then end & back again – I would always wonder why I felt so horrible then BAM period)
severe migraines (one lasted a week then morphed into a low grade one for another 3 weeks!)
joint paid
Heart arrythmia/palpations
impulsivity/imbalanced mood
severe dark purple circles under eyes since childhood (school officials would actually send me to the counselors office over this!) I have been told this could be allergy related however I am starting to think it is kidney
Unbearable fatigue coupled with mania (this one makes me laugh actually 🙂 )
What I find interesting is my hormones & thyroid were always testing "normal", even my iron! It took a woman ND to tell me my iron was way low after years of MDs saying it was fine.
For some time I switched to a very high fruit almost raw vegan diet with many lentils & beans with some vitamin B, D & Iron (vitanica brand) supplementation – I ended up pregnant (I didn't think this was possible before) & was able to have my daughter naturally with a midwife. I lost a lot of blood & had severely low milk production even with supplements & seeing a lactation consultant. We ended up having to use formula. My diet is ok now but now as great as it was. After three years postpartum I don't think I have bounced back/fully recovered & feel like what I realize is now PMDD becoming worse with the severe ups & downs each month. Menstrual cycle is also way heavier than before my daughter even after 3 years!
If you do have a chance to read this (or anyone else for that matter) Have you seen any correlation/connection to hla-b27 related issues & MTHFR? Or anything is relation to heart arrythmias (cayenne pepper water & magnesium/trace minerals have been helping some)?
Thank you again & I am now a new subscriber
God bless,
Lia
Ok I tried for one month and nothing changed, my pmdd symptoms didn’t get better, may be I should go up on tyrosine dosage, I took only 500 mg and didn’t see any effect. Also I did take 5 htp 100 mg Please help me.. I been so miserable with my pmdd
200mg once a day of 5htp has changed my life! It brought me out of post partum depression and continues to help to this day.
Should we be doing all strategies or one at a time?
After coffee enema, I get so relaxed it feels my brain is switched off, and I get anxious and think something is wrong. Very unpleasant.
This cant be normal? :-/
Did you do the other videos you asked about please do them please because I cannot do a hysterectomy or get rid of my ovaries I am trying to do this naturally but I am stuck in a hard place right now because my body is acting very oddly due to medication protracted withdraws of benzodiazepines that were prescribed for 12 years abruptly ceased
Can you use tumeric instead of 5htp? Does five HTP act on the GABA receptors I recently was abruptly stopped on a benzodiazepine and I have protracted withdrawals from the benzodiazepine and I have been told not to use supplements to act on the GABA receptors
Is there a way to meet with you? Zoom ? I’m in the US
Pmdd is a lonely hell on earth.
doesn’t progesterone increase and estrogen decrease in the luteal phase? this makes no friggen sense…
Can Magnesium Glycinate and b6 be taken daily as well?
unfortunately no natural remedies worked for me, so i am on the pill which is a life saver. No migraine, no bloating, no irritating, no depression, no period. I am a fitness instructor who lives a healthy lifestyle. I hate being on medication, but the pill really changed everything for the better. For 5 years i have been trying natural solution.. nothing helped, and i was desperate for help..
Will these supplements affect the effectiveness of the pill? I take the pill, but I still experience intense depression the week before my bleed.. I’ve been on the pill for 10 years, so technically I shouldn’t be having a “normal” cycle right, because I shouldn’t ovulate
I tend to experience really bad palpitations with PMDD and I've never heard anyone talk about it!! Am I alone?