If you are
a post-menarche teenage girl feeling depressed, angry, or physically
uncomfortable one to two weeks before your period, you could be one of the
80 percent of menstruating women who suffer from PMS.
Has Your
Teen PMS Been Overlooked?
Teenagers have
a reputation for mood swings, irritability and anxiety about life in general.
Parents and teachers often attribute teenage mood swings to hormonal changes
and might assume that a depressed teenage girl is going through “that
stage” of life. However, if you are a menstruating teen experiencing a pattern
of depression, physical discomfort or unruly and disruptive behavior, you might
have teen PMS, and you should check out our list of PMS symptoms.
How Does
PMS Affect Teens?
Research
has shown that teenage girls suffer the same PMS symptoms as older females. Alongside
the emotional and physical changes of adolescence, this can make for an
explosive combination which leaves you feeling miserable. Your PMS might also
be affecting your family. The parents of PMS teens have reported increased tension in the home and a deterioration of family relationships during their
teenage daughter’s PMS weeks. Fatigue, insomnia and a lack concentration
associated with PMS can also disrupt your educational or after-school
activities.
What Should
You Do About Your PMS?
If you
think you have PMS, you should seek the advice of a trusted adult or health
care professional. Researchers think PMS may be hereditary, so ask whether your
mother, aunts or grandmothers had PMS; they could be the best people to turn to
for help. Many women use natural PMS remedies and adjust their diet and routine in order to cope with their PMS. If this doesn’t do enough for you, you should
discuss medical treatment with your health care provider. Keeping a diary of
your symptoms throughout your menstrual cycle will help your doctor to find the
best treatment for you.
When PMS
Gets More Serious
Around 40
percent of women and girls suffer severe PMS which disrupts their normal routine.
A further five to seven percent experience PMDD, the most extreme and
debilitating form of PMS. If you think you fall into this category you should
seek medical advice right away. Treatment is available and there is no need to
suffer in silence. Likewise, on-going depression or violent behavior in teenage
girls could signify something more serious than the PMS blues; if this is you, do
not hesitate to speak to your parents or contact your health care provider.
There Is
Hope For PMS Teens!
Although
most women and young girls with PMS will probably experience some symptoms for the
rest of their menstruating lives, it’s not all doom and gloom. Some researchers
believe that even severe teenage PMS may improve with time as a girl’s menstrual cycle evens out. In any case, you should check out our tips for
combating PMS.
