For Women/our hormones

[MrsMapdog]

I have debated whether to write on this topic but I feel like it can be beneficial to the women on this forum. As women we experience hormonal changes in our lives. During our menstrual cycle, pregnancy and the birth of a child and of course the dredded life change, menopause. I've struggled with ocd since I was a child. I have walked through all these stages in my life. I don't remember if i saw an increased of symptoms during my menstruating years or doing pregnancy and child birth but when I went through menopause its like a bomb went off! I became anxious, my head became foggy which made it difficult to grasp how to solve my ocd struggles, a whole new can of worms opened up in my ocd battle. I finally had to be put on hormonal replacement therapy (hrt). It helped me have a more clear mind to handle therapy and to help me grasp information that I needed to apply to help me with my struggles.

I have read and studied how hormonal changes in women can impact her ocd struggles. So if you are going through any changes in life and you feel like your ocd is becoming more difficult focus on your hormones and seek a doctors advice on how they can balance them to help ease your struggles with ocd.

Best wishes!

[LuvSun]

Thanks for the insight!

[Sallyskins]

I always found that my menstrual cycle affected my OCD - and this has continued after the menopause, as women still continue to have a hormonal cycle for some years after it, though they've stopped the monthly bleeding.

I'm lucky in that I had an easy menopause - I hardly noticed it, apart from not needing to buy tampons! For some women, though, it can be a gruelling experience, and HRT can be a real boon.

[MrsMapdog in reply to Sallyskins]

I never paid attention to my ocd during my menstrual cycle because I wasn't in tune with my ocd at the time. When I went into menopause things got so bad. I started reading about it and with our estrogen and progesterone dropping I can see how it made a difference. As women we are always afraid to get on hrt because of the cancer warning. I had a uro/gyn dr said that they have done more studies and the risk is not that high. I got on it in April of 2021 and the benefits I saw outweigh the risk. Don't get me wrong ocd is still a bear for me but I will take any help I can in battling this evil!Thanks for your response.

Have a good day!

[Phoenyx]

Hi MrsMapdog! I had a post a while ago about the connection between endocrinology, OCD, anxiety, and panic attacks. I've been on different hormonal replacement therapies- the first was (and still is) for my underactive thyroid and the second was during my in vitro fertilization. I had found a strong correlation between women's hormonal changes and OCD/anxiety/PA. When my hormones are in the right range, I don't struggle with any mental issues. If my thyroid-stimulating hormone decreases or increases- the hell comes back. I hope that makes sense

[MrsMapdog]

Yes it does! Thanks for the feedback.