PMDD or perimenopause? How to tell mood symptoms apart
PMDD and perimenopause both bring irritability, low mood and anxiety. How timing against your cycle tells them apart, and why PMDD can get worse in your 40s.
Symptoms, one by one
What each symptom of perimenopause feels like, how common it is, and when it is worth mentioning to a doctor.
Summarize with:
Perimenopause symptom diary and checklist to print
Pick your symptoms and print a one-page perimenopause diary (periods, flow, symptoms rated mild, moderate or severe, sleep) with questions for your appointment.
Perimenopause symptoms and how to track them
The signs of perimenopause, from changing periods to hot flashes and brain fog: which are expected, which bleeding to report, and how to keep a symptom record.
Quick answers
What is usually the first sign of perimenopause?
For most women it is a change in their periods: closer together or further apart, heavier or lighter, according to the NHS.
Can you have perimenopause with no symptoms?
Yes. ACOG says some women have no symptoms or only a few mild ones, while others have many.
Keep reading
Other topics
- Periods and bleeding in perimenopause
Longer or shorter cycles, skipped periods, heavy flow, spotting and clots: which changes are expected and which bleeding to report.
- Perimenopause or something else?
Pregnancy, thyroid, stress, depression, ADHD: the conditions that overlap with perimenopause and how a doctor tells them apart.
- Tracking symptoms for your appointment
What to write down, how to rate symptoms as mild, moderate or severe, and how to turn months of notes into one page for your doctor.
- When perimenopause starts and how long it lasts
The ages it usually starts, how long the transition runs, early and premature menopause, and what changes after the last period.
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