This article will provide a balanced overview of the pros and cons of using birth control as a treatment option for Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD).
Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD), is a health condition where women struggle with physical and emotional symptoms roughly two weeks prior to each period. The symptoms are similar to PMS, but significantly more severe with extreme behavioral, physical, and mood abnormalities that can disrupt daily life. This includes things like extreme sadness, irritability, paranoia, bloating, night sweats, fatigue, appetite changes, and issues concentrating.
Today, the concept of using birth control for PMDD is increasing as an option for managing symptoms, but is it effective? Does birth control help PMDD?
This article will provide a detailed discussion of the pros and cons of using birth control as a treatment for Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD).
How Birth Control Works for PMDD
Birth control PMDD plans use hormonal birth control pills to help prevent ovulation and regulate the hormones that lead to severe symptoms. Some evidence finds that PMDD birth control pills are successful, but for others, the hormonal changes actually make things worse.
So, how does birth control actually work for PMDD?
Birth control for PMDD stops ovulation, which changes the fluctuation in hormones that you experience, particularly the spikes in estrogen that are typically responsible for PMDD symptoms. This means it effectively stops the source or cause of your symptoms.
Pros of Using Birth Control for PMDD
What are the pros of PMDD birth control?
- Some women have found that birth control pills control symptoms, including:
- Weight gain
- Bloating
- Breast soreness
- Acne
- Mood swings
- Some women have found that birth control pills have prevented ovulation, which controls painful cramps.
Cons of Using Birth Control for PMDD
What are the cons of birth control PMDD plans?
- Not all women see results in PMDD symptoms
- Some birth control pills like drospirenone can cause blood clots
- Birth control pills are known to have other side effects
- Birth control may not be as effective if you are taking it with other medications
Alternative Treatments to Consider
If you are unsure about PMDD and birth control, other options for treatment include lifestyle modifications, cognitive behavioral therapy, SSRIs, otherwise known as antidepressants or other hormonal regulation treatments.
SSRIs
Antidepressants like selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors can be effective in regulating severe mood symptoms. These work a little bit differently than PMDD birth control.
With birth control, PMDD symptoms are reduced because the cause of those symptoms, fluctuation, and hormones resulting from menstruation and ovulation are reduced. By comparison, SSRIs don’t change the cause of symptoms but instead help manage the symptoms once they manifest. SSRIs prevent serotonin levels from being absorbed as quickly as normal, and this helps to prevent severe mood swings or depression-related symptoms by boosting mood at a chemical level.
CBT
Cognitive behavioral therapy can teach you how to recognize automatic negative thoughts and the impact that they have on how you feel and, subsequently, how you act. This type of treatment helps you change your relationship to symptoms of PMDD by recognizing how negative thoughts might make certain symptoms worse, particularly those of irritability, depressed mood, hopelessness, and stress.
Lifestyle Changes
Lifestyle changes are an alternative treatment to consider to birth control for PMDD, but again, these don’t actually change the source or cause of the symptoms but instead help you learn to better deal with them.
Some examples include:
- Regular exercise which can increase the amount of hormones in your body at any given time, counteracting the hormonal fluctuations brought about by ovulation and, by extension, controlling the symptoms of PMDD like low mood and irritability.
- Reducing caffeine, alcohol, sugar, and salt from your diet all of which can cause spikes in things like blood sugar and lead to irritability which could make PMDD symptoms worse.
- Relaxation techniques like mindfulness, meditation, and taking time outside in nature which can control stress, improve mood, boost natural levels of things like serotonin, and work to control or reduce PMDD symptoms.
- Better sleep which can be aided by regular exercise, reduction of caffeine and sugar, and relaxation techniques. The more you sleep when struggling with PMDD symptoms, the better your hormonal regulation will be, and subsequently, the less severe symptoms will be.
Personalized Treatment Plans
If you struggle with PMDD, a personalized treatment plan is something that you should discuss with your healthcare providers and other medical team members. This plan may or may not include the use of birth control PMDD, and it might include several options, including birth control and things like lifestyle changes or CBT.
It is important to note that any of these alternative treatments can be used in conjunction with birth control if that’s what you choose. You can also use birth control temporarily as you utilize lifestyle changes and CBT to control symptoms. This is something to discuss with your healthcare provider, who can help you monitor the efficacy of things like CBT, SSRIs, and birth control either individually or as a group.
Plans for treatment that do not result in reduced symptoms after several months can be amended with things like other types of birth control or other types of alternative therapies.
Types of Birth Control Used for PMDD
If you are considering birth control for PMDD, you have a few options. Continuous birth control pills are one option, and this type of PMDD and birth control plan doesn’t have any placebo, so it actually stops periods and prevents the change in estrogen. This change in estrogen is often responsible for severe hormonal fluctuations, which cause the spike in PMDD symptoms. As such, women have improved symptoms because they don’t have the same hormonal changes.
Progestin-only pills are another option, and these suppress ovulation in some women, leading to the same control over hormonal fluctuations, which are sometimes associated with PMDD symptoms.
Yaz is a birth control designed specifically for PMDD and is currently the only FDA-approved hormonal birth control for PMDD. Other options are not exclusively approved for PMDD use but can be prescribed for it nonetheless.
Impact on Fertility
While there are concerns that birth control will affect future fertility, this is not the case. Birth control pills do not lead to infertility despite the myths that may have circulated in the past. In fact, birth control pills can provide a better balance of your hormones. At any time, you can stop taking birth control, and after a few weeks or months, your regular ovulation will resume, and you will experience the same changes in estrogen levels.
Summing up
There are pros and cons to using birth control PMDD. It’s up to you to make an informed decision based on your individual health needs and preferences. Does birth control help PMDD? Yes, but so can alternative practices depending on personal preference. You should always consult with your healthcare provider to determine whether birth control is the right option for managing your PMDD symptoms.
