I'm Hormonal | PCOS, periods, gut + hormone health insights

How to Deal with PMS | Ep. 100

• Bridget Walton, Women's Hormone Coach • Episode 100

Share episode

Send us a text

PMS is not an inevitable part of womanhood but rather a signal that your hormone balance is off. Understanding the relationship between estrogen dominance and progesterone insufficiency gives us the power to address these symptoms and support our bodies for smoother menstrual cycles.

• PMS specifically refers to symptoms occurring 7-10 days before your period starts, not during your period
• The root cause is typically an imbalance between estrogen and progesterone in the second half of your cycle
• Ovulation quality directly impacts progesterone production - if you're not ovulating, you won't produce adequate progesterone
• Liver health significantly affects estrogen processing and elimination
• Alcohol and caffeine consumption can burden the liver and worsen PMS symptoms
• Constipation can cause estrogen to be reabsorbed rather than eliminated
• Stress, histamine responses, and endocrine-disrupting chemicals in everyday products can disrupt hormone balance
• Regular sauna sessions help eliminate estrogen through sweat
• Cruciferous vegetables support liver detoxification pathways
• Try avoiding alcohol and reducing caffeine in the second half of your cycle
• Consider using apps like Yuka or ThinkDirty to identify hormone-disrupting chemicals in your products

CONNECT WITH BRIDGET

LinkedIn | Instagram | Website

Book your free strategy call here | Sign up for weekly tips via email

Speaker 1:

If the week before your period feels like a slow descent into chaos, hello, mood swings, breakouts, bloating and snapping at your partner for just breathing too loud then this episode is for you. Pms is common, definitely, but it is not just a part of being a woman. It is a sign that something is off, and today I'm going to be breaking down what that something could be. Let's get into it. I'm going to be breaking down what that something could be. Let's get into it. Welcome to I'm Hormonal, your source of information about women's hormone health and how to support your body. Naturally, I'm your host, bridget Walton, and I'm a certified functional hormone specialist and menstrual cycle coach. I am on a mission to hold these hormone conversations with as many menstruators as possible, because you deserve easier access to accurate information about what's up with your unruly menstrual cycle and with your fertility mysteries. Don't you think it's time that we figure this out once and for all? Hi out there and welcome to this 100th episode of I'm Hormonal. I am so excited that you were listening today. I'm Bridget Walton, your host, and if this is your first time catching the podcast, I'm really glad that you found me. However, you found me For those of you who have been here before, welcome back. Thank you so much for sharing your reviews and rating the podcast and sharing episodes with your friends. It really means a lot to me and I have been loving seeing the community grow, getting messages from you, getting questions from you, requests from you all. So thank you, thank you, thank you, and on today's 100th episode, I'll stop fangirling in a second about the number, but on this 100th episode, this is going to be a part of my life. I'm just going to deal with this every month and it's something to be made fun of or criticized for. But let's take a beat. We're going to rewrite that today because PMS doesn't have to be a part of your life. It's something that you can address, something that at least knowing more about and understanding why it happens, that can totally help you to address it and be a first starting point. So my hope for you is that, listening to this episode today, you understand why PMS happens, what it is and, of course, what you can do about it.

Speaker 1:

Here at I'm Hormonal, the whole purpose of this podcast, the reason why I started this podcast about 18 months ago, was to share what I know and what we all collectively know about women's hormone health so that you can understand what's going on and really take that information run with it and feel better, because you all deserve to feel comfortable and confident in your skin and understand what is going on underneath the hood. So let's dive into it. I want to start off by talking about what PMS is. I haven't even broken down the acronym yet because it's so common, but premenstrual symptoms we talk about PMS societally really just to mean like any sort of adverse or unsavory symptoms that come along with our cycle A lot of times too. Or tell me through DM, or just think to yourself right now, of course, do you normally use the term PMS to describe how you feel when your period has actually come? Is it in the lead up to your period? And let's break down the difference on that really quickly. Now you may have guessed this with premenstrual symptoms, and if you caught that, then you're right.

Speaker 1:

Normally, PMS, or the way that PMS kind of should be used, is to describe the symptoms that you experience just in advance of your period. So this could be that seven to 10 days even before your period starts, but otherwise in the first couple days of your period, these symptoms should be going away, and so that's how we can determine. Okay, is what you're experiencing a part of PMS or is it something else, based on when in your cycle you are experiencing it? Let me say that one more time in a slightly different way here, but if you are having experiences like bloating, headaches, tender breasts, you are having acne, mood swings, you are a little bit more irritable than you normally are All of these things and more can be attributed to PMS. Now let's pivot slightly to understand what's causing PMS. Why does this happen?

Speaker 1:

And before I get into that, let me give you a little extra information about what happens hormonally throughout your cycle. If you've listened to the podcast before, or if you haven't check out an episode I did a couple of weeks ago about the basics of hormone fluctuations, this will give you a really solid foundation to understand what's happening with your hormones. But, in short, once your period starts, from that day one of your cycle, estrogen levels will start to grow until the middle of your cycle when you're expected to ovulate. That's when estrogen levels are around their highest point, also when testosterone is at its highest, and then those levels fall. And in the second half of your cycle, progesterone given that you ovulated, progesterone will be the hormone that is at its highest level. So estrogen is the main hormone in the first half of your cycle. Progesterone is the main hormone in the second half of your cycle.

Speaker 1:

And I'm saying this because if for you, if progesterone is not the main hormone in the second half of your cycle due to imbalance, and estrogen has kind of, like eek, gotten into first place there, then it's that imbalance, it's that inverse ratio from what you would ideally want to see that leads to PMS. So you're just thinking, okay, well, a, is this me? Does this describe me? Do I have these symptoms of high estrogen? I'll walk through that in just a moment here. But it's basically symptoms of high estrogen. Are those PMS symptoms, as well as things like heavy period bleeding when your period does start, and so that's how you can say okay, I think maybe estrogen is a bit high.

Speaker 1:

Of course, if you are going to be doing some testing right, I mentioned the Dutch test here a lot because that is the hormone panel that I use with my one-on-one clients. So that would be a way to really confirm what's going on with your hormones If you get testing done through your primary care provider and they see what's going on with probably estradiol, which is one of your kinds of estrogen that your body makes, then you'll want to make sure that they are testing it at a specific time in your cycle so they have the proper reference range, since your estrogen levels and estradiol levels change throughout your cycle. But that's all to say. Yes, you can definitely quantifiably get the data to say quantifiably, get the data to say, okay, estrogen levels are high, progesterone levels not as high. Or you can understand that through your experiences of PMS and through potentially heavier bleeding than what is considered normal. All right, now that we have a solid understanding of A what PMS is and B, what does that mean for you hormonally?

Speaker 1:

Let's take a look at what can cause or what can exacerbate these symptoms, or really what exacerbates that hormonal imbalance of having relatively high estrogen or relatively low progesterone. Let's tackle progesterone first, because this one is a little bit more succinct. If you do not ovulate or if you don't have like a very strong ovulation, high quality ovulation, then your body is not going to produce maybe any, or not nearly as much progesterone as you would produce if you did have like a good follicle development in the lead up to that ovulation. So let me say that in a different way. If you're not ovulating, if your ovaries aren't actually releasing that egg each month, you're not going to be producing progesterone. And similarly, if there's something impacting the development of the follicle from which that egg is released, then that will also impair or inhibit the adequate release of progesterone from that follicle. Once you ovulate that spot on your ovary, the follicle that releases that egg, it actually transitions into a new endocrine gland that releases progesterone. So that's the tie between why does ovulation impact? What happens with progesterone? Well, now you know.

Speaker 1:

So starting point number one of where you can investigate is saying okay, well, am I actually ovulating? How do I know that I'm ovulating? And one way to tell is if your cycle is really consistent or if it's super unpredictable. If you have a pretty unpredictable cycle, then you might not be ovulating regularly. Other ways that you can check, of course, would be through observing your cervical fluid, observing your cervical position, as well as really just monitoring your basal body temperature. This is something that I do. I think it's the easiest. I put a thermometer on my arm before I go to sleep. I wake up, it tells me what my temperature was, and that's how I can identify which day in my cycle I ovulate. Or if for some reason, I didn't ovulate that cycle, I will know because I won't see a bump in my temperature. If that kind of piqued your interest, go back and check out some of the other episodes that I have, where I talk more in depth about how to understand if you're ovulating and what are those tools that I just mentioned. How does that? What does that mean? So you can get more details there. But let's wrap up this mini conversation on progesterone, because we know, okay, if I'm ovulating and if I'm having a healthy ovulation, then I'll be producing an adequate amount of progesterone. Now it is entirely possible or plausible that that is happening for you.

Speaker 1:

Yet estrogen levels are still higher than progesterone, and that could be because maybe your body is having a tough time of eliminating and processing out that estrogen. Some specific factors that would contribute to that could be sluggish liver health or sluggish liver processing. If you are somebody who consumes alcohol, it doesn't even have to be that much right, but your liver is putting all of the other metabolization that it does on the back burner in order to detox alcohol and other toxins from your system. So consumption of alcohol can definitely contribute to PMS symptoms and overall slower elimination of estrogen metabolites. Similarly, if you're not having regular daily bowel movements, that can contribute as well, because when your estrogen metabolites, which many of them, are eliminated through your waist, through your stool, if it's just sitting in your digestive system, maybe for an extra day, there's more opportunity for those estrogen metabolites to cycle back into your blood system and your cardiovascular system and just be recycled back in so you're not actually excreting them and those estrogen levels are contributing then to that, you know, outweighing what's going on with progesterone.

Speaker 1:

Certainly, stress can impact well both your digestive system and, well, actually every system in your body. But if you're having a lot of stress, maybe that's a factor in what's going on with your PMS. But if you're having a lot of stress, maybe that's a factor in what's going on with your PMS. Also something to consider if you have a big allergy response right, whether that's because it's the springtime and there's a lot of pollen in the air, maybe it's because of something else that you're eating that you're sensitive to, that you don't realize the histamine release itself can also push up the levels of estrogen in your body. So something to keep in mind that, okay, is there a correlation between my PMS and when I have a histamine response or an allergic response to something?

Speaker 1:

The last thing that I want to mention here is some food for thought would be exposure to endocrine disrupting chemicals. So these are components that are in many of the items that we use daily, whether it is beauty products, cleaning products, plastics. Many of these things have chemicals in them that can impact what's going on with your estrogen. It can make your body perceive that there are higher levels of estrogen in your body than just the amount of estrogen that your own body is actually producing. So it wouldn't be a bad idea to take an inventory of the products that you're using. Download an app like Yuka or Think Dirty or the EWGs app. There are so many great resources out there to help you understand. Okay, is the sunscreen that I'm using a clean one? Is the mascara or the deodorant that I'm using? Is this clean or are there chemicals in it that I should be concerned about because they might be impacting my endocrine system? Check out one of these resources and identify what's the best tool for you and start just screening through your products to see okay, this one not the best. Next time I need to replace it, I'm going to get something that is clean and doesn't have the same impact on my endocrine system.

Speaker 1:

Now that we've walked through a bit of information on what can contribute to or exacerbate your PMS, let's pivot to this final section, where we're going to identify what can you do. What are these top of mind or most easily accessible action items that you can take into account now so that you can hopefully have a better, less PMS-y experience before your next cycle? Now, the first thing on this list I mentioned earlier but is so important, is for you to understand if you're actually ovulating. Understand if you're ovulating, because if you're not, then that's what you'll want to focus on figuring out why not and how can you support your body to get back in the rhythm of things and going through your proper cycle and ovulating. Now, once you confirm that you are ovulating, then that's a good opportunity for you to say okay, sick. Now I know that bringing down that excess estrogen and helping my body to eliminate those estrogen metabolites, that's what I need to focus on.

Speaker 1:

So some things that you can do to help the elimination of estrogen would be one getting into the sauna If you go to a gym nearby or wherever you have access to a sauna. While, yes, I mentioned that estrogen is excreted through your stool, you can also excrete some of those metabolites through your sweat actually. So getting into the sauna, that can be helpful. You maybe want to spend I don't know try out 20 minutes in the sauna if you are new to it, but just getting in that practice of sweating that's going to be something that will be on your side.

Speaker 1:

The second thing that is really attainable would be just incorporating more cruciferous veggies into your diet. Cruciferous veggies include those like broccoli, cauliflower, kale, radishes what else have we got? Arugula, mustard greens. You can do a quick goog to find out what's the full list of cruciferous veggies and pick two or three to incorporate into your meals this week. Cruciferous veggies have certain components in them that just support what's going on in your liver, support this phase of detoxification in your liver, and so that's why that can be a good option. If you're not super hyped about some of those leafy greens, then you can also check out on the tea aisle at your local grocery store. They might have an option that just says liver detox tea. They might have another one that's dandelion root tea. There are a variety of teas that are going to be supportive, like cruciferous veggies, for what's going on with your liver each day, before you go to bed, enjoying a cup of tea and then smoothing into your nighttime routine, just like, oh, settling into your nighttime routine, that's the word I wanted.

Speaker 1:

The next two recommendations are things to remove. Number one alcohol. Would definitely recommend removing it in the second half of your cycle, so that last seven to 10 to 14 days if you're having PMS, just to see, like, okay, is this helping? What is the impact that I see from it? Of course, alcohol is not good for your body any day of the week, but if you're able to see, okay, cool me, opting for this mocktail or instead of going out with my friends, I'm going to have the girls over to my house this weekend, something like that, see how you can switch up your plans a little bit or just what you're consuming. There are so many other great non-alcoholic options. The second thing that you can consider avoiding would be caffeine, also in the second half of your cycle. This is because caffeine can be a tax on your liver. We've mentioned liver health a handful of times, but just thinking, okay, let me just try this out minimize alcohol, minimize caffeine, see how you feel. All right, team.

Speaker 1:

That about wraps it up for today, but I do want to leave you with a reminder, with some encouragement, that if you have been dealing with PMS for a long time, if you were just sick and tired of it, I feel you. I've been there. There's so many other gals menstruators around who have been there too, and I just want to encourage you that you can do this. You can make changes in your diet and your lifestyle, with your sleep, to really help support your body and help support these systems, help support your liver and your estrogen balance all of these things to help you have a better period and help you to just have a period that's so smooth. You don't even have to think about it being a thing right. You're focused on these other parts of life that are rewarding and fulfilling and productive and all of the other good stuff that life has in store for you, aside of just managing your health.

Speaker 1:

So I say that to say I know that sometimes we listen to podcasts and we're like you know, I don't know when something is going to work for me, but identifying a plan, identifying what works for you, making it work for you and committing to it. Stick with it for maybe three months and then, if you're not seeing the results that you need, you're not seeing the results that you want, then maybe that is good time to find the right person to work with one-on-one, because your health matters and you don't have to deal with just feeling like ish and not being sure of what to do, not being sure of how to support your body. So I will leave you with that. Thank you again for listening to this 100th episode of I'm Hormonal. I can't believe that we're at 100. That's a big number, guys, but couldn't have done it without you, of course, and I just can't say enough. I really appreciate all of you listening, all of you reaching out.

Speaker 1:

If you have a question, if there's a topic that you want to hear me talk about, you can dm me on instagram at bridget walton, but otherwise that's it from me. I'm bridget walton and I will look forward to seeing you on thursday for a mini episode where I'm going to be talking specifically about pms and work and how you can prioritize a couple of specific areas of your work in order to help to mitigate your PMS. It'll be a good continuation if you felt that this one was helpful. So thanks, guys. See you on the next one.

Speaker 1:

If you loved today's episode and got something good out of it, make sure you subscribe so that these episodes show up automatically in your feed out of it. Make sure you subscribe so that these episodes show up automatically in your feed, no work needed on your side, let's put it on autopilot. As always, I need to give you my reminder that the information I share with you here is for educational purposes only, and it should not be used as a replacement for medical advice or diagnosis. Now, if you are, on the other hand, in the market for some one-on-one support, then I would love for you to take me up on my offer for a free strategy call. You can find these links and more in the show notes.