Conditions such as premenstrual dysphoric disorder are debilitating and can influence everyday life, but there is little education and discussion about them.

PMDD is a much more severe form of premenstrual syndrome. The side effects of PMDD impact 3-8 per cent of women of childbearing age. One-point-six per cent of women and girls have diagnosed PMDD, although reports suggest 90 per cent of women experience one symptom per month.

It’s a hormonal illness accompanied by depression and anxiety, physical pain, and cognitive problems.

Liane Prinsloo is a student at ECU who was diagnosed with PMDD in the middle of last year. They say the condition gave them depressive thoughts and attitudes, heavily impacting their mental health.

Liane Prinsloo talks about the impact of PMDD. Video: Imogen Bell.

“Before I got any help for it I found it really hard those two weeks before my period. Especially during study or in relationships I was severely depressed and just wanted to be at home,” they say.

They believe there isn’t enough education on women’s health and bodies in school, and the current education system should be revised.

“I 100 per cent do not think that schools are doing enough in terms of women’s health. I think a lot of us have had to stumble through life thinking that there’s something wrong with us. I know a lot of women think the same thing.”

“I’m aware that there’s help out there. I think if I was taught about PMDD in school I would have got help a lot sooner. That would have made life a lot easier,” they say.

Period preacher, author, and folk singer Lucy Peach says instead of just focusing on the symptoms of these conditions, we need to focus on the systems in our society that don’t prioritise women’s health.

“I don’t think we normalise how to manage those sensations,” she says.

“School’s should always be doing more to explore how they can better engage young people in things that are very important. Most women of my generation didn’t grow up learning how to talk about their bodies in a positive way,” she says.

Ms Peach says learning how to properly care for your body would help create a culture of connection, rather than shame and confusion.

“When we can start having conversations that normalise our bodies and our experiences then nobody has to grow up thinking there is something wrong with their body. If we can approach it from a compassionate standpoint then a period can be an invitation” she says.

Hear more from Lucy Peach. Audio: Imogen Bell.

If you or anybody you know is struggling with PMDD visit https://ranzcog.edu.au/news/living-with-pmdd/