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What Is The Link Between Menstruation And Depression?
Many women suffer from premenstrual syndrome (PMS), experiencing physical discomfort and emotional turmoil in the weeks running up to their period. PMS can make you feel depressed in the run up to your period, and women may feel sad, anxious, or irritable as a result.
Cortisol
Research shows that women who have depression experience higher levels of the stress hormone, cortisol.
Cortisol is a steroid hormone that occurs naturally in the body. While cortisol plays an important part in our body, regulating everything from blood pressure to our immune system, in large doses it can potentially wreak havoc with the body.
Cortisol levels increase when we are under stress. This in turn affects the rest of the body, preventing the hypothalamus in our brain from letting your ovaries know they should release an egg. This results in a late period.
High levels of cortisol can also cause a condition known as hypothalamic amenorrhea. This can delay your period or, in some cases, stop it from coming entirely.
Prolactin
Prolactin is a natural hormone that plays a number of roles in the body, from reproductive functions to immunoregulation. High levels of prolactin (hyperprolactinemia) is known to cause menstrual abnormalities.
In studies, women with high levels of prolactin (hyperprolactinemia) have also been shown to experience increased feelings of depression and anxiety.
Cortisol and prolactin
While both cortisol and prolactin play a role in depression and the menstrual cycle, they each work in different ways.
For example, depression and stress result in higher levels of cortisol, which subsequently causes period delays and irregularities as a secondary effect.
In contrast, high levels of prolactin causes irregular periods, however it can also be the cause of feelings of depression and anxiety in sufferers.
How can I treat it?
While there is no set treatment recommended by doctors for treating depression during premenstrual syndrome, there are several changes and medicines you can try to help alleviate it.
Monitor your symptoms
Keeping a diary of your menstrual cycle and its associated symptoms is a great way of staying on top of your PMS-related depression.
Make a note of how you feel and how your body is reacting during your period. This will help you confirm whether your depression is linked to your cycle, or if it is symptomatic of something bigger.
There are many period-tracking apps available online that can help you effectively monitor the symptoms of PMS. These also help you predict when your period is likely to come. However, simply making a note in a diary is just as effective.
Hormonal birth control methods
Hormonal birth control methods such as the pill, patches, or implants are very effective at regulating the symptoms of PMS. Many women find hormonal birth control methods prevent sore or tender breasts, bloating, or irregular sleeping patterns.
Hormonal birth control methods can also be great at regulating emotional problems associated with premenstrual syndrome, including depression. But this is not an absolute, and some women find these methods of birth control exacerbate the condition.
Experiment with different methods, carefully noting the effects of each. Always discuss your symptoms with your doctor before embarking on a new method.
Natural treatments
There are plenty of over-the-counter remedies available that can help alleviate the symptoms of PMS and depression.
Calcium in particular has been known to help with premenstrual syndrome-related depression, among other symptoms. You can take calcium supplements, or you can find it naturally in milk, cheese, or yoghurt.
Vitamin B-6 has also been known to relieve the symptoms of PMS. As with calcium, you can take supplements for this vitamin, or you can find it in foods such as turkey, chicken, fish, or fruit.
Change your lifestyle
Exercise is one of the best ways to prevent depression, whether it’s PMS-related or not. 30 minutes of brisk activity once a day can do wonders for your mood. Even a fast walk on your way home can have a noticeable impact on your mood.
Sleep is also a crucial factor in regulating your mood. Aim for at least 7-8 hours of sleep a night, particularly in the two weeks running up to your period. Avoid using your smartphone or tablet at least two hours before bed, as the blue light emitted from these devices affect your body’s natural rhythm.
Finally, make a concerted effort to regulate your stress levels. When you feel stressed, your body reacts accordingly, exacerbating depression and other PMS-related symptoms. Experiment with mindfulness, meditation, or deep breathing exercises to relax.
Prescription medication
If all else fails, consult with your doctor about starting a course of antidepressants.
The most commonly-prescribed type of antidepressants are selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). These include medicines such as sertraline, citalopram, and fluoxetine.
Antidepressants should be a last resort, and should only ever be taken after discussing all other options with your doctor.
Depression is a common symptoms of premenstrual syndrome. If you are feeling depressed, sad, or anxious in the run-up to your period, speak to your doctor. It may be indicative of a bigger problem, or it may simply be a symptom of PMS. Whatever the cause, there are things you can do to treat it.
5 Important Tips to Know When Visiting the Emergency Room in a Hospital
When we are sick we may think our illness it’s a priority that must be cured ASAP. However, in an ER there are so many cases being treated simultaneously that we must consider if we really are a priority and try to help in doctors’ work. Being honest about the intensity of your sickness could be the best medicine to heal your body and mind.
Keep In Touch With Your Doctor
If you suffer of a particular or chronical sickness or condition, it is well recommended to have a doctor that keeps following your medical record then you can contact him instead of going into an emergency room to be treated.
Don’t Be Quiet
Rejecting the idea of calling to the emergency even when you’re feeling sick, and even if it worsens, just because you don’t like going to the hospital, it’s a pretty bad decision. If you don’t have a particular doctor to take care of you, then it’s time to take care of your health by yourself with help of specialized professional prepared to do so.
Don’t Go Out Without It
As some medicines and drugs could provoke side effect on you, if you’re not feeling good don’t forget to bring them once you go to the consultation, perhaps, the main origin of your pain or sickness starts with them. Moreover, in case you have to wait to be seen in a hospital
Waiting for a Healing
Once you’re in the hospital waiting to be seen, try to measure your discomfort. It means that if it becomes worst you must alert somebody that you’re not feeling well. Therefore you could be seen sooner and avoid a more painful experience.
Don’t Lie
As it has been said at the beginning of this article, being honest it’s something we must take into account when visiting an emergency room. It is pretty bad that you pretend to be into a more painful state than it really is, just to be seen faster. It could make you receive a wrong prescription and even worst it could make someone else in worse state waits a lot more.
ERs are places in which everyone works a lot to keep life saved so if you want help to have this goal done try to think of those tips and help to make this happen.
How to Choose a Otolaryngologist according to John Burgoyne
John Burgoyne is a specialized doctor as an otolaryngologist and head and neck surgery. He had his career at the University of Utah and currently serves clients in Seattle. He’s one of the best specialists in the city, and he gave us some tips to know how to choose a great otolaryngologist:
What Is It?
The Otolaryngologist is the ear, nose or throat (ENT) specialist, who will be in charge of reviewing any problem, pain or illness located in any of those places. In case you need one, it’s because you have some kind of constant discomfort in some of those three places.
Experiences
You can check how much experience they have about ENT because it’s your health that will be at stake, so the more experience they have in these cases the better the result will be for you and confidence will also grow, said Dr. John.
You can even search it from the internet since many users put their experiences and criticisms on some doctors in particular.
Communication
Communication is very important, especially with your doctor because he’s the one who should tell you all your symptoms or pains to know what to do, if you don’t have enough confidence, you can change it.
But you should always tell everything that’s happening to you in reference to anything from ENT, and see if he calms your doubts or helps you to clarify them because that’s the most important.
Check If They Have ENT Credentials
One of the best bits of advice Dr. John gives is to check the credentials of ENT which they have corresponded to the association gives them, that way you will know if it’s a truly qualified doctor to evaluate you, sufficiently trained.
And there you can also check if the doctor hasn’t had any problems with a patient for bad practice or other things.
References
Through the references is one of the best ways to find out which is the best doctor in your area. Try to be sure the information you are giving is true, so you can call any consultant they give you and ask.
Only you can take care of you enough, worry about any symptom or strange pain you see or feel, go to the people who know more, the doctors so you can have a proper care with yourself.
5 Pulmonary Diseases and Illnesses to Beware of
Respiratory diseases can be a more common problem than we imagine in our society. Sometimes they’re inherited, others are because we are very exposed to some toxic environment, and one of the most serious is smoking. Here we leave some types of pulmonary diseases we must be careful of:
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)
It’s one of the most delicate since it makes it difficult for you to breathe or exhale. Even many people don’t detect it at the moment because the symptoms confuse them with other mild respiratory diseases. People who smokes are the ones most exposed to this type of disease and it’s not a good thing, trust me.
Asthma
It’s one of the most common, some cases aren’t so extreme, but you have to be careful with it.
Breathing is difficult because the airways are inflamed. They’re sensitive to an allergic reaction, infection or exposure to toxic environments, just as this type of thing can also cause asthma too.
Emphysema
It’s a COPD too, but at an advanced level, it’s also very common in people who have smoked for many years as it damages the lungs.
For patients coming from this illness, the use of oxygen is even required to help breathe, and although it’s something that isn’t cured, it can be treated and controlled by professionals, with due care the patient must have.
Cystic Fibrosis
This disease isn’t one of the most common, but it’s one of the most serious. It’s caused by some defective gene which affects your system by mucus that generates and affects the respiratory passages. It’s even very exposed to bacteria or infections.
Lung Cancer
Very common for people who smoke, and in many cases, it’s not so easy to detect for the place where they located in the lungs. It’s one of the most common cancers suffered by people and this prevents the lungs from working properly.
The lungs are one of the most vital organs of our body, which is why we must provide great care and avoid anything that may affect them in the short or long term.
6 Things to Consider When Choosing a Hematology Professional
A specialist in hematology is the one in charge of treating patients suffering from any disease in the blood. Dealing with such delicate health issues, it’s necessary to find someone with a lot of experience and knowledge. Here, we have some tips to find the right hematologist:
References
Nothing better to guide you than the references of anyone close to you, because they’re experiences which themselves have lived and can tell you how it was everything if it’s good and more.
You can also search for references through the internet because now everything is more accessible thanks to it.
Hospital
The hospital where the doctor attends also can say many things of him. So you should advise on the quality that guarantees in the place, especially in the case of hospitalizations, so as to know if it will be worth the expense in the hospital.
The Greater the Experience, the Better the Result
To feel more secure, you can also verify how wide the doctor’s experience is since it will show you how much knowledge about the area has and will give you more confidence when it comes to trusting him.
First Is Your Comfort
The first thing it must happen is that you feel comfortable with said doctor, in particular, if the problem is the gender of the hematologist, don’t waste your time and change it to one who makes you feel more at ease.
Check Your Insurance
You should also verify your insurance is broad enough to also cover this type of consultation or any type of treatment with the hematologist, and in case of doing so, you must notify the doctor.
Experiences
Some hospitals have the option of “patient satisfaction surveys”, where each one will be able to reveal if the experience with that specific doctor, the environment in the hospital, how long it took, if it was friendly or not, and many other things satisfactory or disappointing. So you can also check the information.
Health comes first, so if you feel symptoms or have been previously diagnosed with a disease, the important thing is to go to the doctor and know what to do. In the case of hematologists, there are many which are excellent, so you can feel in good hands.
3 Things to Expect from your Endocrinologist
Endocrinology is considered to be the study of hormone problems and diseases. Making the endocrinologist able to diagnose and cure these diseases. However, not many people are entirely sure to what an endocrinologist actually does and what to expect when going to an appointment. Here are 4 things our team gathered to help you understand that a little bit better:
Know What You Are Looking For
An endocrinologist is basically focused on diseases which primarily affect the glands and the glands and hormones. If you have diabetes, menopause or even metabolic disorder, you’ll be immediately sent to an endocrinologist.
When it’s the first time you go to an endocrinologist, there are a few things they’re bound to ask you, such like, if you are currently under any medication, this, can affect your organism and can cause the problem you are struggling with. Also, to prescribe any medication, he needs to make sure it won’t have any secondary effects when mixed to the regular medicines you take.
Check Your Family History
He will also ask for your family history, this is very helpful because there are many diseases which are inherited, and if your family has any important diseases in their DNA then you’re most like to inherit such disease.
When going to an endocrinologist there are a few things you have to keep in mind, in order to have a pleasant experience.
Call Your Doctor First
Must of the times in its recommended to let your doctor know you’re going and that you have an appointment if the case is you’re going to ER, and then this becomes almost obligatory.
Don’t Lie
Don’t ever lie to your doctor about your symptoms, in order to help you, and heal you they need to know what it is exactly that you are feeling.
The idea is you feel trust, and safe when you go see your doctor. Keep all of these things in mind, in order to be prepared and have everything in hand when your doctor asks. We hope it turns into a pleasant experience.
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