Hormones and symptoms--do you notice a relationship?

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I remember some of my non-NT behaviors changing around puberty--I lost some but gained others. In my early 20's, I seemed to lose more of them up until I had a miscarriage, at which time I developed a host of issues. Things evened out when my hormones did, or it appeared that way to me at the time. A few years later, my doctor blamed my worsening IBS on a change in hormones, as flare-ups typically came on with menses. At this time, I went quite a long time without anybody pointing out my non-NT behaviors and did quite well socially. When I was pregnant, my IBS disappeared while I began to notice more non-NT creeping in, and now I am breastfeeding and enjoying lactational amenorrhea with certain Aspie behaviors increasing markedly. My husband says I have never been as cold and distant as I am now. Granted, I am very affectionate with my daughter, but I am rather particular about touch with everybody else. My eye contact issues are noticeable to strangers for the first time in years, and I seem to say the wrong thing more than I say something right.

Does anyone else think their hormones and behaviors are related? Might I have an easier time after my daughter weans? I have been out of therapy for a few years, which may bear upon the situation, but the link appears obvious to me. Do any of the other moms here have experience and/or input?

I'm not a mother, but certainly hormones affect symptoms.

To give you some idea, I cannot take the usual hormonal birth control, because if I do I go from a moderate functioning level, to severe - if I were to take birth control it would make working or going to college an impossibility, because that is how much it would impact my AS symptoms.

When my hormones were playing up extremely badly a week or two ago, along with other serious things - it caused serious suicidal thoughts for the first time in many years. Another week or two later, the hormonal things are starting to normalize, and even though the serious stuff is stuff there, there are no longer suicidal thoughts.

When I have been in treatment for my medical condition, my hormone levels improved along with my overall health, and as they did, I went from moderately functioning to mild for the first time in my life.

I think after you wean, and your body evens out and goes back to your normal rhythms and hormone levels, your symptoms will probably go back to what is "normal" for you too.

Yep, I notice a strong link between where I am in my cycle and how functional I am. It has become much more noticeable since I had my two youngest (they are less than a year apart). In that time I was dealing with some severe PND, and that seemed to really bring on some of the more noticeably behaviours, probably because I no longer had the energy or head space to try and pass, if that makes sense.

Now I am much more aspie, and I really don't care lol. Those close to me love me as I am, and those that don't aren't part of my life.

Ah, there I went and said the wrong thing again. Of course one not need be a mother to have this issue! Only the bit about the weaning is mother-specific.I'm sorry if I offended you (or anyone else).

Oh yes, I notice a relationship. Everything is worse during the PMS time. I'm more rigid, more meltdown-prone, my sensory issues are worse... I haven't noticed any change in my social skills, but I don't socialise much anyway. My teaching skills are untouched by it.

Beyond a doubt. All of my symptoms, both autistic ones and my other psych and physical issues, get worse before/during my period. When I've been pregnant they were way worse too. When my hormones are haywire, I just pretty much hide in bed and won't talk to anyone except my SO. :-/ My pdoc's tried me on a few dif. hormonal birth controls to try to stabilize my hormones (e.g. pills that make me only have a period 4x a year) but they all just make it worse. As a result of these problems I don't know if I'll ever be able to have another biological child which makes me really sad; luckily my SO understands and is 100% in support of adopting.

Yes! When before or during period I'm much more likely to have a meltdown, my emotions are even stronger and bigger, sensory issues get worse, IBS gets worse. It's horrible. I just want to curl up and sleep until it's all over.

I think it was a valid point. Any hormone fluctuations are going to be much, much, much worse during pregnancy and afterwards than compared to normal.
It's just not something I have experience in yet.

Wow, I am going through the same thing! I have a 9 month old, and I definitely have noticed more of an uptick in AS related behaviors over NT ones. I feel like a lot of them (the eye contact issues, sensory issues, general aloofness) could be "mama bear" kicking in, as a way of instinctively protecting. I know my behavior can be off-putting, but I can't help it, and I notice I am especially this way around people I don't know well. I think it's almost a subconscious way of keeping people I don't know well or trust from getting too close to my baby.

I too wonder if things will change once she weans. I have gotten my period, (wasn't one of the lucky ones to have it stay away while nursing!) but all I've noticed with that are cramps and a little moody behavior. Maybe my husband might say differently though, since he is the one who deals with me, haha.

Even before I had my daughter, I noticed my sensory issues would seem to get worse in the couple weeks leading up to my period. Fluorescent lights make me nauseous, and so going grocery shopping or going to any place with those lights was and is just not an option during those times. Also, I noticed that my joints always seemed to ache once I ovulated up to my period, which I figured must be related to the rise in progesterone. While I was pregnant, my joints ached alllllll the time (even in the 1st trimester when I was not carrying extra weight around), and progesterone is basically one of the main supporting hormones for pregnancy.

Obviously I've not had a kid but I've noticed the same thing to some extent. I hit full-hormonal puberty at the age of 11 and suddenly became super negative and resentful of most people, spending much more time alone. I started to think I was better than everybody and having strong opinions on trivial things, criticising little things that other people did. I also gained some new social fears/phobias at that age that I am still trying to work through ten years later. I also shed my obsessive interests of childhood and became obsessed with certain perceived aspects of womanhood.
Currently I'm a much more positive person, many of the behaviours I gained at that age were shed between ages 16-19 (I'm 21 now) but I'm still held back from a lot of aspects of socializing due to deeply engrained habit and fear.