Hypersensitivity and PMS - Medication?

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I'm 31 years old and as time goes on, I seem to be having bigger and bigger problems with my hypersensitivity. It seems to be getting worse. I also have hyperacusis (the world always sounds too loud and even quiet sounds can hurt my ears) and tinnitus in both ears (a loud ringing noise for about four years now). Add to that touch sensitivity, light and movement sensitivity in my eyes, etc... I'm in pain most of the time, but I function okay. I have a lifetime of experience managing it and I have my own systems and routines to help me keep it under control.

But before I get my period, it all goes insane. It can start 2 or even 3 weeks before my period. Mild at first, but getting worse as time goes on. Mood swings that get totally out of control. Deep depression. A hopeless feeling, a certainty that my life is falling apart, that the world is ending. The tinnitus gets louder, my hypersensitivity gets even stronger. I get body aches, extreme breast tenderness, mild fevers, and flat-out rages out of nowhere. Finally, my period comes, I feel better for a week or so, and then it slowly starts up again.

I also have other issues, including sleep problems (appears to be narcolepsy), bipolar disorder (mostly depression but a few times in my life I've had episodes of paranoid, psychotic mania), and a lot of physical health problems but none that need to be medicated.

I'm an expat with poor health insurance in a central European country, so I unfortunately don't have easy access to a doctor or psychiatrist, but I'm considering spending the money to go visit one and ask for help. The problem is, doctors here know nothing about autism or hypersensitivity. If I walk in and ask for a specific medication, they'll probably give it to me, but if I ask for advice, they won't be able to help.

I've heard in the past that some women take lithium to deal with issues like mine. That it prevents some of the hypersensitivity and also the hormonal chaos that happens during periods of PMS. I'm considering asking a doctor to let me try it, but I also know it has a lot of side effects, etc., and I want to get some information before I take that step. Does anyone here have any experience, recommendations, etc.?

Thanks so much!

Still no replies - I'm guessing the situation is a bit too complicated and no one has any appropriate advice to give. I will have to go to a doctor and hope that they are informed and understanding, or at least willing to accept my explanations of how things work with me.

I will simplify my question down a bit here: Does anyone know anything about treating PMS and/or hypsersensitivity with mood stabilizers like lithium? Or is that not something which is considered a useful treatment? And does anyone know of any other treatments (other than alcohol, which unfortunately is the only relief I get at the moment)?

Thanks!

You might want to look into a serotonin connection, it helps regulate sleep, mood, digestion, sensory issues and so on. According to my endo, the two co-regulate each other so when one is off, so is the other. When my estrogen & serotonin are low my sensory sensitivities border on painful, my sleep cycle turns random, digestion/hunger/thirst go wonky...then when estrogen (& thus seroronin) are peaking my body simply works the way it should, mostly.

I do know that lithium is not the easiest medication to be on. A therapeutic dose is very close to a toxic dose. For this reason, you need regular blood tests if you are going to be on lithium. Doctors will evaluate the dose by that blood work, not by your symptoms. Its just the way that drug works. Abilify and similar drugs are the new standard for bipolar. But they are also serious medications that need to be taken with care, and can cause serious problems if they are not monitored properly.

A more common solution to the kind of problem you are describing is a birth control pill. These also come with risks, but its much less tricky than lithium. The birth control pill is often combined with a low dose anti-depressant. You have to be very careful with anti-depressants if you have bipolar disorder. Some people can be thrown into a manic state by them. That's one reason to prefer lithium or abilify. If they use an anti-depressant, the lithium or abilify can act to put bumpers on the anti-depressant so that you don't swing the other way.

Are you beginning to see why no-one was answering? WAY too complicated for an online consult with lay people.

Do you have bi-polar 1? Like - have you had hospitalizations? If so, you need to be working with someone way more knowledgeable than a GP. (General practitioner doctor)

*erased the last part because I saw that you have had severe manic episodes. That stuff I wrote about is not for you. If you want to get into herbs, catnip, skullcap, and camomile are safe options with medications. GABA is a supplement (not an herb) that is generally safe with medications, and very soothing.

There is also a book called "Woman Heal Thyself." Its about acupressure that you can do on your own. It's a great book, very understandable to lay people, and giving yourself acupressure is completely harmless. It will take a few cycles before you see great results, so if you try this, be patient!

This book is about menstrual disorders, not about bipolar or acupuncture. It would just help with the hormonal aspect of things.

One more thing, and then I'll stop, I promise. You CANNOT drink while you are on lithium or abilify. So if you are the type who is going to drink no matter what, you might want to look elsewhere for solutions. Alcohol and these medications are a potentially lethal combination, as they can make you all dopey. So if you are going to continue drinking, the doctor needs to know this before prescribing anything.

Thanks for all the replies so far.

Edenthiel: What you describe sounds very much like what I go through. My hypersensitivity is straight up painful, almost all the time, but FAR worse when I start approaching my period. I've never heard of a "seratonin connection" before. Do you have the names of any specific medications I could look up? I do have a psychiatrist friend who always gives good advice about medications if I ask him about specifics - unfortunately he's in another country and doesn't have experience with some of the issues I have, so he can't help me with everything.

Somanyspoons: Yes, as you see, I've had psychotic mania and anytime I've been given even a low dose antidepressant, I've had problems. I used to take birth control pills, but they didn't really help with the issues I was having, and I also had a lot of nasty side effects. I tried several different ones and even stayed on one of them for years, but in the end decided it wasn't worth it. Thanks for the suggestions though. I see the herbs you have listed are mild sedatives - I already use those quite a bit. The problem is always the same: anything that will help me relax and be less stressed always makes me sleepy. Then I have problems at work because I can't focus and get my job done, or I fall asleep at my desk (or, worse, during a class I'm teaching - I have one desk job and one teaching job). It's a bit of a catch-22. I know I need to get the sleep issues properly diagnosed and dealt with, but insurance won't pay for a sleep study and it's too expensive. Not to mention, the medication is usually stimulants, which would make other problems worse...

Right now I drink mostly to self-medicate. Alcohol is literally the only drug I've found that helps me stay calm and dampens my hypersensitivity without making me sleepy, and with almost no side effects. But I don't want to drink a lot, and I obviously can't drink at work. I often have one or two beers in the evening, but I'm not a heavy drinker by any stretch of the imagination, and I'm not addicted to it. It's just pretty much the only thing keeping things under control at the moment. If I found something better, like a medication which actually helped, I don't see any problem with not drinking alcohol anymore.

I will also keep looking for more info on my own, but thanks so much for the feedback so far - it's really helpful. And I'd be really happy to hear more.

Once you are on Lithium, you can't get off. It will kill you and/or ruin your life if you go off it.

I have unspecified period-related pelvic pain & many sensory issues, among other things. I am not on medication as it doesn't work for me, I have tried several anti-anxieties though (amitriptyline, hypnovel).
This isn't medication, but have you tried getting glasses with transition lenses? The new ones work indoors, in natural and synthetic light, in cars (some people say they don't, but they do), and adjust smoothly to the light around without tinting. I wear them and they are wonderful, have helped me heaps. The feeling around your face takes awhile to get used to, but I now find it quite soothing. Would this help you?
I'd also recommend Mindfulness. Colouring-in works for some, also breathing, and then you can apply it to everyday life by focusing only on what you are doing. It's hard but rewarding, and has helped me a lot.

Would you be able to get your hearing tested? If you can't, this online hearing screener can often to detect it. It's got good validity tests as it uses speech in noise (which is characteristically worse with sensorineural hearing loss). Don't bother with any online pure tone (beep noise) tests as the sound level is uncontrolled so by setting it to a level where you can comfortably hear it, unless you have a sharp sloping loss from low to high frequencies it won't get picked up.

But there are other types of hearing loss besides bog standard 'sensory' sensorineural loss.

Just asking because you experience tinnitus. With sensorineural hearing loss, there's a thing called 'recruitment' which when you can't hear things unless they're louder than other people's quietest sounds but where you ear is trying to compensate it has the effect that you tolerance for 'loud' sounds decreases so that pretty much anything you hear is too loud. (A very simplified explanation.)

My other thought is that where you're concentrating on the tinnitus more because it seems/is louder, you concentrate on what you can hear and so both the tinnitus and your hyperactive bother you more. Rinse and repeat.

Hyperacusis* is generally anxiety based, so if you're feeling more anxious around your period (even anxious about the hyperacusis) then it is likely it would get worse.

*rather than autism's auditory wonky sound processing. The distinction is important because for autism hypersensitivity, ear protection (ear plugs, ear defenders) can be very helpful but for bog standard hyperacusis it will make it worse in the long term. Of course, it's possible to have anxiety based hyperacusis and ASD sensory processing difficulties which makes thing tricky.

Treatment for hyperacusis can be gradually increasing your exposure to sounds (usually with a hearing therapist but I appreciate that you likely can't access one), or a hearing aid that produces white noise to distract your ear.

If you find that youtube'd white noise (or other coloured noise) helps and can't afford medical treatment, I would consider cheap** bone conductor headphones with a cheapo MP3 player loaded with very long tracks and/or a pillow that generates noise. Specifically bone conductor headphones because they leave your ear open, so that you will be able to hear environmental sounds to mirror the specialist noise generators rather than act as ear plugs.

**bone conduction headphones aren't the cheapest in the generally - the start at about £60 but the very basic ones will work just fine for this.

If you want to go that route, I would play around with volume, tracks and noises as you won't have specialist input.

Connevans has lots of examples of equipment in the home for tinnitus - either noise generators, special pillows or inserts for the pillow you have. http://www.connevans.co.uk/catalogue/3/Tinnitus

To some extent it will depend on the cause - which only specialist can identify. The NHS website lists different causes and links to more information about each.

If you can tolerate antipsychotics and your mood is controlled, then your doctor may prescribe you stimulants but it would depend on how cautious they are. I had a manic reaction to stimulants (but not bipolar, it's since been decided) and take an anti-psychotic and a different brand of the stimulant commonly known as 'Ritalin'. In any case, it would require lots of doctor visits - I have to be tested every week for blood pressure.

I would have a look at the options for premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) (severe PMS) on the NHS website and then have a look into information you could take to your doctor to reduce the number of visits you need. Check out any guidelines in your country and keep a diary of anything you've tried or can try in advance so they don't ask you to x for three months and come back.

http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Premenstru ... tment.aspx

It may be safe for you to take SSRIs in combination with anti-psychotics to get the SSRI effects without going manic. This will require fewer tests for safety for lithium - to be safe on lithium you'll be visiting the doctor a lot.

It looks like Gonadotrophin-releasing hormone (GnRH) analogues could be an alternative, if you can't tolerate any BC pills or SSRIs but you'll also need HRT or you could have bone density issues.

My other thought is that you could have endometriosis which could explain why your periods are so bad. Again, a costly thing to treat. :/

Sorry for so many different things - I'm not qualified to narrow anything down so I'm just throwing out anything I can think of.