Stress at night during PMS
Question: Hi, I have been using the Garmin body battery for a long time now and have a good overview of what triggers stress. However, I observe, especially during periods of PMS (after ovulation until menstruation) that I do not charge the body battery to 100 at night. In several cases, I have seen a period of stress at night during sleep. Do you know what causes this and what I can do to counteract this?
Answer: Hi! This is something that several women have discovered. Many experience that the week before menstruation, HRV is low and it is difficult to charge the body battery (body battery). It seems that the strength of this coincides with experienced PMS symptoms. And I have seen curves for women with PMDD, the severe form of PMS, with such severe symptoms that they are out of action and need sick leave, for example. In these cases, the curves are deeper and last longer, for up to 10-12 days.
The good thing, however, is that with good stress regulation it is possible to flatten this curve and significantly reduce PMS symptoms. This requires that you are a little ahead of time and when the expected period starts. It requires that you become better at taking it easy, sleeping longer, avoiding eating snacks, chocolate, sweets, avoiding alcohol, reducing the intensity of your exercise, or doing yoga/meditation instead. It is important to generally reduce your stress level.
The reason this works is that stress affects the female hormonal system and the condition of the reproductive organs:
Cortisol has a feedback mechanism to the hypothalamus, where the sex hormone release factor is also secreted. When these are inhibited, there are also changes in the secretion of progesterone in particular. Progesterone has an anti-anxiety and calming effect.
Stress affects macrophages, an important part of the immune system. These cells control the functions of the ovaries and uterus and are very sensitive to stress.
All of this together is probably part of the reason why stress has such a big impact on PMS/PMDD. The good thing is that this is not inevitable. With better stress balance it can be regulated. It may well be that there are other mechanisms at play. The most important thing is that this is something that heart rate monitors can be particularly important for ensuring a good stress balance throughout the fertile age.
If you want to read more about the subject:
https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/premenstrual-dysphoric-disorder-pmdd
Hopefully there are more people who can provide information in the comments section. Fun fact: I have also seen curves for male partners of women with PMS symptoms who have also had stress curves that follow the woman’s cycle.
Good luck!
Dr. Torkil
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