What is the Cause of Depression Before or During Periods?

What Causes Depression Before Or During Periods?

Depression before or during periods can have various causes, ranging in severity from 'worrying' to 'very serious'. Finding the true cause means ruling out or confirming each possibility – in other words, diagnosis.

Diagnose your symptoms now!

see your health summarized and in detail
have a doctor review your case (optional)
identify any nutritional deficiencies

Diagnosis is usually a complex process due to the sheer number of possible causes and related symptoms. In order to diagnose depression before or during periods, we could:

Research the topic
Find a doctor with the time
Use a diagnostic computer system.

The process is the same, whichever method is used.

Step 1: List all Possible Causes

We begin by identifying the disease conditions which have "depression before or during periods" as a symptom. Here are three possibilities:

Depression
PMS D
Low Progesterone

Step 2: Build a Symptom Checklist

We then identify all possible symptoms and risk factors of each possible cause, and check the ones that apply:

poor concentration during cycle

short-term memory failure

reduced progesterone level

painful menstrual cramps

prednisone use

non-vaginal candidiasis

low energy/stamina

major mood swings

frequent night terrors

water retention before menstruation

episode(s) of depression

attempting suicide

... and more than 30 others

Step 3: Rule Out or Confirm each Possible Cause

A differential diagnosis of your symptoms and risk factors finds the likely cause of depression before or during periods:

Cause	Probability	Status
Depression	97%	Confirm
Low Progesterone	28%	Unlikely
PMS D	1%	Ruled out

* This is a simple example to illustrate the process

Arriving at a Correct Diagnosis

The Analyst™ is our online diagnosis tool that learns all about you through a straightforward process of multi-level questioning, providing diagnosis at the end.

If you indicate being premenopausal or being perimenopausal, The Analyst™ will ask further questions including this one:

Do you suffer from depression during or before your period?

Possible responses:

→ Don't know
→ No
→ Moderate
→ Severe

Based on your response to this question, which may indicate either absence of pre/menstrual depression or pre/menstrual depression, The Analyst™ will consider possibilities such as:

Premenstrual Syndrome PMS D (Depression)

PMS type D is characterized chiefly by depression.

Progesterone Low or Estrogen Dominance

Concerned or curious about your health? Try The Analyst™