PMDD, Tourette's, and Psychosis

Published on 13 September 2024 at 09:03

Did you know that females have a four week cycle while males have a 24hr cycle? The female cycle goes through menstruation, follicular, ovulation, and luteal phases. You may have heard of menstrual and ovulatory, I know I have, but what the heck are the other two? Follicular phase is when the body is preparing to release an egg and luteal phase is when your uterus lining thickens. Now, what does this have to do with emotions? Our emotions change DRASTICALLY during these four phases. In the follicular phase we feel happy and energized, ovulatory we get risky and are still happy, luteal we get tired, sad, anxious and start craving foods. For some people, the depression and anxiety can be exacerbated by a disorder known as premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD). PMDD is a more severe PMS that causes one to become unable to function in society.

Growing up, I always moved my body in odd ways. I never realized I did it, and until now, I did not know that there were different categories of what I was doing as well. We all know I have a tic disorder and ASD, but did you know both of them have repetitive movements that look quite similar to each other? The difference is in the “why?” Autism stimming occurs to express emotions such as excitement and stress. Tic disorders are neurological misfires that cause involuntary movements or sounds. Both can be trigger by emotions, but they are not the same. For instance, as I am writing this, I have to keep pausing because my index finger is ticking (twitching and popping). But if I was to get a million views, I would begin stimming, which could look like bouncing up and down and even rocking back and forth while trying to hold back squeals of joy.

My dad, my brother and I have both had the craziest dreams in the world. I’m talking, dreams about run-flying in the sky and someone being stabbed with a straw or a fork. We always wake up in confusion about what we dreamt and questions about where the heck our brain came up with those ideas. I started to wonder if psychosis and mental health is connected to our dreams and the level of wackness they can be.

I just found an article by a sleep doctor speaking on the connection between dreams and mental health. They say that people with mental health can experience more disturbing dreams and even nightmares. Dreams are controlled by the emotional part of the brain, making the link between our mental health valid. REM is affected by depression, which can cause bad dreams.

“We are like a snowflake, all different in our own beautiful way.”— Unknown

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