Pre Menstrual Symptoms

Women experience different PMS symptoms right before they menstruate. Some women become irritable or depressed, have breast tenderness, or experience mood swings. A hormonal imbalance affecting estrogen and progesterone levels is to blame for PMS symptoms. Women often show signs of PMS a week before their period.

Irritability

• A week before a woman gets her period, hormonal levels begin fluctuating, causing many women to feel restless at night or to suffer from insomnia. Lack of sleep and hormonal imbalances leave women feeling irritable.

Water Retention

• Water retention is another premenstrual symptom that can cause back pain and headaches. Water retention occurs due to progesterone levels dropping a week before a woman gets her period.

Breast Tenderness

• Breast tenderness occurs and is often accompanied by swelling due to a hormonal imbalance of estrogen and progesterone.

Fatigue

• Fatigue is caused by changes in the levels of estrogen and progesterone as well as neurotransmitters like serotonin and beta-endorphins. Fatigue is a normal occurrence in response to these hormonal changes.

Cravings

• As estrogen levels go up and down, so does the stress hormone cortisol. When stress levels are high, serotonin levels in the brain are low, causing many women to crave carbohydrates and fats.