Menstrual Psychosis: Understanding A Rare And Complex Condition

Menstrual psychosis is a mental health condition that affects women and is known to have interaction with their menstrual period. It is defined by the presence of acute episodes, including psychotic features like hallucinations, delusions, and drastic affective dysregulation, usually around a woman’s cycle. Although menstrual psychosis is not discussed openly the way it should be, it is present in the psychological literature.

From this blog read, it will be possible to know more about the definition and menstrual psychosis symptoms, what causes menstrual psychosis, and the available treatments for those audiences who are experiencing the disease of menstrual psychosis.

What Is Menstrual Psychosis?

Menstrual psychosis is a type of mental health condition that happens around a woman’s period. It’s related to the hormone changes that occur during the menstrual cycle. It appears with a marked prevalence of psychotic symptoms at the onset of the luteal phase or before the period begins. Such psychotic episodes may be very intense and may persist for three days to two weeks. Some women find that these episodes disappear when their periods start, and others can have symptoms lasting until the cycle ends.

Psychotic symptoms in menstrual psychosis may include:

• Delusions: Paranoid, unmoved evidence (for example, holding a firm conviction that someone wants to harm one).
• Hallucinations: Hallucinations in vision, touch, or hearing involve the perception of objects or events that do not exist.
• Disorganized thinking: Problems with speech are described as the inability to express ideas logically or having difficulty putting thoughts together into a comprehensible conversation.
• Severe mood swings: Extreme variations in the moods and swings that are irregular and may be diagnosed as bipolar disorder.

While it is very similar to postpartum psychosis, where the woman becomes violent, paranoid, and hallucinates, especially during or shortly after childbirth, menstrual psychosis is a bit different in that it is more of a severe mental health condition and is not accompanied by the desire to harm self or others. However, it does not exclude it either.

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The Historical Perspective of Menstrual Psychosis

There has been a lot of debate on the relationship between menstruation and mental state for centuries. Women in ancient societies were seen as strange and dangerous due to their menstrual cycle, and menstruation was attributed to everything from evil spirits to madness. But it was not until the beginning of the eighth decade of the nineteenth century and the seventh decade of the twentieth century that physicians began to record accounts of ‘menstrual insanity’ or ‘menstrual madness’ when women underwent psychotic reactions concerning their menstrual periods.

Even though the early reports weren’t very accurate and had some sexist ideas, they helped us see the connection between hormones and how a woman feels. Today, despite a lack of clear understanding of phenomena associated with menstrual psychosis, this type of psychosis is gradually considered more real and deserving of further research.

Common Signs Of Menstrual Psychosis

Common symptoms of menstrual psychosis include:

• Hallucinations: Hallucinations are a mental health sign in which the individual may hear voices that are not present or see things that are not there. Psychotic patients will frequently exhibit auditory hallucinations or hear voices where there is none.
• Delusions: A woman with this type of psychosis may develop some delusional ideas, which are frequently paranoid. For example, she might think someone has it in for her or that she is specially gifted in some way.
• Confusion and Disorientation: Memory loss is also rapidly experienced in aspects such as time, place, or even personal identity; one often cannot distinguish between a hallucination and actual reality.
• Disorganized Behavior: Another symptom is the person becomes unpredictable and may act in peculiar or wholly unreasonable ways. The individual might engage in synthetically bizarre behaviors and be wild compared to the character they portray most of the time.
• Mood Disturbances: Extreme mood changes are to be expected. An affected woman may go from being depressed and irritable to being manic at times, which mimics signs of psychosis.
• Memory Problems: It is not uncommon for some women to come out complaining that they cannot easily recall things or events that occurred when they were in their psychotic episode, the duration being blank to them.
• Withdrawal and Social Isolation: Some of the women also isolate themselves from friends and family since the symptoms become too debilitating to hide. They might hide away from others to try to avoid the difficult feelings caused by the psychosis.

These symptoms can be upsetting and make it hard for a woman to do well at home, work, or school. In severe cases, the condition called menstrual psychosis may cause the woman to be hospitalized to treat the symptoms and to prevent harm to the woman and those around her.

READ MORE: The Most Common Stages Of Psychosis

Causes of Menstrual Psychosis

Little is known about the cause of menstrual psychosis, but it is thought to be behind hormonal changes that come with menstruation. In a woman’s body, hormones such as estrogen and progesterone greatly influence the brain, and some women are probably more vulnerable to the effects of those chemical changes.

Possible contributing factors include:

• Hormonal Imbalances: The menstrual cycle is caused by the hormonal cycle. Some investigators hypothesize that an enhanced reactivity to changes in estrogen and progesterone could be linked to psychotic disorders in certain people.
• Genetic Predisposition: Some women may be more likely to get menstrual psychosis because their family members also have mental health problems. This might be due to something in their genes that makes them more sensitive to hormone changes.
• Pre-existing Mental Health Conditions: It is found that women who have a history and antecedents of mental illness, especially mood disorders or psychotic disorders, are likely to be affected by menstrual psychosis. To some extent, menstrual psychosis might be a sign of a pre-existing condition, such as bipolar disorder; fluctuations in hormonal levels trigger that.
• Stress and Trauma: Psychological stress, as well as trauma, may compound the effects that hormonal variation has on the psychological well-being of a woman and increase the likelihood of psychosis.
• Neurochemical Factors: Serotonin and dopamine, responsible for mood and decision-making processes, might be altered by hormonal fluctuations, and, therefore, about half of the female patients might experience psychotic outbreaks.

The Diagnosis of Menstrual Psychosis

The diagnosis of MPS may be quite difficult because the condition is periodic and might resemble other psychiatric illnesses. In diagnosing menstrual psychosis, there is one more important issue: the relation between psychotic episodes and phases of the menstrual cycle.

To diagnose menstrual psychosis, a healthcare professional may:

• Discuss a patient’s menstrual and medical history to discover similar symptoms during menstruation after admission.
• Organize a psychiatric assessment to determine the acuteness and characteristics of psychotic symptoms.
• Make sure it’s not something else causing the psychosis, like using drugs, PTSD, having a brain injury, or other mental health problems.
• Initiate a hormonal investigation that is sometimes performed to identify any possible reasons causing the condition.

READ MORE: Spilling The Facts About OCD and Psychosis

Management Strategies of Menstrual Psychosis

menstrual psychosis treatment usually involves medical, psychological, and lifestyle changes. Since the condition is periodic, care may be directed at preventing the development of signs or treating symptoms once they manifest.

1. Hormone Therapy: In some cases, the prescription of estrogen as a hormonal treatment may assist in controlling hormone fluctuations, thus reducing the risk of the occurrence of psychotic episodes. At times, progesterone is prescribed as a treatment to regulate the hormones in a woman’s cycle.
2. Antipsychotic Medication: When psychotic symptoms are marked, antipsychotics may be administered as controllers of hallucinations, paranoid beliefs, and confused thinking. These medications aim to regulate the amounts of chemicals in the brain and may be used as short-term or required.
3. Mood Stabilizers and Antidepressants: For mood disorders that may characterize period psychosis, chlorpromazine or lithium may be prescribed, or even Prozac. These medications may be used to stabilize mood swings and alleviate anxiety, ADHD, or depression symptoms.
4. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT): CBT can enable women to understand how to react appropriately to hormonal fluctuations and how best to avoid psychotic symptoms. Psychotherapy will also help to treat any psychological disorders that may trigger the condition, for example, post-traumatic disorder or anxiety.
5. Lifestyle Modifications: Practical and feasible lifestyle changes, including exercise, stress management, and diet, can enhance mental health and decrease psychotic symptoms. Sleep hygiene is closely related because disturbances in sleep can escalate psychotic symptoms.
6. Support Networks: A support system is, therefore, an important factor in women experiencing or prone to menstrual psychosis. Family members, friends, and other mental health care professionals can support the affected woman both emotionally and guide her through episodes.

Wrap Up!

Some women get affected by this condition by experiencing menstrual psychosis, which is quite a complicated disorder. Although its causes have not been known to the fullest, the belief is that hormonal changes and other conditions may cause it. In dealing with cases of menstrual psychosis, treatment normally encompasses an amalgamation of medical and psychological approaches. Women with menstrual psychosis should be given proper medical assistance and therapy, and they can very well lead a normal life. If you are struggling with signs of menstrual psychosis, then wait no more and get in touch with the telepsychiatry services of Solid Foundation Psychiatry now!