An item from the Huffington Post in my news feed this week caught my attention, because I think I’m living it. Apparently women who had severe PMS symptoms in their younger years may experience stronger mood swings in perimenopause. Been there, done that on both counts.
I’ve dealt with Seasonal Affective Disorder for several years, and finally started taking a low dose of antidepressants last winter. Since then, though the daylight hours of spring and summer make a huge difference to my mood, I find myself tearing up over old photos, all the “lasts” of our youngest child’s senior year in high school, and (this is rather harder to admit) adorable photos of baby animals. Yikes.
Having lived with a husband with long-term depression for many years, I’m well-versed in symptoms and treatment. I don’t know how well this knowledge translates, however, to being proactive about my own issues with mood. I sometimes wonder if my husband gets as annoyed by my mood problems as I often do with his. What a pair we are, to be sure.
I suppose awareness is the first step. The next, harder step will be figuring out what to do about it…Wishing all of you in the same middle-aged boat luck with your own journey.
This blog post was written by Amy Viets, co-author of the book, Dancing in the Dark – How to Take Care of Yourself When Someone You Love is Depressed.
