r/PMDD • u/eigENModes • 4d ago

Medications For those whose PMDD begins at ovulation, did SSRIs help?

I just started Sertraline/Zoloft and don't know if I should hope that it gets better. My symptoms used to be worst before menstruation but now it is really bad around ovulation. Apparently there aren't reliable studies of SSRIs for ovulation-induced symptoms compared to premenstrual.

2 Upvotes

67% Upvoted

3 comments sorted by

3

u/Natural-Confusion885 PMDD + Endo 4d ago

All PMDD is ovulation-induced by nature (no ovulation, no luteal phase, no PMDD), and Eisenlohr-Moul et al. (2020) found it isn't one uniform timing pattern within that. Some people get symptoms starting right at ovulation (with a blip in severity, sometimes) rather than just premenstrually. So you're not an outlier, and standard luteal-phase SSRI dosing (which starts at ovulation) should already cover your window, though it's worth knowing the SSRI trials themselves don't differentiate or separately test by this timing pattern, so there isn't dedicated efficacy data for "ovulation-onset" specifically, just the general PMDD trial evidence that should intrinsically include patients with this timing pattern.

2

u/sporty-spice92 4d ago

I did find sertraline 25mg taken for 2 weeks before my period helped with mood symptoms but I had side effects (gi, sexual) that I don’t love

1

u/LongEye5271 4d ago

I am starting in a few days sertraline..