PMOS and Mental Health: Questions to Explore in Therapy
PMOS and mental health are often talked about separately. But for many women, they've been intertwined for years.
PMOS can show up throughout some of our most formative years—the years when we're figuring out who we are, who we want to be, making friendships, dating, pursuing careers, and planning and having our families. Each of these life chapters brings new experiences, and those experiences naturally shape how we see ourselves and how we relate to the world around us.
So it can be worth looking back at those chapters and asking: How might living with PMOS have shaped my mental health along the way?
Puberty & Adolescence
When did I first notice that my body seemed different?
How did acne, hair growth, weight changes, irregular periods, or other symptoms affect how I saw myself?
Did I learn early on to feel embarrassed, ashamed, or disconnected from my body?
What messages did I receive from family, peers, doctors, or social media about what my body should look like?
Did I develop perfectionism, people-pleasing, anxiety, dieting, or other coping strategies around these experiences?
College, Graduate School & Early Career
What was it like navigating college, graduate school, or my early career while also managing PMOS symptoms?
Did anxiety, depression, brain fog, fatigue, or other symptoms affect my ability to focus, perform, or feel confident?
How did my relationship with my body affect dating, intimacy, friendships, or confidence?
Family Planning & Fertility
What has it been like to have difficulty conceiving after years of feeling frustrated or disconnected from my body?
How has infertility or fertility care affected the way I feel about myself and my body?
How has pregnancy loss or recurrent pregnancy loss changed the way I experience my body, pregnancy, hope, or my future?
Have I experienced grief, anger, guilt, jealousy, or fear that I haven't really given myself permission to acknowledge?
The Mental Load
What impact has the constant researching, tracking, monitoring, and trying to figure out what my body needs had on me?
What has it been like to have my symptoms dismissed, minimized, misunderstood, or go untreated—and how has that affected the way I trust myself and my healthcare providers?
The Bigger Question
What if some of the mental health challenges you've experienced make more sense when you consider what it's been like to live in a body with PMOS?
Bringing PMOS Into the Therapy Room
If you already have a therapist you trust, consider bringing some of these questions into the room. They may open up a conversation about parts of your story that you've never connected before.
And if these questions are bringing up connections you hadn't considered before, you might find it helpful to work with a therapist who specializes in the intersection of PMOS and mental health.
If you're curious about what it might look like to explore these connections in therapy, you can learn more about working with me here.
Because PMOS may be part of your medical history.
But for many women, it's also part of their mental health story.
