I have heard this from several women too.

The other factor to consider may be that some of your symptoms could be attributed to PMS, whether you have MS or not. I have always had a terrible time with PMS and in fact I survived for several years on anti-depressants, just for those 3 - 10 days leading up to my monthly cycle.

I don't get grumpy, per se', but I do fall into a bad funk for about 5 days each month. Then, when I started into peri-menopause my cycle went really wonky and I had to get on progesterone to manage that. Before I did though, I was often PMS'ing several times a month, and this was not good!

When I am feeling this way, it is like the sky is falling and I get very stressed & agitated. Certainly this is not good for MS, but even when I didn't have MS, the world came crashing down on those days. Anything that was bothering me escalated at that time.

It is definitely worthwhile for all women to keep a calendar of when life becomes particularly difficult or troublesome; back pain, sciatica, bloating, bowel movements, body pains, etc. There can be patterns associated with our cycle, and are for me.

Cherie