TV star Vicky Pattison says doctors made her feel ‘stupid and ashamed’ by dismissing her ‘horrendous’ period disorder which can leave her sofa-bound for 10 days at a time and feeling like ‘world would be a better place without you in it’

• The ex-Georgie Shore star spoke to the Women and Equalities Committee today
• She was diagnosed with pre-menstrual dysphoric disorder earlier this year 
• READ MORE: Naga Munchetty’s womb condition was dismissed for 32 YEARS

Ex-Geordie Shore star Vicky Pattison was left feeling ‘stupid and ashamed’ after medics repeatedly dismissed her ‘horrendous’ period disorder for years.

The reality star, 35, who was diagnosed with pre-menstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) earlier this year, was left suffering from ‘crippling anxiety’, insomnia and fatigue throughout her late 20s. 

But despite visiting doctors across the country, her symptoms were brushed off as milder pre-menstrual syndrome (PMS), she told MPs today. 

PMDD, which is thought to affect around 800, hgh factor xanogen 000 women in the UK, leaves her sofa-bound for up to 10 days at a time and feeling like the ‘world would be a better place without you in it’, she revealed. 

Appearing before the Women and Equalities Committee as part of its inquiry into women’s reproductive health, she also revealed she ended up paying for private healthcare after failing to get the care she needed on the NHS.

Vicky Pattison, 35, who has now been diagnosed with pre-menstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD), was left suffering from ‘crippling anxiety’, insomnia and fatigue throughout her late 20s. But despite visiting doctors across the country, her symptoms were brushed off as milder pre-menstrual syndrome (PMS), she told MPs today

Ms Pattison addressed the committee alongside BBC broadcaster Naga Munchetty who revealed how her own agonising womb disorder was dismissed by medics for three decades

Ms Pattison said: ‘I can go to gym, eat right, work hard and nurture my relationships and then no matter how hard I try, after two and a half weeks, there is nothing I can do.

‘I am short tempered beyond belief, I am irritable. For ten days of the month, I don’t recognise myself.’

She added: ‘I was always told exactly the same thing: “This is PMS. This is what women go through. Every other woman in the world is dealing with this”.’

This made her feel ‘even more invalidated’, she said, as she wondered if she just needed to just ‘get on with it’.

She said: ‘PMDD gets zero sunlight. It’s commonly misdiagnosed in women as ADHD and depression. The first thing I was offered was antidepressants. I’m not depressed.

WHAT IS PMDD COMPARED TO PMS? 

While most women with PMS find their symptoms uncomfortable, a small percentage have symptoms severe enough to stop them living their normal lives.

This is the result of a more intense type of PMS known as premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD).

The symptoms of PMDD are similar to those of PMS, but are more exaggerated and often have more psychological symptoms than physical ones.

Symptoms can include:

• feelings of hopelessness
• persistent sadness or depression
• extreme anger and anxiety
• decreased interest in usual activities
• sleeping much more or less than usual
• very low self-esteem
• extreme tension and irritability

As depression is a common symptom of PMDD, it’s possible that a woman with PMDD may have thoughts about suicide.

PMDD can be particularly difficult to deal with as it can have a negative effect on your daily life and relationships.

Source: MIND

‘If it wasn’t for the online forums, the Instagram groups, I don’t think I would have got to where I am. 

‘I wouldn’t have had the confidence to insist there was something wrong.

‘I’ve been invalidated so many times.’

Ms Pattison said: ‘Because PMDD is predominantly a mental health struggle rather than physical, the cost for me had always come at the quality of my life.

‘Ten days where you can’t get off the sofa, you can’t bring yourself to talk to anybody, you feel like the world would be a better place without you in it.’

PMDD is a severe form of PMS which causes anxiety, depression and, at its worst, psychosis or suicidal thoughts.

Up to 30 per cent of all women have milder PMS, which causes similar but less severe symptoms. 

Many women suffer with PMS symptoms, including headaches, stomach pains, diarrhoea, breast tenderness and depression in the run up to their period.  

The psychological symptoms of PMDD are considered to be caused by a genetic sensitivity to the normal hormonal fluctuations leading up to the menstrual bleed.

The hormone changes may cause a deficiency in serotonin, a substance found naturally in the brain that affects mood.

The prevalence of PMDD is unclear but up to 800,000 women in the UK, or five to eight per cent, are affected, according to the National Association for Premenstrual Syndromes.

Addressing the committee today, Ms Pattison said she had lost count of the number of times doctors dismissed her concerns.

She said: ‘I can’t tell you how many times I got told, “They’ll [her symptoms] get worse as you get older, this is just natural”. 

‘And you believe it. You absolutely believe it and you believe that you’re weak, that you can’t cope with what every other woman is coping with.’

She also revealed she decided to pay for private healthcare earlier this year ‘after feeling ignored and invalidated by the NHS’.

After being given an immediate PMDD diagnosis, she said she ‘could’ve kicked myself for taking so long’.

She added: ‘I felt like for the first time somebody actually listened and took it seriously.

The condition, which is thought to affect around 800,000 women in the UK, has also left her sofa-bound for up to 10 days and feeling like the ‘world would be a better place without you in it’, she revealed today. Pictured with her partner Ercan Ramadan last month

Appearing before the Women and Equalities Committee as part of its inquiry into women’s reproductive health, she also revealed she ended up paying for private healthcare after failing to get the care she needed on the NHS. Pictured outside Parliament today 

Ms Pattison also urged for ‘better knowledge’ and ‘better understanding’ of reproductive issues. She said: ‘GPs, anyone within the NHS, any medical professionals at all, they just need to start to take women seriously when they say something’s wrong. I know loads of brilliant women and I don’t feel like we’re the weaker sex at all. I feel like we’re brilliant. I feel like we’re strong and powerful and we put up with a lot more than blokes do most of the time.’ Pictured outside Parliament today

Naga Munchetty, 48, (pictured with her husband James Haggar) who has suffered with adenomyosis since the age of 15, was not taken seriously growing up and was instead urged to ‘suck it up’, she told MPs on the committee today 

‘I felt like I was wasting the NHS’s time. That’s how I got to. And when I eventually was paying to see somebody, I felt like I had more of a right to sit there and speak. 

‘And that’s mental. Like, that’s not right, you know, so no, I felt stupid and ashamed and like I was wasting everybody’s time and I felt weak.’

Ms Pattison also called for ‘better knowledge’ and ‘better understanding’ of reproductive issues. 

She said: ‘GPs, anyone within the NHS, any medical professionals at all, they just need to start to take women seriously when they say something’s wrong. 

‘I know loads of brilliant women and I don’t feel like we’re the weaker sex at all. 

Read more: Naga Munchetty tells how agonising womb condition was dismissed for 32 YEARS by doctors who insisted pain was ‘normal’ and told BBC Breakfast star, 48, to ‘suck it up’

‘I feel like we’re brilliant. I feel like we’re strong and powerful and we put up with a lot more than blokes do most of the time.

‘If we have got ourselves up and gone into a doctor’s, a hospital, whatever, to say something’s wrong, I feel like the least people can do is listen to her and believe that there is something wrong.’

But when she first revealed her struggle with debilitating PMDD symptoms on her social media platform, she was met with ridicule from other women, she also admitted. 

‘When I first posted about it on social media, I had other women say “Here we go another celeb creating an illness so she can stay relevant”.’

She added: ‘I’m not depressed. I have got a personal issue with accepting antidepressants when I’m not depressed. I want that treated and I don’t think that’s too much to ask.’

Ms Pattison addressed the committee alongside BBC broadcaster Naga Munchetty who revealed how her own agonising womb disorder was dismissed by medics for three decades. 

The condition, known medically as adenomyosis, has at times left her screaming in agony with no option but to call an ambulance. 

Ms Munchetty, 48, who has suffered with debilitating symptoms since the age of 15, was not taken seriously growing up and was instead urged to ‘suck it up’, she told MPs today. 

The Committee’s inquiry is examining the challenges women face when they are being diagnosed and treated for gynaecological and reproductive conditions.

It will make recommendations to the Government to help reduce disparities that exist in diagnosis and treatment.

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