QUESTION:
Dear Dr. Heller,
I have suffered from chronic depression for quite some time. Prozac has provided some relief, but the week before menstruation I am so tired and depressed that I become hopeless. Can this be helped or ameliorated in any way? It is quite debilitating.
ANSWER:
I go over this at length in "Biological Unhappiness". I believe PMS is two things: Fluid retention, and for most women an underlying psychiatric diagnosis that's worsened by the fluid retention. The screening test I use for my patients will likely be of enormous help to you in this regard.
