Warning: Male readers may want to skip my first two posts, and go down to the post about sleep hygiene, as I’m about to talk maxi-pads and stuff like that, and I know that some men absolutely hate all discussion of menstrual periods.
But, ladies! We need to talk.
So I woke up incredibly anxious several days ago–I could tell my breathing was getting shallow, and I was going into that “I would love to take a Xanax” world.
The first thing I do when I’m feeling this way is consult my sleep and mood journal. No real news there. I hadn’t been staying up to work at night. I’ve been trying to cut back on my caffeine. So I went to step two. I looked at my menstrual cycle calendar. Aha! I was approximately 40 hours away from hosting my friend for the weekend (plus a day or two).
I felt better (sort of) immediately. I knew the anxiety would be temporary, and that it really wasn’t about what I thought it was–that it might not be a good idea to put a “For Sale” sign in our lawn because the toilet was broken again, that maybe the smarter thing to do would be to call a plumber.

Some months the PMS thing goes almost unnoticed–I look down at my underwear and say, “Huh! I didn’t even know it was that time again.” And then other times, I’m begging for nature to come a day or so early so that I can feel the relief from the moodiness and sensitivity that visit me about 48 hours before she arrives.
For me, it’s crucial to check my menstrual calendar before I open my mouth and say something stupid. I have a track record there
Back at my first job out of college, I stormed into my boss’s office one day (we hadn’t gotten along from day one), and said, “You know what? I just don’t trust you!”
That night I got my period. And I realized that she could very well fire me, and I didn’t have a back up plan.
So I walked back into her office the next day, my maxi-pad between my legs, and said, “I’m sorry. I got my period.” And I walked out.
I think I only lasted a few more weeks after that one. But boy, did it teach me a good lesson about tracking the schedule of my monthly visitor.
(Dear readers, I’ll try to abstain from writing on those days so that I transmit only positive energy into the universe.)