That Time
Of The Month

Sages recognized,
and doctors finally treat,
the curse of PMS.

LESLEY PEARL STAFF WRITER

The American Psychiatric Associ- toms. Often there are changes in
ation no longer lists PMS as a men- breast tissue, muscular cramping,
tal disease. The status was changed headaches or vague malaise."
several years ago following several
He adds, "They (the sages) wrote
studies on hormonal changes. It ap- with conviction of the psychosomat-
pears elders knew for years what Dr. ic and neural influences on the men-
Lichten and Ms. Barber have tried to strual cycle."
express.
By the time most patients seek out
In his book Pardes Rimonim: A Dr. Lichten, they're not looking for
Marriage Manual for the Jewish theory or religious interpretation.
Family, author Rabbi Moshe Tendler They want answers and a way to
writes, "Menstruation is often ac- make their lives liveable again.
companied by premenstrual symp-
Dr. Lichten suggests women chart

abdominal pain, acne, anxiety, back-
ache, breast tenderness, crying, de-
pression, dizziness, fatigue, fluid
retention, food cravings, headaches,
irritability, mood swings and tension
throughout their cycle, indicating
severity.
Caffeine, dairy products, chocolate,
sugar, alcohol, salt, red meat and
shellfish are to be avoided prior to
menstruation. Dr. Lichten recom-
mends several small meals, eaten
throughout the day, to stabilize en-
ergy and mood highs and lows.
Ms. Barber also found that taking
ibuprofin helped — specifically, 200
milligrams daily for one week before
her period, and 400 milligrams dur-
ing it.
"A woman with PMS is at her wit's
end. You can run around crazy, but
I survived," Ms. Barber said. "If a
change in diet doesn't help, see a doc-
tor, one that takes PMS seriously.
"I feel like I've had a hysterectomy,
except all my parts are intact."

ART BY CLAYTON CA MPBELL

en years ago, Janice Barber was at
the end of her rope.
She was diagnosed as manic-de-
pressive, put on lithium and told to
get her tubes tied. Ms. Barber, who
lives in Plymouth, followed the in-
structions, but just couldn't accept
her fate.
She read an article in 1984 about
premenstrual syndrome (PMS) and
rushed to the University of Michi-
gan. Doctors there discovered Ms.
Barber's body produced a low amount
of the hormone progesterone. This ex-
plained her "emotional roller-coast-
er ride" two weeks prior to
menstruation, they said.
Ms. Barber had an answer, but no
real solution, until she met South-
field physician Dr. Edward Lichten.
Through proper diet and exercise,
and the avoidance of certain foods two
weeks before her period, Ms. Barber
has controlled her PMS without pre-
scriptions for several years now.
She remembers Dr. Lichten as the
only medical professional who didn't
think she was insane.
"If asked to define PMS in three
words, I'd say 'out of control,"' Dr.
Lichten said.
An obstetrician and gynecologist
in Southfield, Dr. Lichten has focused
much of his work on the mysteries of
PMS. His clinic is called the Pre-
menstrual Treatment Center and
Headache Institute for Women.
According to Dr. Lichten, 75 per-
cent of women experience some
changes in their body due to the al-
teration of hormones. Forty percent,
or about 26.5 million women in the
United States, have some form of
PMS.
Fifteen to 20 percent of sufferers
are incapacitated one or two weeks
each month, unable to either func-
tion or concentrate.
Dietary changes, exercise and vit-
amin therapy make a difference in
two-thirds of women with mild mood
swings. Hormonal therapy is effec-
tive for most of the other one-third.
In severe cases, Dr. Lichten explores
the options of anti-depressants.
"I look at this as, 'What can a
woman do for herself?' " Dr. Lichten
said. "More doctors are taking PMS
seriously, but a lot are prescribing
tranquilizers. I think PMS is easier
to deal with when a woman realizes
her hormones, not her brain, are out
of whack."

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