MAFS star shares 'difficult' health battle: 'Knew something was wrong'

Former MAFS star Jules Robinson has revealed her 'difficult' battle with premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD), with the reality star sharing that she was diagnosed one year ago, though she'd been suffering for a while before then.

Jules, who met her husband Cam Merchant on the reality show, opened up about the diagnosis of PMDD on The Juggling Act podcast, telling co-host Mel Wilson she "knew something was wrong" after giving birth to her son Oliver in 2020.

"It was about three months in, and obviously because you’ve got so many hormones going on [post-partum], you don’t really know if you’re coming or going," she said. "But I’d stopped breastfeeding and I’d just got my period [again] and it was just the most intense emotions and feelings."

Jules added that she felt she "could sleep for days".

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"I am so emotional [when I’m menstruating]. I actually feel like I can’t get through – you almost feel like you can’t deal with life," Jules explained. "I can only explain it as you just feel like you can’t function with life, and I think I cut myself [off] from the world."

The reality star added that it felt different to her regular period pain, "After I had Oliver, it just took another level of that depth of despair, [feeling like] 'I can’t actually function through today'. It got really bad when I was actually in Bali … It was awful. I had really dark, horrible thoughts, and that’s when I was like, 'This is not me'."

Jules went to her doctor who diagnosed her with PMDD and she has since been working on a number of different treatment plans, including changes to her exercise and diet.

She added that it's been a "hard" year saying, "I am next-level, totally different to who I am on a normal basis. It’s not a nice feeling. I naturally am a very happy, upbeat person, and then to literally go, from one day to the next, you can’t get yourself out of that hole.

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"[But] it feels really good to talk about it."

According to the Office on Women's Health, "PMDD causes severe irritability, depression, or anxiety in the week or two before your period starts. Symptoms usually go away two to three days after your period starts."

Mental health support for yourself or a loved one can be found by calling Lifeline on 13 11 14, Mensline on 1300 789 978, or the Kids Helpline on 1800 551 800.Online support is available via Beyond Blue.

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