Life Insurance With PMS Or PMDD
PMS and PMDD get mentioned in the same breath and they are not the same thing on a medical record.
One is a very common experience most people manage themselves. The other is a diagnosis with a treatment pathway that often involves medication used for depression.
That medication is what an application is reaching for, and this page is about declaring it accurately.
The short answer
Premenstrual syndrome is common and mostly managed without any medical involvement. Premenstrual dysphoric disorder is a recognised and much more severe diagnosis, frequently treated with antidepressants or hormonal treatment, and sometimes alongside a mental health referral. That treatment is the substantive entry on an application rather than the premenstrual symptoms.
What it is
Premenstrual syndrome is the collection of physical and emotional symptoms in the one to two weeks before a period: bloating, breast tenderness, irritability, low mood and tiredness, resolving once the period starts.
Premenstrual dysphoric disorder is a severe form, recognised as a distinct diagnosis, in which mood symptoms are disabling enough to affect work, relationships and daily functioning. Treatment can include selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, either continuously or in the luteal phase only, the combined pill, and in some cases referral to a specialist.
Why it comes up on an application
- The distinction between PMS and PMDD is the main thing, because only one of them usually has treatment attached.
- SSRI antidepressants are the common treatment for PMDD, and that is a prescription which appears in your record as an antidepressant regardless of why it was given.
- That matters, because an application asking about mental health or antidepressants is asking a question you need to answer accurately, and the reason for the prescription is the useful context you can add.
- Any referral to psychiatry, psychology or a specialist gynaecology clinic is a specialist involvement.
- Where symptoms have caused absence from work, that is a direct question on an application.
- Some women are treated with hormonal approaches or, rarely, with treatment that suppresses ovulation, and those are more substantial interventions worth naming.
What we would ask you
- Whether you have been diagnosed with PMDD specifically, or have premenstrual symptoms generally
- What treatment you have had, including any antidepressant and whether it was continuous or part of the month
- Whether you have been referred to any specialist for it
- Whether it has affected your work or required time off
- Whether you have had any other mental health diagnosis
- Whether you are currently off work or working reduced hours because of an accident, injury or illness
- Whether you are waiting on any medical tests, appointments or treatment
- Whether you have been diagnosed with or treated for cancer in the last five years
- Whether a parent, brother or sister was diagnosed with cancer, heart disease or a stroke before 65
- Any medication you take
- Whether you smoke, and your date of birth
The Antidepressant Will Be In Your Record
This is the practical heart of the page and it is worth being direct about, because it catches people out.
SSRIs are a standard treatment for PMDD and they work well for many women. What they also do is appear in your medical record as an antidepressant prescription, and an application asking about mental health treatment or about antidepressants is asking about it whatever the reason.
So declare it, and give the context. "Sertraline prescribed for PMDD, taken in the second half of each cycle, no other mental health history" is a precise, complete and genuinely helpful answer. Leaving the prescription off because it was not for depression is the mistake to avoid, because the record will not make that distinction for you.
PMS And PMDD Are Not Interchangeable
Using the stronger word when the milder one applies, or the reverse, makes your answer less accurate in both directions.
PMS is extremely common, usually self-managed, and for most women there is nothing in a medical record about it at all. If that is you, saying so briefly is a complete answer.
PMDD is a formal diagnosis made because symptoms were disabling. It usually comes with treatment and sometimes with a referral. If you have been given that diagnosis, use the name, because it explains the prescription and the specialist involvement in a way that "bad PMS" does not.
Which cover is relevant
The usual starting point. Where an antidepressant has been prescribed, the application deserves a conversation rather than a tick box, because context matters.
Relevant where symptoms have caused recurring absence, which for PMDD can be every cycle. That pattern is exactly what this cover is for.
Pays on diagnosis of a listed serious condition, and neither of these is one. Worth having for the risks it does cover.
Common questions
What is the difference between PMS and PMDD?+
PMS is the common collection of premenstrual symptoms, usually self-managed with nothing in a medical record. PMDD is a recognised diagnosis where mood symptoms are disabling, and it normally comes with treatment and sometimes a referral.
I take an antidepressant for PMDD. Do I have to declare it?+
Yes, and add the context. The prescription appears in your record as an antidepressant whatever the reason it was given, and a question about mental health treatment is asking about it. Saying what it was for, and that there is no other mental health history, is the complete answer.
Will taking an SSRI affect my application?+
What any insurer decides rests on your whole picture and belongs to them, so we will not predict it. What we would say is that context helps, which is why declaring the reason alongside the prescription is better than either omitting it or giving the bare drug name.
I only take it part of the month. Does that matter?+
It is worth saying, because luteal phase dosing is a recognised approach for PMDD and is different from continuous treatment. It makes your answer more precise at no cost.
Do I need to declare ordinary PMS?+
Answer what you are asked, briefly. For most women there is no diagnosis, no treatment and nothing in the record, and saying that is a complete answer rather than a gap.
Cover that often goes with this
The gaps we most often find sitting next to this one.