I was unofficially diagnosed with cyclothymia five years ago by a friend who was a psychiatric nurse. It made sense to me once I started reading....but then when I was more officially diagnosed by a therapist (on my first visit) I was a bit leery. I told my GP of my therapist's opinion, and he seemed to concur. Though I had only seen him for the first time as well. So now I'm on 25 mg of lamictal and 10 of zyprexa, though I don't take the zyprexa unless I am really low, and panicky and feeling hopeless. HEre's the thing: Some days I'm certain I have cyclothymia or even BD II (never had true mania, and i question the depth of my depressions) but other days Im not convinced. I feel it is more PMDD. Until I feel hypomanic. Hypomania was/ IS the only time I'm convinced something is going on because the ideas! the way my brain works! its undeniably different and better, though some days it only last one day. Other times, Ive felt hypomanic for a week or ten days. The other problem with this, is that I feel my hypomania is often connected to my menstrual cycle. It's often with ovulation, but not always. It also often happens right before I get my period. This pattern is not totally stable but it is present. Then other times, ovulation brings a terrible mood turn, terrible panic and hopelessness. Terrible insecurity. Lasting 4-5 days and sometimes this ends in a few days of hypo and then sometimes it doesn't. It has remained bad for several weeks or just gone back to normal for a while. Sometimes this dysthymia seems to fall with PMS, other times it doesn't. But it can be debilitating. As in I don't enjoy one thing about my life that I normally had before. My ego is shriveled. Im certain I've wasted it all. Then, sometimes, the next day I will be hypomanic. This is rare but it happens. I switch over night. Sometimes Ive felt a switch during the day, but when this happens, its not as drastic as when it happens overnight. I just keep wondering if this IS cyclothymia or just PMDD with general anxiety disorder. Supposedly hypomania does not happen to people who have only PMDD, though. This is rambling, but this is my experience of it so far. The lamictal has taken the edge off--maybe 20 % off the highs and lows. I am wondering though, how many women on here have noticed (or not noticed) any connection with their menstrual cycle???