Is It My Mood or My Cycle? Mental Health & the Menstrual Cycle — with Dr. Sara Cohen Fournier

Your mood swings with your cycle and you've started to wonder if something's wrong with you.Psychiatrist Dr. Sara Cohen Fournier reframes the menstrual cycle as a fifth vital sign — covering PMS vs PMDD, why mood drops before your period, hormones and mental health, and emotional regulation.It's a conversation about hormones, cyclical living, and protecting your mental health through perimenopause and beyond.This episode is for any woman who's felt dismissed, unsure if her symptoms are "normal," and ready to understand her own body.In this episode:– Why your menstrual cycle is a fifth vital sign no one taught you to read– PMS vs PMDD — and why tracking across cycles is how you tell– Why mood, anxiety and sleep shift in the days before your bleed– How perimenopause changes mental health — and how to prepare– Breath as a free, powerful tool for nervous system regulation– Naming your emotions to cut their intensity in halfGuest: Dr. Sara Cohen Fournier, MD, psychiatristFull show notes & transcript → nataliekakon.com/podcast/mood-or-cycle-mental-health-menstrual-cycle-sara-cohen-fournier