'I couldn't function': Jules Robinson opens up about private health battle

"After I had Ollie it just took on another level of that depth of despair. You almost feel like you can't deal with life," the MAFS star shared. 

MAFS star Jules Robinson recently opened up about being diagnosed with premenstrual dysphoric disorder, also known as PMDD.

The 41-year-old shared that she began experiencing symptoms of PMDD, a much more severe form of PMS, after the birth of her son Oliver, in 2020. 

Speaking on the Kidspot podcast, The Juggling Act, Jules said she was diagnosed about a year ago after she realised something wasn't right with her moods.

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Image: The Juggling Act

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"It was the most intense emotions and feelings"

"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."

The exact cause for PMDD isn't known, but according to John Hopkins Medicine, it typically affects women of 'childbearing age' and includes symptoms like irritability, anger, anxiety, insomnia and depression. 

Jules said that she is "so emotional" when menstruating to the point that she feels like she "could sleep for days."

"You almost feel like you can't deal with life," she shared. "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."

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"It was another depth of despair"

Jules' co-host Mel Wilson then asked her if she thought it could have just been the normal symptoms that come before your period, but Jules said that despite always suffering "a little bit" around that time, it just took "another level of that depth of despair" after she gave birth to her son.

"It got really bad when I was actually in Bali… It was awful," she recalled. "I had really dark, horrible thoughts, and that’s when I was like, 'This is not me'."

After getting diagnosed with PMDD by her doctor, she's been exploring different treatment options since like lifestyle, diet and exercise changes. 

"I can say now, a year on, it does depend on many things... it's been hard," she explained.

"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.

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

Originally published as 'I couldn't function': Jules Robinson opens up about private health battle