PMS (premenstrual syndrome), PMDD (premenstrual dysphoric disorder) and mood disorders seem to have innumerable symptoms in common. So is there a clear-cut way to distinguish between them? Well there is and it is about as clear mud. Determining their subtle nuances is like deciphering the DSM-IV and even trained doctors have difficulty in that arena. So how does the sufferer try to get a decent picture of what is what so they know where to go for help or can at least get a handle of their problem? Right here, I hope. After hours of research on several different websites, I have what I think is a fairly clear understanding of the distinctions.

The daunting task in decoding the disparity is knowing that the information given is done voluntarily and relies on the patient to report the symptoms. Overall the descriptions appear to be comparable so that I don