Emma Hardy: PMDD & The Truth About Female Rage

CONTENT WARNING: This episode discusses mental health challenges, including suicidal thoughts and ideation.&nbsp;If you or someone you know needs immediate assistance, call 000.&nbsp;For confidential 24/7 crisis support, contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or visit lifeline.org.au. Support is also available through Beyond Blue on 1300 22 4636 or at beyondblue.org.au.&nbsp; What if the&nbsp;person&nbsp;you're&nbsp;most afraid of becoming is yourself?&nbsp; Every month, writer Emma Hardy found herself trapped in a cycle of rage, despair,&nbsp;anxiety&nbsp;and emotional chaos. Then it would pass, and life would return to normal - until the cycle began again.&nbsp; In this powerful and deeply personal episode, Marie Claire Editor Georgie McCourt sits down with Emma to discuss her debut memoir, Periodic Bitch: A Memoir of Menstruation, Madness and Monsters, a raw exploration of life with premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD).&nbsp; Together, they discuss PMDD, from uncontrollable anger and emotional outbursts to the relief and complexity of finally receiving a diagnosis. The conversation moves beyond the condition itself, examining how women's pain is misunderstood, dismissed or&nbsp;pathologised, and why conversations about female rage remain so uncomfortable.&nbsp; Emma also explores the surprising cultural influences behind the book, from horror stories and hysteria to medical research conducted on rats, and the question at the heart of Periodic Bitch: when is a mood just a mood, and when does it become an illness?&nbsp; In this episode:&nbsp; What PMDD&nbsp;actually is, and why&nbsp;it's&nbsp;often mistaken for severe PMS&nbsp; Emma's journey to diagnosis&nbsp; Georgie's personal experience living with PMDD&nbsp; The impact PMDD can have on relationships,&nbsp;careers&nbsp;and self-worth&nbsp; Why female anger is so often labelled as madness&nbsp; The link between PMDD, mental health and emotional regulation&nbsp; <li aria-setsize="-1" data-leveltex