{"id":7421,"date":"2024-08-13T07:37:29","date_gmt":"2024-08-13T07:37:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.godj.com\/news\/the-comedian-turning-her-period-condition-into-an-edinburgh-show\/"},"modified":"2024-08-13T07:37:29","modified_gmt":"2024-08-13T07:37:29","slug":"the-comedian-turning-her-period-condition-into-an-edinburgh-show","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.godj.com\/news\/the-comedian-turning-her-period-condition-into-an-edinburgh-show\/","title":{"rendered":"The comedian turning her period condition into an Edinburgh show"},"content":{"rendered":"


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\"Instagram\/BellaInstagram\/Bella Humphries<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Comedian Bella Humphries says her show is “very honest” and “a bit raw at times”<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n
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Telling hilarious or embarrassing stories from your personal life is something many stand-up comedians do night after night on stage. <\/b><\/p>\n

But what about turning your periods into a laughing matter?<\/p>\n

That’s what comedian Bella Humphries has done for her debut show at the Edinburgh Fringe, after being diagnosed with Premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD).<\/p>\n

Symptoms of the condition can include extreme mood swings, depression and anxiety.<\/p>\n

But with another two weeks of the Fringe still to go, one of Bella’s jokes has already been named by the Times as among the festival’s best.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

‘Finding the funny’<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
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Living with suicidal thoughts every month was something Humphries had become used to. <\/p>\n

These kinds of extreme symptoms started a week before her period when she was in what’s known as the luteal phase of her menstrual cycle and for years she had believed it was completely normal. <\/p>\n

That is, until she was diagnosed with PMDD, which could affect up to 8% of people who have periods in the UK. <\/p>\n

”I had a lot of thoughts of about hurting myself or not wanting to be alive anymore,” Humphries tells BBC News. “And I was, yeah, really in quite a dark place.”<\/p>\n

The comedian says she didn’t know anything about the condition until she started to look up some of her symptoms online and was eventually diagnosed by a private doctor. <\/p>\n

Now she’s turned her experiences of living with PMDD into a stand-up routine for her show Square Peg.<\/p>\n

The 30-year-old says sharing her experiences of it on stage has felt ”very empowering” because she’s been ”able to find the funny in some really dark times”.<\/p>\n

“It is very personal. It’s very honest, a bit raw at times, but still very funny, I think,” she reflects. “And I have been told that by lots of other people.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"MichelleMichelle Huggleston<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Humphries says sharing her experiences on stage has been “very empowering”<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n
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One of the jokes, which referenced having suicidal thoughts, made it into a list of the Times’ top jokes from the Fringe.<\/a><\/p>\n

The joke was: ”There are times I feel so low I think the only way out is to get in my car and drive as fast as I can into a tree. But I’d never go through with it because I’m a feminist and I wouldn’t want that legacy for female drivers.”<\/p>\n

Humphries says she wants to raise awareness of her condition through her comedy, which she’s hoping could lead to more people being diagnosed sooner. <\/p>\n

”I’ve had a lot of women come to the show of varying ages, but it had such positive responses,” says the comedian.<\/p>\n

She suggests it’s relatable for many people, even if they haven’t heard of the condition. <\/p>\n

”And it made a lot of people feel quite emotional which is really nice to hear, because, yeah, it’s been quite emotional for me making it.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

What is PMDD? <\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
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Premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) is an extreme form of PMS (Premenstrual syndrome).<\/p>\n

Symptoms can include:<\/p>\n