For me, I had to let myself actually feel it, and let it affect me. My PCOS got so bad, I had 2 periods 8 months apart. By the time I finally got my period, I was hopitalised with a suspected ectopic pregnancy, as the pain was absolutely excruciating.

Obviously I had a couple of days off work, but when I went back I was told that 'period pain is not really an acceptable excuse for not attending work'. At first I started to apologise, and then something snapped - I said to my boss 'Actually, this is my first period in 8 months. You know the pain your wife is in every month? Imagine that multiplied by 8, plus the emotional pain of getting a BFP on a HPT because of the sheer amount of hormones running through your body, only to be told that you're just getting your period.' It kinda left him speechless!

I know we shouldn't hafta tell people what's going on in our lives if we don't want to, but I think it makes it easier to cope, and easier for people to understand what you're going through. They think its only a 'bad period', but they won't understand the difference until someone educates them.

HTH chicky