UK Woman Suffers Rare Condition That Makes Her ‘Painfully’ Allergic To Menstruation

Georgina Jelley (28) from London in UK is suffering a rare condition that has made her allergic to her menstrual cycle. According to People, she was fitted with the contraceptive coil in April 2024. After few weeks she started experiencing rashes, itchy and burning eyes and headaches. Her doctors prescribed oral steroids and antihistamines and her symptoms disappeared in a few days.

But after three weeks she suffered another allergic reaction with more severe symptoms and pain in the eye. She was referred to an eye specialist and even underwent an MRI to determine the cause.

When such symptoms continued to return every three weeks, she suspected that it was linked to her periods in some way.

She suspected that she had a condition called progesterone hypersensitivity – a rare allergic reaction to progesterone, a hormone produced by the ovaries. It is triggered ahead of a woman’s menstrual cycle and starts to improve once the cycle is over.

Treatment for progesterone hypersensitivity includes managing symptoms with corticosteroids and antihistamines or taking medications that can lower progesterone levels or block the production of progesterone entirely.

Ms Jelley’s doctor ultimately removed her contraceptive coil. Since then none of the debilitating symptoms have returned, she said. “I feel so much better since having my coil removed. It was so painful and horrible, and we had no idea why it was happening,” she said.