The Label I Didn’t Ask For

It started with an offhand comment. “You’re just being hormonal.” Said with a laugh, as if that explained everything. My frustration. My tears. My exhaustion.

I brushed it off at first. But over time, the label stuck. Anytime I voiced discomfort—at work, at home, even with friends—the same phrase echoed back. Hormonal. Irrational. Overreacting.

And slowly, I began to question myself. Was I really too sensitive? Was my body betraying me in ways I couldn’t control?

The truth is, hormones do influence how we feel. They shape our energy, moods, and resilience throughout the month. But reducing women to “just hormonal” isn’t explanation—it’s erasure. It strips away the complexity of what’s happening and makes it sound like character flaw rather than biology.

That label cost me more than confidence. It cost me opportunities to seek help. Instead of exploring possible conditions—thyroid imbalance, PMDD, perimenopause—I internalised the idea that I was simply “moody” or “too much.”

It wasn’t until much later that I realised hormones aren’t insults. They’re messengers. The fluctuations we feel are not weaknesses—they’re signals of underlying rhythms and sometimes imbalances that deserve attention.

At SilentConvo, we want to reclaim that narrative. To show that tracking “hormonal shifts” isn’t about proving women irrational. It’s about making the invisible visible. It’s about giving context to energy dips, mood swings, or brain fog so they don’t spiral into shame.

The next time someone calls me “hormonal,” I hope to respond with this: “Yes—and that’s powerful information.” Because my body’s rhythms don’t make me less. They make me human.