Imagine a world where your hormonal imbalance is finally taken seriously.
Where mood swings, depression, anxiety, and unbearable pain tied to your period are no longer just things you “have to deal with.” Now imagine that this solution exists, but not for you—at least, not if you’re a Filipina living in the Philippines.
Today, as the world celebrates the launch of Nettle™, the first CE-certified brain device that alleviates mental and physical symptoms related to menstruation—including PCOS, PMDD, and endometriosis—I can’t help but feel a mix of awe and heartbreak.
Awe because women are finally being seen. Heartbreak because, here in the Philippines, so many of us are still stuck in a cycle of misdiagnosis, invalidation, and inaction.
What is PCOS and Why Does It Hurt So Many Filipinas?
Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) is a hormonal disorder that affects 1 in 10 women worldwide, and studies show that up to 18% of Filipinas may have it—though many go undiagnosed.
It’s more than just irregular periods or unwanted facial hair.
It’s insulin resistance, chronic fatigue, anxiety, depression, infertility, and the constant battle with weight gain. It impacts not only your physical body but your mental and emotional well-being.
Yet in the Philippines, PCOS is often brushed off as a “normal” part of being a woman.
Many of us grow up thinking painful periods are just something we have to endure. We are told to man up, to stop being dramatic, to lose weight and get over it.
What is PMDD and How Is It Linked to PCOS?
Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD) is a severe, often debilitating extension of PMS (premenstrual syndrome).
Symptoms include extreme mood swings, anger, hopelessness, anxiety, and even suicidal thoughts. PMDD is more than just irritability—it’s a mental health condition that worsens during the luteal phase of your cycle.
PMDD can coexist with PCOS.
Hormonal imbalances, specifically involving estrogen and progesterone, can make women with PCOS more vulnerable to PMDD. Imagine dealing with both—crippling mood changes on top of insulin resistance, acne, infertility, and social stigma.
This is the reality for many Filipinas.
Nettle™: The Innovation Women Deserve
Let’s start with the facts.
Nettle™ is a wearable headband that uses gentle brain stimulation (tDCS) for 20 minutes a day to relieve symptoms like brain fog, anxiety, depression, and chronic pain.
It’s already sold out twice in Europe and the UK, and users are calling it “life-changing.” Imagine that kind of relief during your luteal phase or before your period—without meds, without side effects.
This is what innovation looks like when women’s health is taken seriously.
This is what happens when you listen to people with ovaries, when you fund clinical research, and when you build products for real needs, not just profit.
You can explore the innovation here: Nettle™ on LinkedIn or visit samphireneuro.com to learn more and purchase the device.
Meanwhile in the Philippines…
Let’s talk real.
Here in the Philippines, the average Filipina struggling with PCOS faces a much bleaker reality:
- Long lines in government clinics.
- Expensive consultations in private hospitals.
- Doctors who still tell you to “just lose weight” without checking your hormones.
- A cultural stigma that makes you feel weak, dramatic, or even “less of a woman.”
- Very little public education about PCOS, PMDD, or hormonal health.
In 2022, a local study published in the Journal of the ASEAN Federation of Endocrine Societies (JAFES) assessed the awareness of PCOS comorbidities among third-year female undergraduates in Medical Technology and Pharmacy programs at the University of Santo Tomas.
The study found that while students were generally aware of reproductive disorders associated with PCOS, there was a lower level of awareness regarding its metabolic comorbidities, such as cardiovascular diseases and insulin resistance.
🔗 Read the full JAFES study here
This highlights a bigger issue: if future healthcare professionals are not fully informed about PCOS, what more can we expect from our current healthcare system?
Kung Wala Siguro Akong PCOS…
You know, I’ve written about this in Kung wala akong PCOS, baka tatlo na tayo
My what-ifs. My frustrations. My invisible grief.
Kung wala siguro akong PCOS, baka mas madali ang buhay. Baka hindi ako laging pagod. Hindi ako laging iritable.
Hindi ako naiiyak sa gabi nang walang dahilan.
Baka mas madali akong nagkaanak.
Baka tatlo na kami ngayon or mas marami pa.
And yet, here we are. Being told to take birth control pills “para lang may regla ka.” Being told to manage our stress better—as if we’re not already trying our best every single day to stay afloat.
Why Nettle™ Hits Hard
Nettle isn’t just a product. It’s a statement.
A declaration that women’s pain matters. That your mood swings aren’t just in your head. That you deserve better options.
It breaks my heart that women abroad now have access to a device that understands the neurological impact of menstrual symptoms, while many of us here in the Philippines are still struggling to get a proper diagnosis.
We are still fighting to be heard. Fighting to be believed.
What Needs to Change in the Philippines
If this post is making you emotional, good. Because things need to change:
- More education about PCOS and menstrual-related mental health in schools and barangays.
- Accessible hormonal testing in public health centers.
- Training for healthcare workers on women-specific health conditions like PCOS, endometriosis, and PMDD.
- Innovation grants and funding for local startups working on menstrual and hormonal health solutions.
- A national conversation—not just during Women’s Month, but every day.
Dear Women’s Health Innovators in the Philippines
If you’re reading this and you’re building something—keep going.
We need you.
If Nettle™ is possible in the UK and Europe, then surely, we can create our own versions tailored to the Filipina experience.
Can you imagine a world where a teenager in Nueva Ecija or a working mom in Quezon City has access to a wearable that tracks her hormonal cycles and soothes her symptoms?
A world where she doesn’t have to suffer in silence or rely on generic solutions?
That world is possible. But we have to fight for it.
Hope, Frustration, and the Dream of Better Healthcare
Seeing Nettle™ succeed makes me hopeful.
But it also makes me angry. Because Filipinas deserve that same level of care. That same relief.
That same feeling of being understood and taken seriously.
We’re not asking for luxury. We’re asking for dignity.
So to every woman struggling with PCOS in the Philippines: I see you. Your pain is real. Your struggles are valid. And someday—hopefully soon—we’ll have our own kind of Nettle, too.
Until then, we keep speaking up. We keep hoping. And we keep fighting.
If you haven’t read it yet, check out my previous blog: Government Support for Women with PCOS: What You Need to Know
And visit pcosmillennials.com for more stories, support, and insights on PCOS.
Love, Reese ❤️
Free eBook for Every Millennial Woman with PCOS: Your Ultimate Guide to Thriving with Hormonal Imbalance
Leave a comment