When I first started using a continuous glucose monitor (CGM), my blood sugar control looked excellent for the first couple of weeks. Then one day, when I was competing in a K9 Nosework Trial with my dog, by blood sugar was soaring all day long. I assumed it was a stress response from the nerves I always feel when trialing. But the next day, my blood sugar was still spiking easily and staying high for an extended period of time.

Confused, I turned to Google. Realizing that I was in the phase when I usually start experiencing PMS, I googled “PMS insulin resistance,” and sure enough, it was a thing! (Note, this applies to women who are cycling natural, without hormonal birth control. There’s a whole literature exploring hormonal birth control and its impacts on insulin resistance, and that is a post for another day.)