About Joanna Ford, MA, LPC
PMDD Women’s Health Coach
PMDD Therapist
PMDD Awareness Advocate
I’ve been where you are.
The confusion, chaos, and emotional crashes that seem to come out of nowhere, almost feeling like your body has turned against you. Personally, I struggled with severe depression for decades, and blamed myself, believing that there was something very wrong with me. For years, I lived in that cycle and didn’t know what was happening. As is the experience of so many other women, doctors were of little to no help. I was misdiagnosed or dismissed, and left to figure it out on my own.
Eventually, I learned that I was navigating Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD), a diagnosis I’d never heard of. Yet, the diagnosis was validating—giving a name to what I had been experiencing for decades. And, it set me on a path to understanding what was happening to me and what I could do to best support myself.
I embarked on a journey of education, healing, and reconnection with myself. I found tools that helped. I nurtured a better relationship with my body. And, although I still felt alone in my experience, I somehow knew I wasn’t alone. There were other women also experiencing the same thing.
My experience navigating PMDD was the catalyst for a major life change. I returned to school and became a licensed therapist so I could work with other women. Over the last decade, I’ve been in private practice, specializing in women’s hormonal health, PMDD therapy, and cycle-related emotional challenges. While therapy remains a powerful tool, I came to recognize that there is also a need for practical and personalized support.
Today, along with providing PMDD therapy in Colorado, I offer PMDD coaching so I can offer support to women and AFAB (assigned female at birth) individuals navigating PMDD, perimenopause, and cycle-related symptoms—no matter where they live.
Coaching allows me to work with clients outside of Colorado and offer something so many of us are craving—PMDD education, knowledgeable support, practical strategies, and a nonjudgmental space to figure out what you need.
PMDD Coaching and Women’s Health
While therapy focuses on deep healing work, coaching offers a structured, compassionate space to learn new tools, build practical strategies, and feel supported through the ups and downs. As a PMDD coach, I help you track your symptoms, understand your patterns, and create a plan that supports your life. We might talk about cycle awareness, relationships, how to ask for what you need, how to talk to doctors, or even how to communicate with your boss during a flare. We’ll look at what resources are available to you—from acupuncture to medication—and make sure you’re supported from all angles.
Here’s what coaching with me might include:
A personalized plan for tracking symptoms, cycle awarenes and personal patterns
Tools to communicate more clearly with loved ones, coworkers, and clinicians and self
Guidance on building your care team (therapist, OB/GYN, naturopath, acupuncturist, family, friends, etc.)
Strategies to adapt your schedule, parenting, or self-care during flare times
Emotional support and gentle accountability
Resources (books, apps, websites, articles) to help you better understand your experience
Exercises/practices between sessions, if that feels supportive
Sometimes we meet just once to map out a plan. Other times, we meet regularly to walk through your experience together. My work is collaborative, adaptive and deeply rooted in real-life experience.
My PMDD Coaching Approach
I bring a warm, steady presence to our work together. My background as a therapist helps me hold space for the emotional pieces that inevitably arise, but as your coach, I’m here to focus on what you need. Together, we explore what’s working, what’s not working, what you need right now, and how to make what is helping sustainable.
My approach blends:
PMDD education and emotional support
Strength-based practices that emphasize mindfulness
Personalized strategies for daily life
Flexibility, non-judgment, understanding, and a deep respect for your experience
Whether you’re struggling to get through the hard weeks or simply want to feel more steady and informed, our PMDD coaching sessions are designed for you to be met exactly where you are. There’s no one-size-fits-all here. Some women meet with me for one or two sessions, others check in regularly over months. This work is flexible, compassionate, and built around your needs.
What’s Possible
Through this work, my clients often report feeling:
Less alone and more supported
Equipped with tools to navigate their hardest days
More confident in advocating for their needs
More connected to their body
Better able to communicate with loved ones and professionals
More clarity on what their triggers are and how to work with them
More empowered to make lifestyle adjustments that support their well-being
Sometimes, the biggest shift is simply being seen. There is a lot of comfort, power and validation in knowing that you’re not alone and having someone who understands PMDD both personally and professionally to walk alongside you.
A Little About Me
I live in Colorado with my family and find deep grounding in nature, quiet time and community. When I’m not working with clients, you might find me volunteering, walking in the woods, reading, or recharging in stillness. I’m deeply interested in the intersection of mental health, reproductive justice and social equity, and believe that women’s stories are powerful tools for change.
Bio:
Joanna Ford is a PMDD coach and licensed therapist with over a decade of experience supporting women and AFAB individuals with PMDD and other hormonal health challenges, emotional overwhelm, and life transitions. Her work is rooted in deep lived experience. After struggling with PMDD for years before her diagnosis, Joanna transitioned careers to help others feel less alone, more informed, and better supported in their health and healing.
Joanna Ford holds a Master of Arts in Counseling Psychology and Counselor Education from the University of Colorado Denver and a Bachelor of Arts from SUNY New Paltz. Before transitioning into private practice in 2014, Joanna worked in a range of counseling, advocacy, and community-based roles, including serving at organizations such as Mile High Women’s Outreach Center, Project WISE, FACES, and The Denver Hospice.
Today, Joanna blends her clinical training with a grounded, coaching-focused approach to support clients in building awareness, mapping out sustainable strategies, and navigating their inner and outer lives with more steadiness and compassion. She continues to engage in advanced training, with additional certifications in EMDR, Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), and trauma-informed approaches, such as Ego States/parts work and Flash Technique.
As part of her lifelong commitment to equity and care-centered work, Joanna has also completed continuing education in social justice counseling, anti-racism, and inclusive care for transgender and gender nonconforming clients.
Whether you’re struggling with PMDD, facing big emotional shifts, or seeking practical tools to feel more grounded, Joanna brings a calm, steady and validating presence to help you connect with your body, address your needs, and nurture a more easeful path forward.
Let’s Connect
The PMDD road to healing comes with many frustrations, confusion, and a slew of other mental, emotional and physical challenges. However, there really is hope and a path to healing for each of us. I understand from the inside-out that the symptoms of PMDD present real and debilitating struggles. In our work together, I acknowledge and validate your experience, helping you know and really feel that you are not alone.
If you’re curious about PMDD coaching and working together, please reach out. I’m happy to answer any questions, share more about my practice, and explore what kind of support feels right for you, right now. You can reach me directly at (303) 963-9249.