--- title: Does sleep quality affect your mood differently during your period? description: Menstrual phase alone did not affect mood, but sleep and cycle phase together did. Good sleep protected your mood during menses, while poor sleep made your mo url: https://niyora.com/research/papers/good-sleep-is-a-mood-buffer-for-young-women-during-menses-2023/ --- - [Niyora](https://niyora.com/) - [Research](https://niyora.com/research/) - [Library](https://niyora.com/research/library/) - Does sleep quality affect your mood differently during your period? Study, 2023 # Does sleep quality affect your mood differently during your period? Menstrual phase alone did not affect mood, but sleep and cycle phase together did. Good sleep protected your mood during menses, while poor sleep made your mood drop more during menses than at other times. Moderate study design 72 healthy young women aged 18-33 years with natural, regular menstrual cycles and no menstrual disorders ## What they did 72 healthy young women aged 18-33 with regular cycles reported their sleep and mood daily for 2 months using a phone app. In the second month, they also wore an Oura ring to measure actual sleep. Researchers analyzed how sleep quality and menstrual cycle phase together affected mood. ## What they found Menstrual cycle phase alone did not change mood. However, sleep and cycle phase together affected positive mood. After a night of poor perceived sleep quality, women reported lower positive mood during menses compared to other cycle phases. After a night of good perceived sleep quality, women reported the same positive mood across all cycle phases. ## What it means for you Good sleep protects your mood during your period. If you sleep poorly during menses, your mood may dip more than at other times. If you sleep well during menses, your mood stays the same. This study lasted only 2 months and included only healthy women without menstrual disorders, so results may not apply to women with PMS or PMDD. 72 Total women 18-33 years Age range 2 months Tracking duration ## About the study Original title Good sleep is a mood buffer for young women during menses Authors Shuster AE, Simon KC, Zhang J et al. Journal Sleep Year 2023 Study design Study Participants 72 What was tested Daily tracking of sleep and mood over 2 months Open access Yes Read the paper [doi.org/10.1093/sleep/zsad072](https://doi.org/10.1093/sleep/zsad072) Original abstract Study objectives: We sought to elucidate the interaction between sleep and mood considering menstrual cycle phase (menses and non-menses portions of the cycle) in 72 healthy young women (18-33 years) with natural, regular menstrual cycles and without menstrual-associated disorders. This work fills a gap in literature of examining mood in context of sleep and menstrual cycle jointly, rather than individually. Methods: Daily subjective measures of sleep and mood, and date of menses were remotely, digitally collected over a 2-month period. Each morning, participants rated their sleep on the previous night, and each evening participants rated the extent of positive and negative mood for that day. Objective sleep was tracked with a wearable (ŌURA ring) during month 2 of the study. Time-lag cross-correlation and mixed linear models were used to analyze the significance and directionality of the sleep-mood relationship, and how the interaction between menstrual cycle status and sleep impacted mood levels. Results: We found that menstrual status alone did not impact mood. However, subjective sleep quality and menstrual status interacted to impact positive mood (p < .05). After a night of perceived poor sleep quality, participants reported lower positive mood during menses compared to non-menses portions of the cycle, while after a night of perceived good sleep quality participants reported equivalent levels of positive mood across the cycle. Conclusions: We suggest that the perception of good sleep quality acts as a mood equalizer, with good sleep providing a protective buffer to positive mood across the menstrual cycle. Reproduced under CC-BY. ## Topics [Menstrual cycle and mood](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-cycle-mood/)[Sleep and insomnia](https://niyora.com/research/topics/symptom-sleep/)[Apps and digital interventions](https://niyora.com/research/topics/treatment-digital-health/)[Adolescents and young people](https://niyora.com/research/topics/life-area-adolescents/) Research tells you what helps on average. Niyora helps on the day it hits. Calm down, see it another way, and decide what to say, with a PMS and PMDD app built by a doctor. ## Related studies Cohort study, 2026 Does sleeping longer improve mood and fitness in elite athletes? Study, 2021 How much does the menstrual cycle affect mood and body signs compared to daily, weekly, and seasonal changes? Survey study, 2026 How does sleep change across the menstrual cycle in women with psychiatric conditions and suicidal thinking? Survey study, 2025 What behavioral symptoms of premenstrual syndrome are most common? Study, 2025 Does the menstrual cycle affect sleep, energy, and injury risk in young female athletes? Survey study, 2024 Does poor sleep and period problems affect teen mental health? Ask AI about this page Copy prompt ChatGPT ↗ Claude ↗ Perplexity ↗ Google AI Mode ↗ Grok ↗