Systematic review, 2022
Does relaxation therapy actually reduce premenstrual syndrome symptoms?
Yes. A review of 35 studies found that relaxation-based therapies, including yoga, massage, and specific relaxation techniques, all significantly reduced PMS symptoms.
What they did
Researchers searched five major databases (Google Scholar, PubMed, ResearchGate, Scopus, Web of Science) for studies on relaxation therapy for PMS. Out of 71 relevant articles found, 35 studies passed a quality check and were included in this systematic review.
What they found
All 35 studies reported that the relaxation therapies tested, namely Laura Mitchell technique, Jacobson's method, Benson's method, unnamed relaxation, yoga, aerobic exercise, and massage, significantly decreased PMS symptoms.
What it means for you
A range of relaxation-based approaches, from yoga to massage, appear to help with PMS symptoms across many studies, which is encouraging, but the abstract does not give exact improvement percentages or details on each underlying study's size, length, or quality, so the strength of the effect is not fully clear.
71
relevant articles initially found
35
studies included in the review
7
types of relaxation therapy studied
About the study
- Original title
- Impact of relaxation therapy on premenstrual symptoms: A systematic review
- Authors
- Jose A, Nayak S, Rajesh A et al.
- Journal
- Journal of education and health promotion
- Year
- 2022
- Study design
- Systematic review
- What was tested
- Seven types of relaxation therapy: Laura Mitchell, Jacobson, Benson, unnamed relaxation, yoga, aerobic exercise, and massage.
- Open access
- Yes
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.4103/jehp.jehp_586_22
Topics
Related studies
Systematic review, 2026
Do mindfulness and relaxation techniques help with PMS symptoms?
Systematic review, 2025
How common are PMS, PMDD, and painful periods in nursing students, and do they affect their schooling?
Systematic review, 2024
Does yoga help reduce PMS symptoms?
Systematic review, 2026
Can mindfulness, yoga or qigong help with PMS symptoms?
Randomised trial, 2026
Which types of exercise work best to reduce period pain and PMS?
Survey study, 2026
Does exercise help college women with period problems and mental health?