--- title: Do depressive symptoms change across the menstrual cycle? | Niyora description: Yes, depressive symptoms changed significantly across the menstrual cycle, and the amount of change differed between women and between individual symptoms. Me url: https://niyora.com/research/papers/menstrual-cycle-related-depressive-symptoms-and-their-diurnal-fluctuations-an-2024/ --- - [Niyora](https://niyora.com/) - [Research](https://niyora.com/research/) - [Library](https://niyora.com/research/library/) - Do depressive symptoms change across the menstrual cycle? Study, 2024 # Do depressive symptoms change across the menstrual cycle? Yes, depressive symptoms changed significantly across the menstrual cycle, and the amount of change differed between women and between individual symptoms. Measuring symptoms in the afternoon gave the most reliable results. Moderate study design 77 naturally cycling women (35 with depressive disorder, 42 without) ## What they did 77 women (35 with depression, 42 without) reported their depressive symptoms three times daily for one complete menstrual cycle. Ovulation was detected using a luteinizing hormone (LH) test. ## What they found Depressive symptoms showed significant cyclical changes that varied from person to person. Different individual symptoms had different amounts of cyclical change. The reliability of the three daily measurements ranged from 0.56 to 0.78, with afternoon measurements being most reliable. ## What it means for you If you have depression or notice mood changes with your cycle, tracking specific symptoms at the same time each day (afternoon appeared most reliable) may be more helpful than tracking an overall mood score. This study only tracked one cycle per person, and ovulation was determined by one LH test and self-reported cycle length, which may not be fully accurate. 77 Total women 35 With depressive disorder 0.56 to 0.78 Reliability range for daily measurements ## About the study Original title Menstrual cycle related depressive symptoms and their diurnal fluctuations - an ambulatory assessment study Authors Klusmann H, Brose A, Schulze L et al. Journal BMC women's health Year 2024 Study design Study What was tested Three daily ratings of depressive symptoms across one menstrual cycle Open access Yes Read the paper [doi.org/10.1186/s12905-024-03438-9](https://doi.org/10.1186/s12905-024-03438-9) Original abstract Background: Reproductive mood disorders indicate that within-person variation in depressive symptoms across the menstrual cycle can be related to ovarian hormone changes. Until now, such cycle-related symptom changes have been measured once daily, even though depression research indicates systematic diurnal changes in symptoms. Further, previous research often focused on aggregated depression scores. This study examined whether three daily assessments of depressive symptoms follow similar trajectories across the menstrual cycle and investigated within-person cyclical fluctuation of all individual symptoms and the aggregated score. Methods: 77 naturally-cycling participants (35 with and 42 without depressive disorder) provided three daily ratings of depressive symptoms across one menstrual cycle to evaluate individual and summarized symptoms. Results: Reliability estimates (w) of the three diurnal measurements ranged from 0.56 to 0.78. Cyclicity showed statistically significant interindividual differences for all symptoms, and individual symptoms differed significantly from each other in their magnitude of cyclicity. Limitations: Only one menstrual cycle was assessed to reduce participant burden. Further, ovulation testing dates were based on self-reported cycle lengths, and only LH (luteinizing hormone) peaks were tested without subsequent progesterone rises. Conclusions: The results highlight the need for a symptom-specific approach to assess individual variance in cyclicity of depressive symptoms. Reliability for one daily assessment can be improved by using the afternoon value, a sum score for depressiveness, or multiple items per symptom. Furthermore, this study emphasizes, that depressive symptoms can systematically change across the menstrual cycle, and it is, therefore, important to include it in depression research. Exploring female-specific risk factors of depression will enable the development of person-tailored treatments. Trial registration: The study was preregistered at ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT04086316) with the first registration on 27/08/2019. Reproduced under CC-BY. ## Topics [Menstrual cycle and mood](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-cycle-mood/)[Reproductive hormone sensitivity](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-hormone-sensitivity/)[Low mood and depression](https://niyora.com/research/topics/symptom-depression-mood/)[Major depressive disorder](https://niyora.com/research/topics/comorbidity-major-depression/) 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 Review, 2012 Is depression linked to hormonal changes during the menstrual cycle, pregnancy, and menopause? Survey study, 2015 Does changing hormones during menopause cause depression? Cohort study, 2026 What genetic factors are linked to premenstrual symptoms? Systematic review, 2026 How often do mood disorders and PMS or PMDD occur together? Systematic review, 2026 Why do some women experience mood changes linked to their menstrual cycle? Randomised trial, 2025 Does taking an antidepressant only during the second half of your cycle reduce anger and aggression in PMDD? Ask AI about this page Copy prompt ChatGPT ↗ Claude ↗ Perplexity ↗ Google AI Mode ↗ Grok ↗