Case-control study, 1997
Do women with PMS perceive and handle stress differently at different times of their cycle?
Yes. Women with PMS perceive more stressors and find them more stressful during the premenstrual phase than women without PMS. They also cope with stress differently during this phase.
What they did
Women from a PMS clinic and control women without symptoms tracked stressors, how they coped with stress, and emotional and physical symptoms daily for one complete menstrual cycle.
What they found
Women with PMS reported facing more personal competency stressors before their period than after. During the premenstrual phase, women with PMS encountered more stressors and perceived them as more stressful than controls did. After their period, both groups perceived stress similarly. Women with PMS used a coping strategy called situational redefinition less often than controls during the premenstrual phase. For women with PMS, daily stressors were linked to emotional and physical symptoms both before and after their period.
What it means for you
Women with PMS may perceive and respond to stress differently across their cycle in ways that increase symptoms. Stress perception and coping appear to play a role in PMS. The study used only self-report and didn't test any specific treatments.
1 full cycle
Study duration
About the study
- Original title
- Perceptual and coping processes across the menstrual cycle: an investigation in a premenstrual syndrome clinic and a community sample
- Authors
- Fontana AM, Badawy S
- Journal
- Behavioral medicine (Washington, D.C.)
- Year
- 1997
- Study design
- Case-control study
- What was tested
- Daily self-monitoring of stressors, coping, and symptoms
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.1080/08964289.1997.10543548
Topics
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