--- title: Do how you think about your period and how you manage emotions affect PMS and PMDD? description: Yes. How you view your period and whether you reframe difficult thoughts (cognitive reappraisal) matter. Women who reframe thoughts had less distress, while t url: https://niyora.com/research/papers/psychological-correlates-of-premenstrual-distress-the-role-of-emotion-regulation-2026/ --- - [Niyora](https://niyora.com/) - [Research](https://niyora.com/research/) - [Library](https://niyora.com/research/library/) - Do how you think about your period and how you manage emotions affect PMS and PMDD? Survey study, 2026 # Do how you think about your period and how you manage emotions affect PMS and PMDD? Yes. How you view your period and whether you reframe difficult thoughts (cognitive reappraisal) matter. Women who reframe thoughts had less distress, while those who suppress feelings and deny menstrual impact had more. Moderate study design 572 women aged 18 to 46, mean age 27.5 years ## What they did Cross-sectional study with 572 women aged 18 to 46. All participants answered three questionnaires: one about emotion regulation strategies, one about attitudes toward menstruation, and one about premenstrual symptoms. ## What they found 51.7% met criteria for PMS and 19.9% for PMDD. Women who viewed menstruation as debilitating or bothersome had more distress. Cognitive reappraisal (reframing thoughts) was linked to lower distress. Expressive suppression (pushing feelings down) combined with denial of menstrual impact led to higher distress. ## What it means for you Your mindset and coping style matter for premenstrual distress. Women who reframe negative thoughts do better. The main limitation is that this was one point in time, so we cannot prove thinking differently causes less distress. 51.7% met criteria for PMS 19.9% met criteria for PMDD 572 women studied ## About the study Original title Psychological Correlates of Premenstrual Distress: The Role of Emotion Regulation and Menstrual Attitudes Authors I. P. Rontogianni, A. Papadopoulou, S. Bargiota et al. Journal European Psychiatry Year 2026 Study design Survey study Participants 572 What was tested None assessed Open access Yes Read the paper [doi.org/10.1192/j.eurpsy.2026.11041](https://doi.org/10.1192/j.eurpsy.2026.11041) Original abstract Introduction Premenstrual distress affects a substantial proportion of women, yet its psychological correlates remain underexplored. Emotion regulation and menstrual attitudes may play a key role in shaping premenstrual experiences. Objectives This study aimed to examine the association of emotion regulation strategies and menstrual attitudes with self-reported premenstrual distress, premenstrual syndrome (PMS) and premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) classifications. Methods A correlational design was employed with 572 cisgender women aged 18–46 (M = 27.5, SD = 7.3). Participants completed the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire, the Premenstrual Symptoms Screening Tool, and the Menstrual Attitude Questionnaire. Statistical analyses included correlation and mediation models. Results Based on PSST screening, 51.7% of participants met criteria for PMS and 19.9% for PMDD. Premenstrual distress was positively associated with the Menstrual Attitude Questionnaire subscales Menstruation as a Debilitating Event and Menstruation as a Bothersome Event , and negatively associated with Menstruation as a Natural Event and Anticipation and Prediction of Menstruation. Within emotion regulation strategies, Cognitive Reappraisal was independently linked to lower distress, underscoring its protective role, whereas Expressive Suppression showed weaker associations. Mediation analysis further demonstrated that the subscale Denial of Any Effect of Menstruation partially explained the association between Expressive Suppression and distress: women who minimized or dismissed menstrual impact showed higher levels of distress when also relying on suppression. This suggests that Denial of Any Effect of Menstruation may serve as a mechanism through which Expressive Suppression contributes to premenstrual distress. No other menstrual attitude subscales significantly mediated this relationship. Conclusions These findings underscore the critical role of emotion regulation and menstrual attitudes in shaping premenstrual experiences. They suggest that maladaptive attitudes, such as denial of menstrual impact, may exacerbate the negative effects of suppression, while cognitive reappraisal serves as a protective factor. Integrated mental health and medical approaches are needed to better support women with PMS and PMDD. Disclosure of Interest None Declared Reproduced under CC-BY. ## Topics [Premenstrual syndrome (PMS)](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-pms/)[Premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD)](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-pmdd/)[Mood swings and emotion regulation](https://niyora.com/research/topics/symptom-emotional-regulation/)[Cognition, concentration and memory](https://niyora.com/research/topics/symptom-cognition/)[Stigma, attitudes and culture](https://niyora.com/research/topics/life-area-stigma-culture/) 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 Study, 2025 Do women with PMDD who experienced childhood trauma have more trouble recognizing emotions? Case-control study, 2026 Do women with PMS handle emotions differently at different times of the cycle? Systematic review, 2025 Does teaching adolescent girls about their menstrual cycle and health help reduce period pain and PMS? Cohort study, 2023 Is PMDD a valid medical diagnosis? Randomised trial, 2026 Does acceptance and commitment therapy help women with PMS manage emotions and unhelpful thoughts? Cohort study, 2026 How do beliefs about control and ways of handling emotions affect distress before your period? Ask AI about this page Copy prompt ChatGPT ↗ Claude ↗ Perplexity ↗ Google AI Mode ↗ Grok ↗