---
title: What is the best treatment for PMDD and depression in women? | Niyora
description: For severe PMDD symptoms, doctors recommend antidepressant medication combined with therapy. For mild symptoms, therapy alone or lifestyle approaches may work
url: https://niyora.com/research/papers/the-expert-consensus-guideline-series-treatment-of-depression-in-women-2001/
---

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- What is the best treatment for PMDD and depression in women?

Guideline, 2001

# What is the best treatment for PMDD and depression in women?

For severe PMDD symptoms, doctors recommend antidepressant medication combined with therapy. For mild symptoms, therapy alone or lifestyle approaches may work as well or better than medication.

 Moderate study design

Expert consensus from 36 doctors; recommendations for women with PMDD, pregnancy depression, postpartum depression, perimenopause depression

## What they did

Expert consensus study. Thirty-six leading doctors (90% of those invited) reviewed evidence and rated 858 treatment options for four conditions: PMDD, depression in pregnancy, postpartum depression in breastfeeding women, and perimenopause or menopause depression.

## What they found

Experts reached consensus on 76% of treatment options. For severe symptoms in all four conditions, the first-line recommendation was antidepressant medication combined with other modalities (generally psychotherapy). For milder symptoms, experts sometimes gave equal endorsement to other treatment modalities such as nutritional or psychobehavioral approaches (in PMDD), hormone replacement (in perimenopause), or preferred psychotherapy over medication. In all mild cases, antidepressants were recommended as at least a second-line option.

## What it means for you

Treatment should match symptom severity. Severe PMDD warrants medication plus therapy. For mild symptoms, you may have other options including therapy and lifestyle changes before trying medication. This is expert opinion, not based on new research trials.

36

expert doctors who participated

858

treatment options rated

76%

consensus reached on options

## About the study

Original title The Expert Consensus Guideline Series. Treatment of depression in women Authors Altshuler LL, Cohen LS, Moline ML et al. Journal Postgraduate medicine Year 2001 Study design Guideline What was tested Various treatments: antidepressants, psychotherapy, nutritional approaches, hormone replacement Read the paper [https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11500997/](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11500997/)

## Topics

[Premenstrual syndrome (PMS)](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-pms/)[Premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD)](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-pmdd/)[Low mood and depression](https://niyora.com/research/topics/symptom-depression-mood/)[SSRIs and antidepressants](https://niyora.com/research/topics/treatment-ssri/)[Psychotherapy, counselling and education](https://niyora.com/research/topics/treatment-psychotherapy/)[Major depressive disorder](https://niyora.com/research/topics/comorbidity-major-depression/)[Perimenopause and menopause](https://niyora.com/research/topics/comorbidity-perimenopause/)[Pregnancy and postpartum](https://niyora.com/research/topics/comorbidity-postpartum/)

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?

Review, 2004

How should PMDD be treated with antidepressants?

Survey study, 2002

What treatments work for depression linked to the menstrual cycle and PMDD?

Review, 2001

What is the best treatment for depression and anxiety disorders, including PMDD?

Review, 2010

Does the menstrual cycle make mental and physical health problems worse?

Randomised trial, 2005

Can estrogen treat depression linked to hormonal changes?

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