Cohort study, 2026
How do beliefs about control and ways of handling emotions affect distress before your period?
Women who believed their premenstrual period was uncontrollable experienced stronger increases in distress before their period. Their general ways of handling emotions were linked to overall distress throughout the cycle rather than specifically to increases before the period.
What they did
94 French women filled out a questionnaire about their beliefs regarding the premenstrual period. They then reported their daily distress, how they used reappraisal and rumination to manage negative emotions, and their menstrual status each evening for 31 days. Researchers analyzed the data using multilevel modeling.
What they found
There was a general increase in distress during the premenstrual period, stronger in women who believed the premenstrual period was uncontrollable. Women who used less reappraisal (reframing thoughts) and more rumination (dwelling on problems) experienced higher distress throughout the entire menstrual cycle, not just before the period.
What it means for you
Beliefs specifically about losing control in the premenstrual period may be a key factor in premenstrual distress, separate from how women generally manage emotions. Targeting these specific beliefs in treatment might be more effective than addressing general emotion patterns. The study was limited to French women and a single 31-day period.
94
women studied
31
days of tracking
About the study
- Original title
- The role of emotion regulation dispositions and uncontrollability beliefs in premenstrual distress: An intensive longitudinal daily diary study
- Authors
- Larmanou M, Marais-Thomas H, Dauvier B et al.
- Journal
- Journal of psychosomatic research
- Year
- 2026
- Study design
- Cohort study
- What was tested
- None (observational study)
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.1016/j.jpsychores.2026.112961
Topics
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