FLUCTUATIONS IN SYMPTOMS AND MOODS DURING MENSTRUAL CYCLE

Fifteen married, nulliparous women were studied longitudinally over two menstrual cycles. Changes in menstrual symptoms (pain, water retention, autonomic reactions), mood (anxiety, aggression, depression, pleasantness, activation), and sexual arousal were measured. Results indicated that these variables changed cyclically in relation to the menstrual cycle; that the 15 women were generally consistent from one cycle to another in their degree of symptomatology; that this consistency was greater for the intermenstrual than for the menstrual and premenstrual phases, suggesting greater variability of symptoms in these latter phases; and, that high and low premenstrual tension women tended to differ consistently from each other on negative affect throughout the cycle, as well as on another symptoms in other phases of the cycle. Consistently high premenstrual tension women may thus constitute an especially important group for endocrinologic studies. © 1969.