Lab study, 2008
How do women talk about PMS with their partners?
Women have mixed feelings about calling their symptoms 'PMS' to partners. Some use it to explain their distress, but it can also become the only explanation for how they feel or be dismissed as not legitimate.
What they did
Researchers interviewed 60 Australian women between 2004 and 2006 about how they talked (or didn't talk) about PMS with their intimate partners. They asked why women chose to name PMS or avoid naming it, and what happened when partners brought it up.
What they found
Three main patterns emerged: women used 'PMS' to explain their distress; 'PMS' became the only explanation offered for their feelings; and women felt PMS wasn't accepted as a legitimate reason for their mood or behavior. The experience was often complex and mixed.
What it means for you
Healthcare providers working with couples should know that women have complicated feelings about using the 'PMS' label in relationships. For some it's helpful, for others it's limiting or stigmatizing. This affects whether women seek help.
60
Women interviewed
3
Main patterns found
About the study
- Original title
- A complex negotiation: women's experiences of naming and not naming premenstrual distress in couple relationships
- Authors
- Mooney-Somers J, Perz J, Ussher JM
- Journal
- Women & health
- Year
- 2008
- Study design
- Lab study
- Participants
- 60
- What was tested
- None—this is about women's lived experiences, not a treatment test
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.1080/03630240802134134
Topics
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