---
title: When during the menstrual cycle do women with PMS feel their best?
description: Around day 11 of their cycle, during the natural estrogen surge before ovulation. Women with PMS show clear peaks at this time, while women without PMS don't
url: https://niyora.com/research/papers/distribution-of-positive-moods-in-women-with-the-premenstrual-syndrome-and-in-1995/
---

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- When during the menstrual cycle do women with PMS feel their best?

Study, 1995

# When during the menstrual cycle do women with PMS feel their best?

Around day 11 of their cycle, during the natural estrogen surge before ovulation. Women with PMS show clear peaks at this time, while women without PMS don't show this pattern.

 Moderate study design

44 women with PMS keeping 133 menstrual cycle records, 48 women without PMS keeping 100 cycle records

## What they did

44 women with PMS and 48 women without PMS kept daily mood records for multiple menstrual cycles (133 cycles for the PMS group and 100 cycles for the non-PMS group). Researchers analyzed when positive moods peaked.

## What they found

Women with PMS showed clear clustering of positive mood around day 11 of their cycle (days 10-12), which is when estrogen naturally rises before ovulation. Women without PMS did not show mood clustering at a particular time. The average cycle length was 27.6 days in the PMS group and 26.7 days in the non-PMS group.

## What it means for you

Women with PMS appear very sensitive to the natural estrogen surge that happens before ovulation, with moods peaking at that time. Women without PMS do not show this sensitivity. This suggests hormone changes affect mood in women with PMS in a specific way, but the study was observational.

44

women with PMS

48

women without PMS

11

day of peak positive mood in PMS group

## About the study

Original title Distribution of positive moods in women with the premenstrual syndrome and in normal women Authors Metcalf MG, Livesey JH Journal Journal of psychosomatic research Year 1995 Study design Study Participants 48 What was tested None. Women recorded their moods daily. Read the paper [doi.org/10.1016/0022-3999(94)00167-7](https://doi.org/10.1016/0022-3999(94)00167-7)

## Topics

[Premenstrual syndrome (PMS)](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-pms/)[Menstrual cycle and mood](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-cycle-mood/)

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.

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Does PMDD or PMS affect quality of life?

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