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Survey study, 1993

How do families cope when a woman has premenstrual symptoms?

Families with women who have more PMS symptoms use spiritual or religious coping more often. These families may also tend to keep problems private and avoid talking about them with others.

Early or limited evidence 104 couples

What they did

They recruited 104 couples from medical practices, community seminars, and media announcements and interviewed them about how their families cope with the woman's premenstrual symptoms.

What they found

Families with women who had high symptoms used spiritual or religious coping strategies more frequently than families with women who had low symptoms. Husbands were more likely to say the problem would go away if they waited long enough, especially when their wives had many symptoms.

What it means for you

Spiritual and religious support might help families manage PMS. But these families may not reach out to friends or community for help. We only know what families reported at one point in time, not whether coping changes over months or years.

104

couples interviewed

About the study

Original title
Family coping and premenstrual symptomatology
Authors
Ornitz AW, Brown MA
Journal
Journal of obstetric, gynecologic, and neonatal nursing : JOGNN
Year
1993
Study design
Survey study
Participants
3
What was tested
None - this looked at how families naturally cope

Topics