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Study, 2025

How do relationship difficulties and emotional control affect the link between PMS and poor sleep?

Both relationship difficulties and how people manage emotions affect the link between PMS and sleep problems. When women suppress emotions more, PMS affects sleep differently.

Moderate study design 115 women in Pakistan

What they did

115 women in Pakistan completed questionnaires about PMS symptoms, sleep quality, relationship difficulties, and emotional regulation. Researchers looked at how these factors connected.

What they found

Relationship difficulties partially explained how PMS leads to sleep problems. Emotional regulation, specifically suppressing emotions, also played a role. When women suppressed emotions less, PMS had a greater effect on sleep quality.

What it means for you

Relationships and emotional management both matter for sleep in women with PMS. Helping women manage emotions and supporting their relationships might improve sleep. The main limitation is this was a one-time survey, so we cannot determine what caused what.

115

women surveyed

About the study

Original title
Premenstrual Symptoms and Sleep Quality among Pakistani Women: The Mediating Role of Interpersonal Relationships and Moderating Role of Emotional Regulation
Authors
Huma Iqbal, Hina Javed Rana, Maryam Hussain et al.
Journal
Applied Psychology Review
Year
2025
Study design
Study
Participants
115
What was tested
None (observational study)
Open access
Yes
Original abstract

Research indicates that due to premenstrual symptoms, women experience disturbed interpersonal relationships, adverse emotional regulation, and markedly impaired quality of sleep. The present study aimed to determine the mediating role of interpersonal difficulties and moderating role of emotional regulation between PMS and sleep quality. Urdu translated versions of Premenstrual Syndrome Scale, Emotional Regulation Scale, Interpersonal Difficulties Scale and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index were used. Sample size of 115 was selected based on G-Power Analysis. Study found interpersonal difficulties to be partially mediating (β=.02, p<.05) and emotion regulation (suppression) to be moderating (β= -.004, p<.05) between PMS and sleep quality. Furthermore, it was found that the effect of PMS on sleep quality remains significant at lower suppression levels. The study has important implication in understanding the role of psychological factors in improving sleep quality of females experiencing PMS.

Reproduced under CC-BY.

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