Survey study, 1982
Does how a girl experiences her first period affect her adult PMS symptoms?
No. Negative memories of first menstruation had little effect on current menstrual attitudes or symptoms. Current attitudes about menstruation were more strongly linked to current symptoms.
What they did
179 women aged 18 to 35 were surveyed about their memories of their first menstruation, their current attitudes toward menstruation, and their current premenstrual and menstrual symptoms.
What they found
Negative recollections of first menstruation had little effect on current menstrual attitudes. Positive recollections of first menstruation were surprisingly associated with more premenstrual and menstrual negative affect and impaired performance. Current menstrual attitudes were more strongly associated with women's current menstrual symptoms than memories of first menstruation.
What it means for you
How a girl experiences her first period does not strongly shape her adult PMS symptoms. Current beliefs about menstruation matter more than childhood memories. The main limitation is that the study was survey-based with no measurement of actual biological factors.
179
women studied
18 to 35
age range
About the study
- Original title
- Recollections of menarche, current menstrual attitudes, and perimenstrual symptoms
- Authors
- Woods NF, Dery GK, Most A
- Journal
- Psychosomatic medicine
- Year
- 1982
- Study design
- Survey study
- Participants
- 179
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.1097/00006842-198207000-00006
Topics
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