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Emotion regulation in women with premenstrual dysphoric disorder

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Abstract

Premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) is a psychiatric disorder that causes serious impairments in the functioning and quality of life of affected women. Until recently, research efforts were somewhat hampered by the lack of formal diagnostic criteria, which have now been codified as a category in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5). Better characterization of deficits in socioemotional functioning caused by PMDD may aid in improving treatment efforts. In this investigation, prospective symptom ratings, based on DSM-5 criteria, were used to measure PMDD symptoms in 36 women (18 with PMDD and 18 healthy controls). Two self-report inventories, the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire and the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale, were used to measure ability to regulate emotions, and socioemotional functioning was measured by inventories of social connectedness, perceived stress, and affect. Potential relationships between ability to regulate emotion and PMDD symptom severity, as well as other measures of socioemotional functioning and affective state, were tested. Women with PMDD reported significantly more behavioral impulsivity and greater difficulties in regulating emotion and in socioemotional functioning. Cognitive or behavioral strategies to improve these problems may benefit women with PMDD and help to alleviate distress caused by this disorder.

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Acknowledgments

We wish to thank Ms. Aqsah Choudhary and Ms. Chelsea Cox for assistance collecting and managing data. We also thank Dr. Steven Berman for his guidance designing this project.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, 90024, USA

    Nicole Petersen, Edythe D. London, Letty Liang, Dara G. Ghahremani & Rachel Gerards

  2. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, University of California Los Angeles, 10833 Le Conte Avenue, Room 27-139 CHS, Los Angeles, CA, 90024, USA

    Linda Goldman & Andrea J. Rapkin

  3. Department of Molecular and Medical Pharmacology, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90024, USA

    Edythe D. London

  4. Brain Research Institute, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90024, USA

    Edythe D. London

  5. Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, University of California Los Angeles, 740 Westwood Plaza, Mail code: 175919, Los Angeles, CA, 90024, USA

    Edythe D. London

Authors
  1. Nicole Petersen
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  2. Edythe D. London
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  3. Letty Liang
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  4. Dara G. Ghahremani
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  5. Rachel Gerards
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  6. Linda Goldman
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  7. Andrea J. Rapkin
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Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Edythe D. London or Andrea J. Rapkin.

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Author disclosures

This work was supported by R21MH098668 to E.D.L and A.J.R., and endowments from the Thomas P. and Katherine K. Pike Chair in Addiction Studies, and the Marjorie M. Greene Trust (E.D.L). The funding sources were not involved in the study design, collection, and analysis/interpretation of data, nor were they involved with the decision to submit the article for publication. The authors report no conflicts of interest.

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Petersen, N., London, E.D., Liang, L. et al. Emotion regulation in women with premenstrual dysphoric disorder. Arch Womens Ment Health 19, 891–898 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00737-016-0634-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00737-016-0634-4

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