The measurement of perimenstrual distress

This study was undertaken to explore whether the implicit requirement of phase comparison in menstrual research influences the data obtained. One hundred fifty Israeli women responded to the Menstrual Distress Questionnaire in an altered procedure. They rated their experience of behaviors and feelings during the nonmenstrual phase. Later, on a separate form, they rated their experience of the same behaviors and feelings during the menstrual and premenstrual phases. With this altered procedure, nonmenstrual distress scores were consistently higher than the perimenstrual scores. This pattern of results is the reverse of what most studies using the questionnaire have shown and does not seem to justify treating the perimenstrual period as especially problematic.