Psychology of the Menstrual Cycle

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Abstract
In the pre-ovulative phase, when estrogen is being produced in increasing amts., an active heterosexual trend is predominant. The post-ovulative phase, in which progesterone begins to be secreted, is accompanied by a shift of attitude. Interest is now more apt to be centered in the woman''s own body. Both phases seem psychologically to have a forward-looking character. The pre-menstrual phase, which already signalizes the failure of fertilization, radically alters the picture. While on the physiological side sex hormones are now at their lowest titre, on the psychological side, "eliminative" and "cleansing" trends appear. Attitudes of inferiority and guilt may be present. As a compensation, fantasies of pregnancy may occur. With the actual onset of menstruation and during the flow, a sense of depression, sometimes expressed as irritability, is not uncommon. This type of response becomes intelligible if the menstrual flow is regarded as the result of a biological frustration to which the woman is reacting psychologically as well. But as estrogen begins once more to increase with the beginning of a new cycle, a more positive orientation supervenes. All in all there could hardly be a more dramatically revealing demonstration of the unity of psyche and soma. As a problem in psychosomatic medicine, the relationships here are rich in possibilities for future research.

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