A study found a link between the menstrual cycle and increased suicidal thoughts in women with a history of mental disorders.
- Women with a history of suicide are more likely to have suicidal thoughts during the perimenstrual phase, that is, in the days before or after the onset of menstruation.
- During the premenstrual phase, patients reported an increase in psychiatric symptoms, such as depression, anxiety, and hopelessness.
- In some volunteers, increased sensitivity to reproductive hormones could play a role in the influence of the menstrual cycle on suicidal thoughts.
Previous research has suggested that cyclical fluctuations in ovarian hormones influence acute suicide risk. However, they were carried out on small samples. In a new study, researchers from the University of Illinois at Chicago (United States) wanted to monitor how suicidal thoughts vary from day to day during the menstrual cycle. “As clinicians, we feel a responsibility to protect our patients from a suicide attempt, but we often don’t have much information about when we should be most concerned about their safety.” said Tory Eisenlohr-Moul, professor of psychiatry at UIC, in a statement.
Women are at increased risk of suicidal ideation during the premenstrual phase
For the purposes of their work, the scientists recruited 119 women who had had suicidal thoughts in recent months. By answering a questionnaire, participants had to assess their psychiatric symptoms (depression, hopelessness, anxiety, feelings of overwhelm, agitation, worthlessness, sensitivity to rejection, anger) and their suicidal thoughts daily during at least one menstrual cycle. Five phases of the cycle have been identified in connection with the start of periods and ovulation, i.e. an increase in the level of luteinizing hormone in the urine.
According to the results, published in the journal American Journal of Psychiatry, most patients in the study reported a significant increase in psychiatric symptoms, such as depression, anxiety, and hopelessness during the premenstrual and early menstrual phases, while others reported emotional changes at different moments of their cycle. The authors found that the specific psychiatric symptoms accompanying suicidal thoughts also varied from person to person. “Just because the cycle makes a person irritable, have mood swings or feel anxious, does not necessarily mean that it will have the same effect on suicidality for each person.”explained Tory Eisenlohr-Moul.
Menstrual cycle and suicidal thoughts: increased hormonal sensitivity at play
According to the team, an increased sensitivity of some people to reproductive hormones (estrogen and progesterone) could be at play in the influence of the menstrual cycle on suicidal thoughts. However, further studies need to be done to determine how this information could best be used by doctors to prevent suicide attempts. “We’re excited to use the best methods out there to try to create individual prediction models for each person, so we don’t put people in a box,” concluded Tory Eisenlohr-Moul.