Coping with Premenstrual Syndrome: The role of Psychological Immunity

Abstract

Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS) is a common health problem that women of reproductive age generally deal with. It is a cluster of physical as well as emotional symptoms that appear on a regular basis before the onset of menstrual cycles. It is often marked by various psychological impairments such as mood swings, irritability, anxiety, depression etc. The present study tried to understand the role of one’s psychological immunity in ascertaining the extent of mental health issues experienced by such women and the coping mechanisms implemented by them. 120 women, experiencing severe as well as moderate level of PMS, were sampled for the study. The data was collected using Beck Anxiety Inventory, Beck Depression Inventory, Psychological Immune System Inventory and COPE Inventory. The results show a significant correlation between the mental health and the Psychological Immunity as well as the Coping strategies adopted by the women. Moreover, in order to find the extent of contribution the Psychological Immunity of the individual plays in determining the mental health and coping techniques used, multiple regression analyses were done. It shows that various dimensions of Psychological Immunity stand as a significant predictor of anxiety as well as depression experienced by the individuals. Further it was found that Self-regulation (a sub-system of Psychological Immunity) emerged as a significant predictor of Psychological Distress (negatively explaining 28.9 % of variance in Anxiety and 15.3% of variance in Depression). Moreover, Synchronicity and Social monitoring capacity too stood as significant predictor of coping strategies implemented by such cohorts. The findings reveal that Psychological Immunity possessed by such women has a crucial and defining role in determining not only the extent of mental health issues experienced but also the techniques used by them to cope with PMS.