Nightmares Fluctuate Across the Menstrual Cycle and May be More Pronounced in Women With Premenstrual Syndrome
Brain and Behavior February 28, 2025 Léa Dobler, Océane Richard, Emmanuelle Clerici et al. 2 citations
Women with premenstrual syndrome (PMS) may experience more frequent nightmares during the premenstrual phase of their menstrual cycle. In a case series of seven women who kept daily dream diaries and tracked PMS symptoms over one menstrual cycle, nightmare frequency increased premenstrually, though no formal statistical comparison was made between those with and without PMS. A therapy called imagery rehearsal therapy (IRT), conducted weekly for one month, significantly reduced nightmare severity overall, but this effect was not significant in the PMS subgroup. These findings suggest a link between PMS and nightmares that warrants further investigation in larger studies.