{"id":484,"date":"2026-05-19T12:45:52","date_gmt":"2026-05-19T12:45:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/2026\/05\/19\/premenstrual-dysphoric-disorder-is-associated-with-higher-risk-of-suicide-heres-how-we-hope-our-new-tool-will-help\/"},"modified":"2026-05-19T12:45:52","modified_gmt":"2026-05-19T12:45:52","slug":"premenstrual-dysphoric-disorder-is-associated-with-higher-risk-of-suicide-heres-how-we-hope-our-new-tool-will-help","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/2026\/05\/19\/premenstrual-dysphoric-disorder-is-associated-with-higher-risk-of-suicide-heres-how-we-hope-our-new-tool-will-help\/","title":{"rendered":"Premenstrual dysphoric disorder is associated with higher risk of suicide \u2013 here\u2019s how we hope our new tool will help"},"content":{"rendered":"
PMDD is often misdiagnosed or under-diagnosed.<\/span> Prostock-studio\/ Shutterstock<\/a><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Every month, between 3% and 8% of women<\/a> and people assigned female at birth will experience debilitating emotional, cognitive and sometimes physical symptoms in the week or two before menstruation.<\/p>\n

This condition, known as premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD), is a severe mood disorder that has a significant impact on life<\/a>. It is also associated with increased risk of suicide. <\/p>\n

The majority of those with PMDD experience suicidal thoughts before their period, around one in three attempt suicide and more than half engage in self-harm<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Research also suggests that people with PMDD may be seven times more likely<\/a> to attempt suicide, and twice as likely<\/a> to die by suicide than women and people assigned female at birth who don\u2019t have PMDD. <\/p>\n

Despite the serious impacts PMDD has, it typically remains under-diagnosed, misdiagnosed<\/a> and often inappropriately managed. Sadly, in my work researching PMDD, I often hear from people seeking help \u2013 either for themselves, their daughters, sisters, partners or friends. Their common fear is risk of suicide, and the \u201cdesperate\u201d lack of tailored support available. <\/p>\n

My colleagues and I have developed a new tool to help health professionals understand suicidal behaviour in those with PMDD. We hope this leads to people receiving timely and tailored support. <\/p>\n

Suicide risk in PMDD<\/h2>\n

There are a few key factors that researchers suggest could explain why people with PMDD are at a heightened risk of suicide.<\/p>\n

The overarching factor is the menstrual cycle. <\/p>\n

In people with PMDD, the brain appears unusually sensitive<\/a> to normal hormone fluctuations. This can disrupt brain systems involved in regulating mood, emotion and impulse control during the luteal phase of the cycle (between ovulation and the first day of menstruation), making this a high-risk phase for suicidal thoughts and behaviour. <\/p>\n

Emotional dysregulation<\/a>, another core element of PMDD, may also have an influence. This is characterised by frightening mood changes, including low mood, anger, anxiety and hopelessness. <\/p>\n

Emotional dysregulation means that people with PMDD have increased sensitivity to perceived rejection and heightened responses to relationship conflict<\/a>, all of which may influence suicide risk in the weeks before menstruation.<\/p>\n

Hormonal triggers may also play a role. Starting, stopping or changing the dose of hormonal treatments<\/a> (such as hormonal contraception), the postpartum phase<\/a> after pregnancy and perimenopause<\/a> are commonly associated with mental health crises in people with PMDD. These triggers are important to understand so that people can be supported in the right way by health professionals. <\/p>\n

Life circumstances may play a role as well, with research suggesting that past trauma<\/a> significantly increases the likelihood of being diagnosed with PMDD. This is a potential mechanism for heightened suicide risk \u2013 a relationship that is well-established in other mental health conditions<\/a>. <\/p>\n

Research suggests a link between neurodiversity and PMDD<\/a>, too. This is an interesting finding, given that people with autism<\/a> or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder<\/a> (ADHD) already have a higher risk of attempted and completed suicide than the general population. More studies are starting to explore this link to help us better understand suicide-related experiences of people with both neurodivergence and PMDD. <\/p>\n

\n \"A
\n The monthly nature of PMDD leaves many feeling hopeless.<\/span>
\n Trismegist san\/ Shutterstock<\/a><\/span>
\n <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Experiences with health services can also be a source of distress for people with PMDD. Many experience repeated dismissal<\/a> of their symptoms or misdiagnosis. <\/p>\n

People report<\/a> feeling \u201chelpless\u201d and like they\u2019re trapped in a \u201cvicious cycle.\u201d For many people, these feelings can last from adolescence until menopause (around 40 years), leading to a build up of exhaustion<\/a>. <\/p>\n

When my colleagues and I speak with people with PMDD, they say they become so exhausted they \u201cjust want to disappear\u201d \u2013 a sign of heightened suicide risk known as passive suicidality<\/a>. Many of them describe how they don\u2019t want to end their life, they \u201cjust need the cycle to stop for a while.\u201d This is an important insight, given they will experience around 450 menstrual cycles<\/a> in their lifetime. <\/p>\n

Overall, people with PMDD describe feeling \u201cout of control\u201d<\/a>. Many people tell us that their suicide attempts were \u201cimpulsive,\u201d rather than planned \u2013 leaving them confused and frightened afterwards. <\/p>\n

Preventing suicide<\/h2>\n

Despite suicide prevention<\/a> being an important priority<\/a> for different stakeholders, there are still limited PMDD-specific suicide prevention interventions.<\/p>\n

And although treatments are available<\/a> for PMDD, they may not work for everybody and may not address suicidality. <\/p>\n

\n

\n
\n
\n Read more:
\n Premenstrual dysphoric disorder: the frightening psychological condition suffered by Dixie D’Amelio<\/a>
\n <\/strong>
\n <\/em>\n<\/p>\n

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Alongside colleagues from the University of St Andrews, the University of Glasgow and University of the West of Scotland, we have tried to address this by developing a new model that we hope will support health professionals in understanding of PMDD and suicide risk. <\/p>\n

We did this by applying PMDD to an existing model<\/a> for identifying suicidal behaviour in the general population. Our new model<\/a> demonstrates how predisposing factors (such as hormonal triggers) can lead to the formation of suicidal thoughts and behaviour. <\/p>\n

The model will help health workers to understand how the timing of the menstrual cycle may influence risk assessment. It will also inform discussions with patients \u2013 such as asking \u201chow often do you feel this way?\u201d rather than \u201chow long have you felt this way?\u201d \u2013 and embed menstrual cycle tracking as routine practice.<\/p>\n

Although our research has yet to be put into formal practice, we hope the model will help patients and professionals identify monthly patterns in suicide risk and ultimately improve care for those living with this frightening and exhausting disorder.<\/p>\n

\n

If you\u2019re struggling with suicidal thoughts, the following services can provide you with support:<\/em><\/p>\n

In the UK and Ireland \u2013 call Samaritans UK at 116 123.<\/em><\/p>\n

In the US \u2013 call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255) or IMAlive at 1-800-784-2433.<\/em><\/p>\n

In Australia \u2013 call Lifeline Australia at 13 11 14.<\/em><\/p>\n

In other countries \u2013 visit IASP or Suicide.org to find a helpline in your country.<\/em><\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

Lynsay Matthews receives (or has received) funding from Medical Research Scotland, Royal Society of Edinburgh, Research England, University of the West of Scotland, ESRC Impact Accelerator Award and National Institute for Health Research. She is affiliated with the International Association for Premenstrual Disorders UK (IAPMD UK). <\/span><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

PMDD is often misdiagnosed or under-diagnosed. Prostock-studio\/ Shutterstock Every month, between 3% and 8% of women and people assigned female at birth will experience debilitating emotional, cognitive and sometimes physical symptoms in the week or two before menstruation. This condition, known as premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD), is a severe mood disorder that has a significant […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-484","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/484","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=484"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/484\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=484"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=484"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=484"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}