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Health and Sickness: The Meaning of Menstruation and Premenstrual Syndrome in Women's Lives1
The experience of menstruation was examined through an analysis of women's narratives in order to understand perceptions of menstrual cycle changes. Research within a medical anthropology perspective was conducted with 43 women who volunteered for a study on the knowledge and understanding of menstruation and premenstrual syndrome (PMS) in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, from 1997 to 1999. Although most women accepted the PMS label and placed their cyclic changes within the realm of sickness, a small group of women were identified who conceptualized their cyclic changes in an extremely positive way thus reframing their experiences. More positive perceptions of menstrual changes may have a significant impact on the reevaluation of menstrual cycle fluctuations as sickness without devaluing the experiences of those women with severe changes.
KEY WORDS: health; sickness; menstruation; premenstrual syndrome: attitudes; perceptions; narratives.
INTRODUCTION
Menstrual cycle changes consist of a variety of bodily manifestations that are perceived in dramatically different ways by women. In a Canadian study conducted on women's perceptions of menstruation and PMS, some women 3 responded to a question on the meaning of menstruation with the following statements:
Mary: I love it. I just love it because I feel it's like a cleansing.
Shelby: I hate it, I hate it. It's still embarrassing for me.
Holly: Blood (laughter). Strength, health, women.
Jody: Pain, cramps, premenstrual tension, anxiety, and I can hardly wait for menopause.
Rosemarie: It's very special to be able to have that cycle ... it's all part of fertility and what it means to be a woman.
Claudia: I think of a really bad experience ... pain would be one of the things that come to mind ... I don't find it in the least bit pleasant or in any way healthy. It's just sort of a big bad part of the month.
Differences in the perception of menstruation are readily apparent in the discourse presented above. Some of this variation concerns bodily changes perceived as problematic and distressing, yet positive attitudes were also expressed. Nevertheless, the main focus of menstrual cycle research continues to concern changes that are commonly referred to as premenstrual syndrome, better known by its acronym PMS.
The label was...