Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS) Examined Through a Feminist Lens

A pamphlet available at the Vancouver Women's Health Collective (VWHC), reproduced from an article presented at the Society for Menstrual Cycle Research Conference in San Francisco, May 20 1983. The pamphlet examines the medicalization of Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS), and the treatment of PMS as an illness. The author argues that the symptoms associated with PMS are perhaps better dealt with as symptoms of inequality and the subordination of women under patriarchy: treating women's symptoms is about treating women to be manageable and docile. The author is also critical of the use of progesterone to treat PMS, citing the unknown risks associated with its use. The author encourages women to try other treatments for PMS, non medical treatments, and consciousness-raising groups which promote women's shared knowledge.