How Sleep Shapes Mood Across the Menstrual Cycle
This study examines how nightly sleep physiology predicts next-day mood across different phases of the menstrual cycle in naturally cycling women. Using repeated in-laboratory polysomnography (PSG), daily mood tracking, and a within-subject phase-confirmed design, we identified phase-specific relationships between sleep architecture and emotional outcomes. Greater REM sleep and slow-wave sleep (SWS) were associated with improvements in positive mood, while longer total sleep time and reduced wake after sleep onset (WASO) were linked to reductions in negative mood and anger. Importantly, these relationships varied across menstrual phases, demonstrating that the emotional benefits of sleep are not uniform across the cycle. The findings highlight menstrual cycle phase as a critical biological context for understanding how sleep supports emotional well-being in women.
REM Sleep Buffers Mood During Menstruation
This project investigates how menstrual cycle neuroendocrine dynamics shape the relationship between sleep and overnight mood change. In a longitudinal sample of naturally cycling women, we tested whether sleep stages interact with hormonal phase to predict next-day mood outcomes. Results revealed that REM sleep plays a particularly important role during menses, where greater REM duration was associated with improved overnight positive mood. These findings suggest that REM sleep may function as a protective mood-regulation mechanism during hormonally sensitive windows of the cycle. The work provides evidence that menstrual phase modulates sleep–emotion coupling and underscores the importance of incorporating female-specific biological rhythms into sleep and mental health research.
