Objective: Standards of care and treatment of premenstrual syndrome (PMS) vary. Non-drug psychosocial intervention therapy is recommended for women with any kind of discomfort or distress caused by PMS. The current study examined the effectiveness of group cognitive-behavioral therapy on the symptoms of PMS at a girls’ dormitory of North Khorasan University of Medical Sciences.
Method: In this quasi-experimental study, 32 female students with PMS who were majoring in nursing and midwifery and residing in the dormitory were selected using the convenience sampling method and were assigned to experimental and control groups. The Standardized Premenstrual Symptoms Screening Tool was used as the research tool. Eight sessions of cognitive-behavioral group therapy were held for the students
Results: There was a significant difference in psychological symptoms before and after cognitive-behavioral therapy (p=0.012). Furthermore, cognitive-behavioral therapy was effective on social interferences caused by PMS symptoms (p=0.012).
Conclusion: Group cognitive-behavioral therapy effectively alleviates PMS symptoms in female college students.