‘I’m sick of being called insane’: experiences of Australian healthcare support for premenstrual distress

Megan E. Buys

doi:10.1071/PY25133

RESEARCH ARTICLE (Open Access)

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‘I’m sick of being called insane’: experiences of Australian healthcare support for premenstrual distress

Megan E. Buys

^A ^*

+ Author Affiliations

- Author Affiliations

^A University of Notre Dame Australia, PO Box 944, Broadway, NSW 2007, Australia.

^* Correspondence to: megan.buys1@my.nd.edu.au

Australian Journal of Primary Health 31, PY25133 https://doi.org/10.1071/PY25133

Submitted: 9 July 2025 Accepted: 5 August 2025 Published: 26 August 2025

© 2025 The Author(s) (or their employer(s)). Published by CSIRO Publishing on behalf of La Trobe University. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND)

Abstract

Background

Despite increasing recognition of the lived-experience of premenstrual distress (PMD), research into individuals’ accounts of healthcare support for these conditions remains limited, particularly in Australia. This study aimed to qualitatively explore how individuals experience Australian healthcare support for PMD, with a focus on identifying helpful and unhelpful elements of care.

Methods

Qualitative data were collected through open-ended survey questions and one-to-one, in-depth interviews. Data were analysed using thematic analysis informed by The Listening Guide.

Results

A total of 106 survey respondents and 13 interview participants took part in the study. Participants’ experiences of Australian healthcare support for PMD reflected four main themes. The comprehensive experience described helpful experiences with healthcare providers who offered validating, knowledgeable and holistic care. The reductionist experience described experiences with superficial solutions that failed to address the complexity of participants’ experiences. The uninformed experience described experiences with healthcare providers who lacked awareness or understanding of PMD. The dismissed experience described experiences where participants’ concerns were minimised or invalidated by their healthcare providers.

Conclusions

Findings highlight both the presence of affirming care and the persistence of dismissive and inadequate responses within the Australian healthcare system. These results underscore the need for improved clinician education, trauma-informed and person-centred approaches, and a broader range of care options that are responsive to the complexity of PMD experiences.

Keywords: Australia, health care, PMDD, PME, PMS, premenstrual distress, premenstrual dysphoric disorder, premenstrual exacerbation, premenstrual syndrome, psychology, therapy.

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