Assess the Premenstrual Symptoms and Coping Strategies Among Adolescent Girls

Abstract: Menstruation is a normal physiological impact on each girl's life. Menstruation is monthly uterine bleeding for 3-5 days after every 28 days from puberty till menopause. A change in mood, behaviour, appearance of some abnormal vague symptoms is often noticed in the second half of the cycle. Symptoms are severe enough to disturb the life cycle of a woman called premenstrual syndrome (PMS). The study aimed to assess the premenstrual symptoms and coping strategies among adolescent girls. The majority of the students suffered from premenstrual syndrome. Objective: to assess the premenstrual symptoms and coping strategies among adolescent girls. Methodology: A non-experimental descriptive research design was adopted in this study. Non probability convenient sampling technique was used to select the sample size of 30 adolescent girls. The assessment of premenstrual symptoms and coping strategies was carried out using a self-reported Likert's rating scale. Data was analyzed by using descriptive and inferential statistics. Result: Majority (93.3%) of the samples sometimes had physiological and psychological problems, 90% of them had behavioural symptoms. Majority (43.3%) of the samples always followed coping strategies and 16.7% of the samples sometimes followed coping strategies and 40% never followed any coping strategies. Conclusion: PMS was common among students at 18-24 years. The most common physical symptoms experienced by adolescent girls were headache, backache and lower abdominal pain. Adolescent girls used coping strategies as taking hot / cold drinks, do not express anger to others, and turn to study and forget things, hearing music and taking medications.

Keywords: Premenstrual Symptoms, physiological, psychological & behavioural symptoms, Coping Strategies, Adolescent Girls.