Abstract
Menarche, as a rite of passage, and menstruation, as an ongoing fact of a woman’s life, are central to women’s experience. The entry into and exit from reproductive capability seem clearly evident to most women. Until reliable birth control became available in the last century, the menstrual cycle governed women’s lives. The phenomenology of the menstrual cycle deserves the attention of psychoanalysts, because of both its presence during 30 to 40 years of women’s lives, and the possible clues it offers in understanding the complex interplay of psyche and soma in the generation of psychological experience.
Article Footnote
private practice
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
American Medical Association (1984). Womancare. New York: Random House.
Abplanalp, J. M. (1980). The psychoendocrinology of the menstrual cycle. In A. J. Dan, E. A. Graham, & C. P. Beecher (Eds.), The menstrual cycle,Vol. 1 (pp. 209–222). New York: Springer.
Barglow, P., & Schaefer, M. (1979). The fate of the feminine self in normative adolescent regression. In M. Sugar (Ed.), Female adolescent development (pp. 201–213). New York: Brunner/Mazel.
Basescu, C. (1984). Attitude about menstruation in mothers—adolescent daughter pairs. Doctoral dissertation, Yeshiva University, New York.
Benedek, T. (1952). Studies in psychosomatic medicine. New York: Ronald Press.
Benedek, T. (1973). Psychoanalytic investigations. New York: Quadrangle Press.
Berkovitz, I. H. (1979). Effects of secondary school experience on adolescent female development. In M. Sugar (Ed.), Female adolescent development (pp. 173–198). New York: Brunner/Mazel.
Bernstein, A. E., & Warner, G. M. (1984). Women treating women. New York: International Universities Press.
Bonaparte, M. (1931). Passivity, masochism, and femininity. International Journal of Psychoanalysis, 16, 325–333.
Brooks-Gunn, J., & Ruble, D. (1980). Menarche: The interaction of physiological, cultural and social factors. In A. J. Dan, E. A. Graham, & C. P. Beecher (Eds.), The menstrual cycle,Vol. 1 (pp. 141–159). New York: Springer.
Brooks-Gunn, J., & Ruble, D. (1982). The development of menstrual-related beliefs and behaviors during early adolescence. Child Development, 53, 1567–1577.
Brooks-Gunn, J., & Ruble, D. (1983). The experience of menarche from a development perspective. In J. Brooks-Gunn & A. Peterson (Eds.), Girls at puberty (pp. 155–178). New York: Plenum.
Brooks-Gunn, J., & Peterson, A. C. (Eds.) (1983). Girls at puberty. New York: Plenum.
Budoff, P. W. (1981). No more menstrual cramps and other good news. New York: Penguin.
Campbell, E. R. (1984). In favor of menstruation. Mothering, 27–29, Summer.
Cardinal, M. (1983). The words to say it. Cambridge, Mass.: Vanvactor and Goodheart.
Chern, M. M., Gatewood, L. C., & Anderson, V. E. (1980). The inheritance of menstrual traits. In A. J. Dan, E. A. Graham, & C. P. Beecher (Eds.), The menstrual cycle,Vol. 1 (pp. 123–130). New York: Springer.
Chodorow, N. (1978). The reproduction of mothering: Psychoanalysis and the sociology of gender. Berkeley: University of California Press.
Clower, U. L. (1977). Theoretical implications in current views of masturbation in latency girls. In H. Blum (Ed.), Female psychology (pp. 109–126). New York: International Universitites Press.
Dalton, K. (1979). Once a month. Claremont, CA: Hunter House.
Dan, A. J., Graham, E. A., & Beecher, C. P. (1980). The menstrual cycle, Vol. 1 New York: Springer.
Daniel, W. A. (1983). Pubertal changes in adolescence. In J. Brooks-Gunn & A. Peterson (Eds.), Girls at puberty (pp. 51–72). New York: Plenum.
Deutsch, H. (1945). The psychology of women. New York: Grune & Stratton.
Dinnerstein, D. (1976). The mermaid and the minotaur: Sexual arrangements and the human malaise. New York: Harper & Row.
Doctors, S. (1979). The symptom of delicate self-cutting in adolescent females: A developmental view. Doctoral dissertation, Yeshiva University, New York.
Douvan, E. (1970). New sources of conflict in females at adolescence and early adulthood. In E. Walker (Ed.), Feminine personality and conflict (pp. 32–44). Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole.
Dupon, C., & Bingel, A. S. (1980). Endocrinologie change associated with puberty in girls. In A. J. Dan, E. A. Graham, & C. P. Beecher (Eds.), The menstrual cycle,Vol. 1 (pp. 131–140). New York: Springer.
Fielding, D., & Bosankio, C. (1984). Psychological aspects of the menstruum and premenstruum. In A. Broome & L. Wallace (Eds.), Psychology and gynaecological problems. London: Tavistock.
Formanek, R. (1982). On the origins of gender identity. In D. Mendell (Ed.), Early female development (pp. 1–24). New York: Spectrum.
Frank, A. (1972). The mind of a young girl. New York: Pocket Books.
Freud, S. (1925). Some psychic consequences of the anatomical distinction between the sexes. In J. Strachey (Ed. & Trans.), The standard edition of the complete psychological works of Sigmund Freud, Vol. 19 (pp. 243–258). London: Hogarth.
Freud, S. (1931). Female sexuality. In J. Strachey (Ed. & Trans.), The standard edition of the complete psychological works of Sigmund Freud,Vol. 21 (pp. 223–243). London: Hogarth.
Freud, S. (1933). Femininity. In J. Strachey (Ed. & Trans.), The standard edition of the complete psychological works of Sigmund Freud, Vol. 22 (pp. 112–135). London: Hogarth.
Fromm-Reichmann, F., & Gunst, V. (1973). On the denial of women’s sexual pleasure: Discussion of Dr. Thompson’s paper. In J. B. Miller (Ed.), Psychoanalysis and women (pp. 8694). New York: Penguin.
Galenson, E., & Roiphe, H. (1977). Some suggested revisions concerning early female development. In H. Blum (Ed.), Female psychology (pp. 29–58). New York: International Universities Press.
Gilligan, C. (1982). In a different voice. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Giovacchini, P. L. (1979). The dilemma of becoming a woman. In M. Sugar (Ed.), Female adolescent development (pp. 253–272). New York: Brunner/Mazel.
Golub, S. (1981). Sex differences in attitudes and beliefs regarding menstruation. In P. Komnenich, M. McSweeney, J. A. Noack, & N. Elder (Eds.), The menstrual cycle,Vol. 2 (pp. 129–134). New York: Springer.
Graham, E. A. (1980). Cognition as related to menstrual cycle phase and estrogen level. In A. J. Dan, E. A. Graham, Sr C. P. Beecher (Ed.), The menstrual cycle,Vol. 1 (pp. 190–208). New York: Springer.
Halbreich, U., Ben-David, M., Assael, M., & Bornstein, R. (1976). Serum-prolactin in women with premenstrual syndrome. Lancet, 2, 654.
Hill, J. P., & Lynch, M. E. (1983). The intensification of gender-related role expectations during early adolescence. In J. Brooks-Gunn & A. C. Peterson (Eds.), Girls at puberty (pp. 201–228). New York: Plenum.
Homey, K. (1924). On the genesis of the castration complex in women. International Journal of Psycho-analysis, 5, 50–65.
Homey, K. (1926). The flight from womanhood. International Journal of Psycho-analysis, 7, 324–339.
Homey, K. (1932). The dread of women. International Journal of Psycho-analysis, 13, 348–360.
Homey, K. (1933). The denial of the vagina. International Journal of Psycho-analysis,14, 55–70.
Homey, K. (1935). The problem of feminine masochism. Psychoanalytic Review, 12, 241–257.
Homey, K. (1967). Feminine psychology. New York: W. W. Norton.
Janowsky, D. S., Berens, S. C., & Davis, J. M. (1973). Correlations between mood, weight, and electrolytes during the menstrual cycle: A reninangiotensin-aldosterone hypothesis of premenstrual tension. Psychosomatic Medicine, 35, 143–154.
Jones, E. (1935). Early female sexuality. International Journal of Psycho-analysis,16, 263–273.
Kay, M. A. (1981). Meaning of menstruation to Mexican-American women. In P. Komnenich, M. McSweeney, J. A. Noack, & N. Elder (Eds.), The menstrual cycle,Vol. 2 (pp. 114–123). New York: Springer.
Kestenberg, J. (1961). Menarche. In S. Lorand & H. Schneer (Eds.), Adolescents. New York: Hoeber Press.
Kestenberg, J. (1967a). Phases of adolescence. Part 1. Journal of American Academy of Child Psychiatry, 6, 426–463.
Kestenberg, J. (1967b). Phases of adolescence. Part II. Journal of American Academy of Child Psychiatry, 6, 577–611.
Kestenberg, J. (1975). Children and parents. New York: Jason Aronson.
Kestenberg, J. (1982). The inner-genital phase-Prephallic and pre-oedipal. In D. Mendell (Ed.), Early female development (pp. 181–226). New York: Spectrum.
Kleeman, J. (1977). Freud’s views on early female sexuality in the light of direct child observation. In H. Blum (Ed.), Female psychology (pp. 3–28). New York: International Universities Press.
Klein, J. R., & Litt, I. F. (1983). Menarche and dysmenhorrhea. In J. Brooks-Gunn & A. Peterson (Eds.), Girls at puberty (pp. 73–88). New York: Plenum.
Komnenich, P., McSweeney, M., Noack, J. A., & Elder, N. (1981). The menstrual cycle, Vol. 2. New York: Springer.
Lauersen, N. H., & Stukane, E. (1983). Listen to your body. New York: Bernel Books.
Lauerson, N. H., & Stukane, E. (1984). PMS: Premenstrual syndrome and you. New York: Pinnacle.
Lederer, W. (1968). The fear of women. New York: Grune & Stratton.
Lerner, H. F. (1977). Parental mislabeling of female genitals as a determiniant of penis envy and learning inhibitions in women. In H. Blum (Ed.), Female psychology (pp. 269–284). New York: International Universities Press.
Leshner, A. L. (1978). An introduction to behavioral endocrinology. New York: Oxford University Press.
Lessing, D. (1962). The golden notebook. New York: Bantam, 1981.
McClintock, M. K. (1971). Menstrual synchrony and suppression. Nature, 229, 225–244.
McClintock, M. K. (1978). Estrous synchrony and its mediation by airborne chemical communication. Rattus norvegicus. Hormones and behavior,10, 264–276.
McClintock, M. K. (1981). Major gaps in menstrual cycle research: behavioral and physiological controls in a biological context. In P. Komnenich, M. McSweeney, J. A. Noack, & N. Elder (Eds.), The menstrual cycle,Vol. 2 (pp. 7–23). New York: Springer.
Masters, W. A., & Johnson, V. (1966). Human sexual response. Boston: Little, Brown.
Miller, J. B. (Ed.) (1973). Psychoanalysis and women. New York: Penguin.
Miller, J. B. (1976). Towards a new psychology of women. Boston: Beacon Press.
Miller, P. Y. (1979). Female delinquency: Fact and fiction. In M. Sugar (Ed.), Female adolescent development (pp. 115–140). New York: Brunner/Mazel.
Money, J., & Ehrhardt, A. (1972). Man and woman, boy and girl. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press.
Paige, K. (1973). Women learn to sing the menstrual blues. Psychology Today, pp. 41–46, Sept.
Paige, K. E. (1983). A bargaining theory of menarcheal response. In J. Brooks-Gunn & A. Peterson (Eds.), Girls at puberty (pp. 301–322). New York: Plenum.
Parlee, M. B. (1980). Changes in moods and menstrual levels during the menstrual cycle in special naive subjects. In A. J. Dan, E. A. Graham, & C. P. Beecher (Eds.), The menstrual cycle, Vol. 1 (pp. 247–263). New York: Springer.
Person, E. (1985). Some new observations on the origin of femininity. In J. Strauss (Ed.), Women and analysis (pp. 250–264). Boston: G. K. Hall.
Peterson, A. (1979). Female pubertal development. In M. Sugar (Ed.), Female adolescent development (pp. 23–46). New York: Brunner/Mazel.
Peterson, A. (1980). Puberty and its psychosocial significance in girls. In A. J. Dan, E. A. Graham, & C. P. Beecher (Eds.), The menstrual cycle,Vol. 1 (pp. 45–55). New York: Springer.
Peterson, A. (1983). Pubertal change and cognition. In J. Brooks-Gunn & A. Peterson (Eds.), Girls at puberty. New York: Plenum.
Peterson, A., & Wittig, M. A. (1979). Differential cognitive development in adolescent girls. In M. Sugar (Ed.), Female adolescent development (pp. 47–59). New York: Brunner/Mazel.
Pliny, A (1961). Natural history (H. Rackham, Trans.). Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Reid, R. L., & Yen, S. S. (1981). Premenstrual syndrome. American Journal of Obstetrics, 139, 84.
Rierdan, J., & Koff, E. (1980). The psychological impact of menarche: integrative versus disruptive changes. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 9, 49–58.
Ritvo, S. (1977). Adolescent to woman. In H. Blum (Ed.), Female psychology (pp. 127–138). New York: International Universities Press.
Roiphe, H., & Galenson, E. (1981). Infantile origins of sexual identity. New York: International Universities Press.
Rosenbaum, M. B. (1979). The changing body of the adolescent girl. In M. Sugar (Ed.), Female adolescent development (pp. 234–252). New York: Brunner/Mazel.
Rossi, A. S. (1980). Mood cycles by menstrual month and social week. In A. J. Dan, E. A. Graham, & C. P. Beecher (Eds.), The menstrual cycle,Vol. 1 (pp. 56–71). New York: Springer.
Sherfey, M. J. (1972). The nature and evolution of female sexuality. New York: Random House.
Shopper, M. (1979). The (Re) Discovery of the vagina and the importance of the menstrual tampon. In M. Sugar (Ed.), Female adolescent development (pp. 214–232). New York: Brunner/Mazel.
Smolensky, M. H. (1980). Chronobiologic consideration in the investigation and interpretation of circamenstrual rhythms in women. In A. J. Dan, E. A. Graham, & C. P. Beecher (Eds.), The menstrual cycle,Vol. 1. New York: Springer.
Stewart, F. Guest, F. Stewart, & Hatcher, R. (1981). My body, my health. New York: Bantam.
Stoller, R. J. (1973a). The sense of femaleness. In J. B. Miller (Ed.), Psychoanalysis and women (pp. 260–272). New York: Penguin.
Stoller, R. J. (1973b). The ‘bedrock’ of masculinity and femininity: Bisexuality. In J. B. Miller (Ed.), Psychoanalysis and women (pp. 273–284). New York: Penguin.
Stoller, R. J. (1977). Primary femininity. In H. Blum (Ed.), Female psychology (pp. 59–78). New York: International Universities Press.
Stone, M. (1980). The borderline syndrome. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Strauss, J. (Ed.) (1985). Women and analysis. Boston: G. K. Hall.
Sugar, M. (Ed.). (1979). Female adolescent development. New York: Brunner/Mazel.
Thompson, C. (1941). The role of women in this culture. Psychiatry, 4, 1–8.
Thompson, C. (1942). Cultural pressures in the psychology of women. Psychiatry, 5, 331–339.
Thompson, C. (1943). Penis envy in women. Psychiatry, 6, 123–125.
Thompson, C. (1950). Some effects of the derogatory attitude towards female sexuality. Psychiatry, 13, 349–354.
Tobin-Richards, M. H., Boxer, A. M., & Peterson, A. C. (1983). The psychological significance of pubertal change: sex differences in perception of self during early adolescence. In J. Brooks-Gunn & A. Peterson (Eds.), Girls at puberty (pp. 127–154). New York: Plenum.
Toth, E., Delaney, J., & Lupton, M. J. (1981). The menstruating woman in the popular imagination. In P. Komnenich, M. McSweeney, J. A. Noack, N. Elder (Eds.), The menstrual cycle,Vol. 2 (pp. 104–113). New York: Springer.
Warren, M. P. (1983). Physical and biological aspects of puberty. In J. Brooks-Gunn & A. Peterson (Eds.), Girls at puberty (pp. 3–28). New York: Plenum.
Weiden, J. (1984). Menstrual attitudes, self and body image, and overall psychological adjustment in pre and post menarcheal girls. Doctoral dissertation, Adelphi University.
Wynne, L. C., & Frader, L. (1979). Female adolescence and the family: a historical view. In M. Sugar (Ed.), Female adolescent development (pp. 63–82). New York: Brunner/Mazel.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 1988 Plenum Publishing Corporation
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Shapiro, S.A. (1988). Menarche and Menstruation. In: Offerman-Zuckerberg, J. (eds) Critical Psychophysical Passages in the Life of a Woman. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4684-5362-1_6
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4684-5362-1_6
Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA
Print ISBN: 978-1-4684-5364-5
Online ISBN: 978-1-4684-5362-1
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive