Objective: This study examined women's moods on work and off days

during different phases of the menstrual cycle. Method: Self-reports of the

moods angry, happy, sad, stressed, tired, and anxious were obtained on two work and two off days during the luteal and follicular phases of the menstrual cycle in 203 nurses. Individual differences in anger expression, anxiety, and hostility were assessed. Results: Ratings of anxious, stressed, and tired were higher and happy and sad were lower on the workday than the off day. Menstrual cycle phase was associated with mood differences depending on the day (work, off work) and individual differences in personality traits. Conclusions: The experience of moods in everyday life is affected by overall levels of stress and phase of the menstrual cycle. The findings suggest the need to refine sociopsychobiological and clinical models of mood regulation and of risk for disease. (C) 2004 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

BACKGROUND: Recent studies have shown that depressive disorder is associated with impaired baroreceptor or baroreflex sensitivity, which is proposed to be a predisposing factor for sudden death in patients with manifest cardiac disease. These studies have not evaluated the afferent and efferent components of the cardiac baroreflex loop or other baroreflex mechanisms that regulate target processes (cardiac metabolism and blood pressure variability) related to the impairment. The objective of this study was to gain more insight into autonomic functioning in depressive disorder to more fully examine the potential basis for increased cardiac mortality. METHODS: The subjects were 28 women and men with unipolar major depression who were taking antidepressant medications and who were in partial remission and free of cardiovascular or other serious disease, and 28 healthy control subjects matched for sex, age, and ethnicity. The two samples were compared for negative affective dispositions (anger expression, hostility, defensiveness, anxiety), spontaneous (closed-loop) baroreflex activity, heart rate, heart rate variability, systolic blood pressure, and heart rate-systolic blood pressure double product under resting conditions. RESULTS: Depressed patients showed a general disposition to anger suppression coupled with higher hostility and anxiety, and lower defensiveness. The patients showed higher general sympathetic activity (high levels of blood pressure, low-frequency heart rate variability) and lower parasympathetic-related activity (high heart rate and reduced high frequency heart rate variability) with affected cardiac metabolism estimated by the double product. Depressed patients had lower baroreflex sensitivity related to a higher gain of the afferent component of the baroreflex without respective gain adjustment of its efferent component (reflex gain 'de-afferentation'). It was coupled with a compensatory higher number of effective baroreflex reactions (reflex gating 're-afferentation'). Antidepressant agents and depressed mood had additional independent effects on baroreflex sensitivity through the efferent component of the cardiac baroreflex loop. CONCLUSIONS: The data indicate that different baroreflex components and mechanisms may be impaired in patients with depression and may contribute to their increased cardiac risk.

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OBJECTIVE: This study examined women's mood responsiveness associated with patterns of stress hormone levels in everyday situations. METHODS: Self-reports of negative, positive, and energy dimensions of mood were obtained from 203 nurses throughout the day on a workday and on an off-work day during the luteal and follicular phases of the menstrual cycle. Individual differences in daytime norepinephrine and cortisol were assessed. RESULTS: Patterns of norepinephrine and cortisol levels were associated with ratings of the following moods: tired, sad, and happy. Phase of the menstrual cycle and the day factor (workday, off-work day) modified the association of mood ratings and stress hormone patterns. CONCLUSION: The experience of negative mood is associated with both hypoarousal and hyperarousal conditions. A homeostatic arousal-related concept of mood regulation is discussed.

Objective: This study examined women’s mood responsiveness on work and off days during different phases of the menstrual cycle. Methods: Self reports of negative, positive, and energy dimensions of mood were obtained throughout the day on two work and two off days during the luteal and follicular phases of the menstrual cycle in 203 women nurses. Individual differences in daytime and nighttime epinephrine, norepinephrine, and cortisol were assessed. Results: High daytime norepinephrine, epinephrine, and cortisol levels were associated with higher ratings of stress and tired, and with lower ratings of happy. Phase of the menstrual cycle and the day factor (work day, off day) were also associated with mood differences, and the direction of the effects depended on hormone levels and hormone sampling period. Conclusion: The experience of moods is affected by arousal-related interaction of hormone levels with phase of the menstrual cycle and occupational stress.

Preliminary findings support the potential of yoga as a complementary treatment of depressed patients who are taking anti-depressant medications but who are only in partial remission. The purpose of this article is to present further data on the intervention, focusing on individual differences in psychological, emotional and biological processes affecting treatment outcome. Twenty-seven women and 10 men were enrolled in the study, of whom 17 completed the intervention and pre- and post-intervention assessment data. The intervention consisted of 20 classes led by senior Iyengar yoga teachers, in three courses of 20 yoga classes each. All participants were diagnosed with unipolar major depression in partial remission. Psychological and biological characteristics were assessed pre- and post-intervention, and participants rated their mood states before and after each class. Significant reductions were shown for depression, anger, anxiety, neurotic symptoms and low frequency heart rate variability in the 17 completers. Eleven out of these completers achieved remission levels post-intervention. Participants who remitted differed from the non-remitters at intake on several traits and on physiological measures indicative of a greater capacity for emotional regulation. Moods improved from before to after the yoga classes. Yoga appears to be a promising intervention for depression; it is cost-effective and easy to implement. It produces many beneficial emotional, psychological and biological effects, as supported by observations in this study. The physiological methods are especially useful as they provide objective markers of the processes and effectiveness of treatment. These observations may help guide further clinical application of yoga in depression and other mental health disorders, and future research on the processes and mechanisms.

Preliminary findings support the potential of yoga as a complementary treatment of depressed patients who are taking anti-depressant medications but who are only in partial remission. The purpose of this article is to present further data on the intervention, focusing on individual differences in psychological, emotional and biological processes affecting treatment outcome. Twenty-seven women and 10 men were enrolled in the study, of whom 17 completed the intervention and pre- and post-intervention assessment data. The intervention consisted of 20 classes led by senior Iyengar yoga teachers, in three courses of 20 yoga classes each. All participants were diagnosed with unipolar major depression in partial remission. Psychological and biological characteristics were assessed pre- and post-intervention, and participants rated their mood states before and after each class. Significant reductions were shown for depression, anger, anxiety, neurotic symptoms and low frequency heart rate variability in the 17 completers. Eleven out of these completers achieved remission levels post-intervention. Participants who remitted differed from the non-remitters at intake on several traits and on physiological measures indicative of a greater capacity for emotional regulation. Moods improved from before to after the yoga classes. Yoga appears to be a promising intervention for depression; it is cost-effective and easy to implement. It produces many beneficial emotional, psychological and biological effects, as supported by observations in this study. The physiological methods are especially useful as they provide objective markers of the processes and effectiveness of treatment. These observations may help guide further clinical application of yoga in depression and other mental health disorders, and future research on the processes and mechanisms.