A Nurse’s Guide to Hormones and Mental Health: Menstrual Tracking Insights
Course Overview
Hormonal fluctuations across the menstrual cycle don't just affect physical health—they have measurable, clinically significant mental health implications that are still widely misunderstood, underdiagnosed, and often dismissed in practice. This episode breaks down the hormone-mood connection, explains the phases of the menstrual cycle and what's happening neurochemically in each, and explores how menstrual tracking can be used as a clinical tool to identify patterns, differentiate conditions, and guide care.
Listen, Learn, and Earn CE Hours with this podcast course. Available on Apple, Spotify, and other podcast apps.
Learning Outcomes
Upon the completion of this course, the learner should be able to:
- Describe the hormonal changes across each phase of the menstrual cycle (follicular, ovulation, luteal, menstrual) and their known effects on mood, cognition, and behavior.
- Differentiate between PMS, PMDD, and premenstrual exacerbation (PME) of other psychiatric conditions using clinical criteria.
- Explain the neurobiological mechanisms linking estrogen, progesterone, serotonin, GABA, and allopregnanolone to mood regulation.
- Apply prospective menstrual tracking tools as a diagnostic strategy for premenstrual mood disorders.
- Identify evidence-based treatment approaches (pharmacological and non-pharmacological) and when to refer.
- Recognize the role of clinician awareness, patient validation, and interdisciplinary collaboration in reducing diagnostic delays for hormone-related mental health conditions.
About the Author/Presenter
Dr. Candace Pierce, DNP, RN, CNE, COI is a nurse leader committed to ensuring nurses are well prepared and offered abundant opportunities and resources to enhance their skills acquisition and confidence at the bedside. With 15 years in nursing, she has worked at the bedside, in management, and in nursing education. She has demonstrated expertise and scholarship in innovation and design thinking in healthcare and education, and collaborative efforts within and outside of healthcare. Scholarship endeavors include funded grants, publications, and presentations. As a leader, Dr. PIERCE: strives to empower others to create and deploy ideas and embrace their professional roles as leaders, change agents, and problem solvers. In her position as the Sr. Course Development Manager for Elite, she works as a project engineer with subject matter experts to develop evidence-based best practices in continuing education for nurses and other healthcare professionals.
Erica S. Ramey, DNP, PMHNP-BC is a psychiatric nurse practitioner and an associate professor of nursing. She completed her Doctor of Nursing practice?at Vanderbilt University and completed her psychiatric nurse practitioner preparation at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. She has been in the mental-health field for 18 years. Her research and experience focus on child and adolescent mental-health, deprescribing, pre/peri/post-natal mental healthcare, and drug-gene compatibility.
Audience/Accreditations and Approvals
TRC Healthcare/ NetCE
In support of improving patient care, this activity has been planned and implemented by TRC Healthcare/ NetCE. TRC Healthcare/NetCE is jointly accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), and the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC), to provide continuing education for the healthcare team.
This course is designed for the following healthcare professions (select your profession for details):
Nursing
If you require special accommodations, please contact Colibri Healthcare Support by clicking here: Contact Us
