Raven-Symoné has defended her claim that men experience hormonal cycles comparable to menstruation.
The 38-year-old actress and comedian made the assertion during a recent episode of Tea Time with Raven and Miranda, the podcast she hosts with her wife, Miranda Pearman-Maday. Raven, a former child star known for That’s So Raven and The Cosby Show, argued that the men in her life go through recurring emotional downturns that resemble monthly periods.
“I think guys have periods,” Raven said during the exchange, prompting an immediate rebuttal from Pearman-Maday.
“Don’t give them that,” Pearman-Maday fired back. She referenced biological charts she had seen comparing hormonal fluctuations between men and women. “I saw this chart that was showing the peaks and valleys, ups and downs of a woman and her hormonal cycle over a month, and a man’s. Men just do not have the same level of fluctuation as a woman, and when we feel like different people, like, I know this experience. I wake up and think ‘what the hell?’ I look like a different human. And yeah, you actually do. You’re retaining water in a different way, your face is bloating, your eyes are sinking into the back of your head, your chin is protruding this way. It’s all hormones.”
Pearman-Maday, 32, continued by describing her own dramatic monthly variations. “In a month, I have two weeks where I’m unstoppable. The skin is glowing, the hair is hydrated. I’m super iconic in those two weeks. I look good, my body feels lighter. And then every other day of that month I’m like ‘kill me softly.'”
Raven maintained her position, drawing a distinction between physical menstruation and the hormonal shifts she observed. “I’m not giving men having a period as in the egg dropping, lining shedding experience,” she explained. “But guys have hormonal shifts. And maybe it’s not throughout the day, but maybe it’s through the whole entire month. I feel like, just for the men I know, they’re like —”
“You just know some really weird men,” Pearman-Maday interjected, laughing.
The exchange has since circulated widely, with medical experts noting that Raven’s broader point about male hormonal cycles carries scientific validity. Cisgender men do not experience uterine shedding or ovulation, but they do undergo hormonal fluctuations that affect emotional stability, energy levels, and temperament.
Women’s reproductive hormones follow an infradian cycle of roughly 28 days, while men primarily operate on a diurnal, 24-hour rhythm. Testosterone typically peaks in early morning hours, driving higher energy and focus, then declines steadily throughout the day.
However, researchers have also documented a phenomenon known as Irritable Male Syndrome, first identified by scientist Gerald Lincoln. IMS describes heightened emotional sensitivity, sudden irritability, lethargy, and depressive moods triggered by abrupt testosterone drops. These decreases are not calendar-based but can result from chronic stress, poor sleep, dietary changes, or illness.
When testosterone falls, men frequently report moodiness, anxiety, mental fog, and emotional withdrawal—symptoms that parallel premenstrual syndrome. Raven’s observation about the men in her life suddenly becoming irritable or overwhelmed aligns with this endocrinological framework, even if her terminology sparked debate.
The podcast episode marks another instance of the couple’s candid on-air dynamic, with Pearman-Maday regularly challenging Raven’s more provocative statements. The pair married in 2020 and launched their podcast to discuss relationships, pop culture, and personal experiences.
Raven-Symoné previously drew headlines for announcing she and Pearman-Maday had called off their engagement eight years prior, a revelation that prompted her to criticize online trolls who had attacked her appearance. The couple continues to co-host their show from Los Angeles.