Women who participate in this part of the study collect a first morning urine sample 4 menstrual cycles a year ( 1 per quarter). They keep it frozen until it is picked up either at their home or at a group collection site. There are group collections at Southwest Community Center and Rainier Park Medical Center alternatively two weekends surrounding sample collection dates. For optimum results, the specimens need to arrive at the University's -70 degree freezer within 56 days. Summer vacations and snowstorms present some challenges, and occasionally months of collection are skipped for trips to distant lands, camping trips, or just to lighten the load of this 4 year commitment.

Lab handling of the specimens includes "Pee Parties" every quarter or so in which laboratory staff divide samples into smaller vials for the various hormone and catecholamine lab tests that will be run in large batches at a later date.

Women complete a diary three evenings a quarter, surrounding the date of their urine sample. They report symptoms, medications, and stress levels, along with caffeine, cigarette, and alcohol intake. These experiences provide each woman's picture of her experience of the days reflected physiologically in the urine sample. Those who were in the original study may remember filling out regular handwritten diaries, the predecessor of the current scanner-friendly diary. The questions on the current diary come in large part from the findings of the more labor-intensive hand written ones. There is still space for handwritten notes on the current diaries to enhance communication when the slots don't seem to fit exactly.

Once diaries arrive at the University, the research assistants review them and prepare them for scanning. Scanning itself is computerized, but the diaries and later the data from them are combed over very closely to minimize inconsistencies between them and the calendar and urine collection data.