During the peripubertal period, menarcheal status is a risk factor for emotional/behavioral problems regardless of family structure. This result is compatible with previous studies. Among the group of girls, there was no difference in age as the samples had been selected to represent a narrow range on developmental grounds. Irrespective of menarcheal status, girls living in nonintact families reported more emotional behavioral problems than those from intact families. An interactive effect between family structure and menarcheal status was found on depressive symptoms. The follow-up results imply that the presence of menses should be assumed as a risk factor for girls living in a nonintact family environment and vice versa. In conclusion, the joint effects of living in a nonintact family and menarche can be considered as involving complex mechanisms acting differentially on depressive and behavioral problems as assessed by adolescent girls. Adolescence is characterized by a marked increase in internalizing problems such as depressive symptoms. Menarche is one factor explaining the sudden increase in internalizing maladjustment. This study investigated the relationship between depressive symptoms and emotional/behavioral problems in adolescent girls aged 12 to 13 years, menarcheal status and family structure, and considered whether the effect of family structure was the same in the presence or absence of menses. The Children’s Depression Inventory (CDI) and the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) were administered to a sample of 553 adolescent girls.