Introduction
Mental health is a very important part of overall well-being, encompassing emotional, psychological, and social factors can that affect how one thinks, feels, and acts. Women often face unique mental health challenges due to biological, social, and cultural influences.
What are the Key Mental Health Concerns Facing Women Today?
One of the biggest challenges nowadays is to fight against mental illness. Women face a lot of mental health concerns, many of which are associated with social, economic, and biological factors. Some issues are as follows:
- Depression and Anxiety: In most of the findings in major depressive disorder there has been a higher prevalence in females. It generally affects the peaks of adolescence and then stabilises. Women experience approximately twofold higher rates than men, especially between menarche and menopause. Women generally report more typical symptoms of depression characterized by hypersomnia, increased appetite, and leaden paralysis compared with men. Separation Anxiety Disorder (SAD) appears to have higher prevalence rates in school-age girls than in school-age boys. Women are more frequently affected by Phobia than men, at a ratio of approximately 2:1. Animal, natural environment, and situational-specific phobias are predominantly experienced by women as compared to men. Panic attacks are more common in women than in men. For those who report panic attacks, women are more likely to endorse symptoms of shortness of breath and nausea but less likely to endorse sweating than men.
- Eating Disorder: Approximately 0.4% of young females experience anorexia nervosa within 12 months. Less is known about prevalence among males, but anorexia nervosa is less common in males than females, with clinical populations generally reflecting approximately a 10:1 female-to-male ratio. Binge Eating Disorder is equally prevalent among females from racial or ethnic minority groups as it is among white females. Twelve-month prevalence of bulimia nervosa in young females is 1%-1.5%. Bulimia nervosa is significantly less common in males than females, with a female-to-male ratio of approximately 10:1, and its point prevalence in males is less well-documented.
- Somatic Symptom Disorder: Females tend to report more somatic symptom disorder than males, and the prevalence of somatic symptom disorder is consequently likely to be higher in females.
- Pre-menstrual Dysphoric Disorder: Twelve-month prevalence of Pre-menstrual dysphoric disorder is between 1.8% and 5.8% of menstruating women.
Giving Psychoeducation to people regarding these concerns can help create a better environment for women’s mental health.
How Can Hormonal Changes Impact Women’s Mental Well-being?
Hormonal changes significantly impact the mental well-being of a woman throughout the various stages of life. These impacts can be linked to fluctuations in hormones. Some of the issues are as follows:
- Menstrual Cycle: Hormonal fluctuations are common during the menstrual cycle that affect the mental health of a woman. Many women experience premenstrual syndrome (PMS) or premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PDD), which leads to symptoms like irritability, depression, being on the edge and also may have symptoms of anxiety.
- Pregnancy: Pregnancy usually brings significant hormonal changes in a woman’s body. These changes impact mood as well, potentially leading to conditions such as prenatal depression and anxiety. Many women are affected after childbirth also known as postpartum depression which significantly affects the new mothers and babies.
- Body Image Issues: This issue can be created due to the standards of society and society media portrayals such as Instagram reels that can create unrealistic beauty, leading to body dissatisfaction, eating disorders, and other related mental health problems.
- Menopause: The transition that may involve fluctuating levels of estrogen and progesterone, eventually leading to lower levels of these hormones. Symptoms such as mood swings, irritability, and depressive symptoms are common during this phase.
- Reproductive Health Issues: Conditions like PCOD, PCOS or endometriosis can affect mental health due to chronic pain, hormonal imbalances, and impact on fertility.
What Role Do Social and Cultural Factors Play in Women’s Mental Health?
Social and cultural factors play a significant role in shaping women’s mental health. These factors can influence the prevalence, experience, and treatment of mental health issues. Some factors are as follows:
- Gender inequality can be one of the main reasons for women having mental health issues like depression and anxiety. Not giving men and women equal opportunity and many other reasons. Not giving equal education also can be one of the causes.
- When it comes to doing a job women are more likely to be paid less as compared to men and experience poverty in many parts of the world, which can lead to mental health problems like stress due to financial strain. In many parts of the world, women are also considered to be less capable than men.
- Women’s mental health can be impacted by the family role and responsibilities. The expectation of fulfilling traditional roles, such as caregiving, can increase stress levels and lead to conditions like depression and anxiety.
- Women who come from marginalized ethnic backgrounds face compounded stress due to both gender and ethnic discrimination. Due to this, they face anxiety, and stress and also may face depression.
- In certain situations like dowry, rape, sexual assault, physical, verbal or sexual abuse where society says women are at fault the women may face mental health issues.
What Strategies and Support Systems Are Effective in Promoting Women’s Mental Wellness- 7 Tips
Promoting women’s mental wellness involves addressing unique challenges and strategies that can serve their specific needs. Here are some effective strategies to support their effectiveness:
- Firstly ensuring that women have access to mental health care and encouraging them to talk about their mental health issues without having any kind of taboo.
- Helping women to participate in support groups that can provide emotional support and also reduce isolation. Women often benefit from connecting with others who can share similar experiences.
- Providing Psychoeducational programs that talk about women’s mental health, including coping strategies and awareness, that empower women to manage their mental health in a better way.
- If a woman does regular physical exercise and follows a healthy diet it would significantly contribute to mental wellbeing. Exercise has been shown to reduce the symptoms of depression and anxiety, and maintaining a balanced diet supports overall well-being.
- Mindful practices like meditation and yoga are effective for improving mental wellness. These techniques help women manage their anxiety by promoting a greater sense of awareness and control.
- It is important to address the mental health issues that are unique to women, such as reproductive health and gender-based violence like sexual assault. There are specialized programs that will help in addressing these aspects and will improve the outcomes by providing targeted support.
- By increasing awareness and education the stigma will reduce surrounding mental health issues.
- Giving positive coping strategies would also help women out from dealing with their negative emotions.
Conclusion
Maintaining mental wellbeing is very essential for every woman at all life stages. Effective strategies include prioritizing self-care, seeking professional support, building strong social connections, practising mindfulness, managing stress, ensuring proper sleep, psychoeducation of people and having an active lifestyle and also giving some positive coping strategies for helping out women in every stage of their lives.
References
- Dixon, L., Kraemer, H. C., & Magar, E. (2017). Peer support in mental health services: A review of the evidence. Psychiatric Services,
- Biddlecom, A. E., & Fapohunda, B. M. (1998). “Socioeconomic influences on women’s mental health.” Health Economics, 7(3), 179-194.
- Berry, J. W. (2005). “Acculturation: Living successfully in two cultures.” International Journal of Intercultural Relations,
- Yonkers, K. A., & Amsden, L. (2003). Depression and anxiety during pregnancy: prevalence, risk factors, and treatment. Clinical Obstetrics and Gynecology,
- Freeman, E. W., Sammel, M. D., Lin, H., & Nelson, D. B. (2006). Hormones and depression during the menopausal transition. Journal of Women’s Health,
