Existing as a woman means experiencing systematic oppression and discrimination. It is not always overt, but research indicates that any oppressed group has an increased risk for mental health issues due to the psychological distress oppression and discrimination cause. Concerns we often focus on in therapy for women’s issues are:
- Power imbalances in relationships, work, family dynamics
- Unrealistic/harmful depiction in the media
- Limited economic resources/opportunities
- Work inequities and how to advocate for oneself in the workplace
- Victimization or violence
- Motherhood
- Overwhelm and anxiety from political action
Women’s issues are not limited to these experiences. Any experience you have as a woman with mental health challenges is impacted by your experiences as a woman. For example, if you struggle with chronic illness, you may have experienced unfair and improper treatment from healthcare professionals. Data shows that women are often taken less seriously and dismissed more frequently than men in healthcare settings.
Women’s issues therapy is not only for cis-gendered women. It is an inclusive service for cis-gendered and non-cisgendered women.
Feminist Therapy:
Feminist therapy is a therapeutic framework that prioritizes acknowledging all types of oppression, an egalitarian relationship between the client and therapist, the intersection of a client’s personal and political contexts, honoring the client as the expert of their own experience, commitment to social change and activism and a strength-based approach. I incorporate principles of feminist therapy when seeing clients regardless of the issue they are focusing on, but a lot of those principles are amplified during counseling for women’s issues.
What We’ll Focus On:
If you seek out counseling for women’s issues, we will prioritize:
- Healing and empowering your connection with yourself
- Developing healthy coping mechanisms
- Setting boundaries at work, in relationships, in the family
- Addressing the intersection of womanhood with other experiences
- Developing techniques for self-advocating in any setting
- Connecting you with community