Mental Health and Intersectionality

When thinking about mental health as a whole, we have to honor the close connection between wellbeing and identities. It is imperative to approach our conversations around mental health and mental health treatment from a multidimensional perspective that elevates and creates space for the diverse identities that make up a person. Each identity represents a set of unique values, experiences, and culture that will inform, impact, and be impacted by how the person navigates their world as well as worldviews and systems. Identities also are connected to privilege and oppression where some hold power within society and others tend to be marginalized due to how social systems have been historically set up. Considering the fact that each person will hold a varying composition of intersecting identities, they will also be uniquely positioned within societal structures holding power and being marginalized altogether at the same time.

Resources:

• Women's History Month
  2023 celebrates women who tell our stories
• Depression During and After Pregnancy
  Depression during and after pregnancy is common and treatable
• Depression Among Women
  Fact sheet about depression and post partum depression
• Women and Mental Health
  Symptoms of a mental health disorder can differ by gender 
• Facts about Women's Health
  Factors that impact women's overall health
• Intersectionality 101
  3-minute video introduction to Intersectionality
• A Beginner's Guide to Intersectionality
  The Body Is Not An Apology

Articles:

• The Intersectionality Wars
  When Kimberlé Crenshaw coined the term 30 years ago, it was a relatively obscure legal concept. Then it went viral.

• Intersectionality in the LGBTQIA Community
  International City/County Management Association (ICMA)